Stories written by Ángel Páez
Ángel Páez has extensive experience working in Peru as an investigative journalist on stories about corruption, drug trade, political violence, arms trade and other forms of organised crime. He joined IPS as a correspondent from his country in 2005. Born in 1963, Páez studied journalism at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos in Lima and started working at the daily newspaper La República in 1985. In 1990 he founded the Unidad de Investigación, a collective of journalists that uncovered the corruption scandals surrounding the government of Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000). Páez was the first to publish a story on one of those cases, which later led the Chilean courts to hand in the perpetrator to the Peruvian authorities. A correspondent in Lima for the Argentinean newspaper Clarín and the Mexican magazine Proceso, Páez is a member of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a Washington-based organisation that promotes global investigations.

First day of "Women at Work, Women as Leaders" seminar. Credit: Luis Gamero/IPS

MEDIA-LATIN AMERICA: Women Deserve Better Press

By Ángel Páez
"The press will change when they cease to report exclusively from a masculine point of view," Peru's deputy Minister for Women, Norma Añaños, told participants at an international seminar for journalists on "Women at Work, Women as Leaders", held in the Peruvian capital.
Forced sterilisation victim Victoria Vigo continues to seek justice. Credit: Virgilio Grajeda/IPS

PERU: IACHR Calls for Justice for Victims of Forced Sterilisation

By Ángel Páez
The Peruvian government is once again being called on to bring to justice the perpetrators of the Voluntary Surgical Contraception (VSC) programme carried out by the Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) regime, under which tens of thousands of women were forcibly sterilised. This time, the demand comes from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
Alan García and Luis Giampietri Credit: Angel Páez

PERU: Vice President Accused of Corruption

By Ángel Páez
Vice President Luis Giampietri, accused of taking a hand in irregular arms deals in the 1990s, has the dubious distinction of being the highest-ranking member of the Peruvian government to face criminal charges for corruption.
Marco Arana jots down concerns, complaints and demands of indigenous peasant farmers. Credit: Courtesy of La República

Q&A: Peruvian Cardinal Does Not Want Rebel Priest as President

By Ángel Páez
Catholic priest Marco Arana, who is also a social and environmental activist, has not yet officially decided to run in Peru's next presidential elections, but he is already facing opposition from the highest-level Catholic Church officials in the country.

RIGHTS-PERU: Gov’t Seeks Legal Shield for Security Forces

By Ángel Páez
The Peruvian government has moved to protect the armed forces and police against investigations for crimes committed in the line of duty, especially in areas convulsed by social protests or where remnants of the Maoist Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) guerrillas are still active.

PERU: Fujimori Admits Wiretapping, Bribery

By Ángel Páez
Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori pleaded guilty Monday to wiretapping opposition lawmakers and journalists, bribing legislators to switch over to his side in Congress, and using public funds to purchase a cable news channel to back up his reelection campaign.

PERU: Former Minister Should Answer for Massacre in the Amazon

By Ángel Páez
"Did I have a feather on my head and kill the policemen myself?" Mercedes Cabanillas responded when journalists asked her if, as interior minister of Peru, she assumed responsibility for the operation that led to the deaths of 24 members of the police and at least nine indigenous protesters near the Amazon jungle town of Bagua.

LATIN AMERICA: Investigative Journalists Show Their Mettle

By Ángel Páez
"One way of ensuring the future of journalism is to improve content quality, and this means investigating what is deliberately hidden, like corruption," said Gerardo Reyes, a reporter for the Miami newspaper El Nuevo Herald, on a visit to the Peruvian capital.
Fujimori in court Credit: Peruvian judiciary

PERU: Fujimori Loses First Corruption Trial

By Ángel Páez
Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison Monday for giving 15 million dollars in public funds to his security chief Vladimiro Montesinos in the last few weeks of his government.

PERU: Fujimori Admits Illegal Payment to Spy Chief

By Ángel Páez
Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) admitted that he paid 15 million dollars to his former security chief Vladimiro Montesinos on Sept. 22, 2000, just a few hours before the adviser fled to Panama.

PERU: Three Days of Anti-Government Protests

By Ángel Páez
Wednesday was the second day of a three-day strike declared by trade unions and social movements in Peru to protest the economic policies of President Alan García.

PERU: Minister Tried to Promote Police Investigated for Massacre

By Ángel Páez
Peru’s Interior Minister Mercedes Cabanillas attempted to promote 11 police officials for their performance in the brutal Jun. 5 crackdown on native protests against government decrees that opened up indigenous land in the Amazon jungle to oil, mining, logging and agribusiness companies.

PERU: Govt Partly Backs Down in Standoff with Native Groups

By Ángel Páez
The Peruvian Congress repealed Thursday two of the most controversial decrees that sparked protests by indigenous groups which ended in bloodshed early this month.

PERU: Congress Probes Massacre; Prime Minister to Quit

By Ángel Páez
At the initiative of the opposition parties, the Peruvian parliament approved the creation of a committee to investigate the clash early this month between indigenous protesters and the police near the town of Bagua in the northern province of Amazonas, which according to official reports left a death toll of 34.

PERU: Sins of Her Father Visit Fujimori’s Daughter

By Ángel Páez
Keiko Sofía Fujimori, who is planning to run for president of Peru in 2011, is having difficulty proving that her father, who governed this country from 1990 to 2000, did not make illicit use of public funds to pay for her studies and those of her brothers and sister at universities in the United States.
Carlos Boloña,Alberto Fujimori and Federico Salas Credit: Palacio de Gobierno de Perú

CORRUPTION-PERU: Ex-Ministers’ Testimony Could Sink Fujimori

By Ángel Páez
The Peruvian justice system has the confessions of three convicted former ministers in the government of former President Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000), to support corruption charges against him, prosecutor Avelino Guillén told IPS.

Q&A: Fujimori Will Serve "At Least 18 Years"

By Ángel Páez
It is highly unlikely that the Peruvian Supreme Court will overturn or reduce the 25-year sentence handed down to former president Alberto Fujimori, because the verdict is well-supported, said chief prosecutor José Antonio Peláez.
Children in Lomas de Manchay Credit: Courtesy of La República

PERU: Where the Poor Pay More for Water

By Ángel Páez
In Lomas de Manchay, an area of slum-covered hills outside of the Peruvian capital that is home to 50,000 people, mainly poor indigenous migrants from the highlands, clean water is worth gold – almost literally.

Q&A: “Fujimori Gave the Order”

By Ángel Páez
With a sentence set to be handed down shortly in the trial of former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) for two notorious massacres of civilians – known as the Barrios Altos and La Cantuta killings – the prosecutor in the case, Avelino Guillén, said the defendant’s guilt has been amply proven.

RIGHTS-PERU: The Comforts of Impunity

By Ángel Páez
Retired military officers facing prosecution in Peru for cases of corruption or human rights violations allegedly committed during the 1980-2000 civil war are awaiting trial in the comfort of their homes.
General Otto Guibovich Credit: Courtesy of La República

RIGHTS-PERU: Army Chief Complains that Trials Hurt “Morale”

By Ángel Páez
Trials on human rights abuses committed during Peru’s 1980-2000 civil war hurt military morale because "they leave the impression that those of us who fought in the counterinsurgency war were only dedicated to killing civilians," said Peruvian army chief Otto Guibovich.
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