BY HILDA CUZCO
In a show of force and blatant brutality, Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori personally directed the April 22 storming of the Japanese ambassador's residence killing all 14 guerrillas who were holding 72 hostages. With the full support of the military, the government of Fujimori took upon itself to end the four-month standoff. His actions won open support from capitalist and imperialist governments around the world.

Members of the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) seized the building December 17, puncturing the air of invincibility the Fujimori regime had built up. The MRTA demanded freedom for 400 of their comrades who are being held in harsh conditions in Peruvian jails.

U.S. government officials applauded the murderous assault and praised Fujimori for his refusal "to give in to terrorism." U.S. defense secretary William Cohen said the Peruvian government "acted responsibly," adding that Washington played "virtually no role. We have offered services to the Peruvian government, the exact nature of which I really can't say."

State Department spokesperson Nicholas Burns blamed the rebels. "One thing is clear," he said, "the MRTA bears the full responsibility for this outcome. We are not going to second guess the Peruvian government."

According to a NOTIMEX wire story, CNN in Spanish reported that the Central Intelligence Agency supplied the Peruvian government "advice" and "high technological surveillance equipment," adding that Washington "even provided [the Peruvian government] with a Schweizer airplane supplied with special surveillance equipment to track down the movements within the residence" where the MRTA members held 72 hostages.

CIA spokespeople refused to comment when asked by reporters if it had aided the regime in preparations for the assault.

Referring to the two soldiers and a Supreme Court Justice Carlos Giusti Acuńa who were killed during the attack, Fujimori said he was "sorry for the loss of three human lives," showing his consistent contempt for the guerrillas. MRTA members claimed the following day that three of the young fighters inside the residence laid down their weapons and tried to surrender, but were shot down by the commandos.

The surprise attack took place around 3:30 in the afternoon and lasted about 40 minutes. Among the 25 hostages wounded were Foreign Minister Francisco Tudela and Japanese Ambassador Morihita Aoki. The rebels had been taken by surprise as they played indoor soccer in the main hall of the residence. Others were sleeping when 150 special forces troops attacked the residence through the front door with explosives, from the rear, and through the roof. All 14 rebels, most of them men and women less than 20 years old, died in the attack. This included Nestor Cerpa Cartolini, the 43-year-old leader of the group.

The MRTA rebels had seized the Japanese ambassador's residence in the exclusive suburb of San Isidro, near the capital city Lima, during a diplomatic social gathering celebrating the birthday of Japan's emperor. The rebels captured more than 500 hostages included high ranking Peruvian officials, local and foreign diplomats, and entrepreneurs. The MRTA released most, keeping 72 people hostage. Among them two cabinet ministers, two ambassadors, police and military officials, and Japanese and businessmen. Six U.S. citizens were released a week after the takeover.

In the assault, carried out in broad daylight and in the presence of hundreds of local and international reporters and television networks, the combined military contingent - elite naval troops, police and army special units - quickly ran to their positions under the command of president Fujimori who was stationed in a nearby building.

Troops set off a huge explosion in a tunnel under the main hall that rocked the residence, which was followed by an assault by commandos who charged inside the compound with intense firing. Reportedly two blasts occurred, combined with intense firing that lasted less than an hour, while heavy smoke and fire flames could be seen from the roof.

After the slaughter, Fujimori arrived in the compound with the authoritarian arrogance that has characterized his six-and-a-half year rule wearing a bright blue bulletproof vest amid the last explosions. "I didn't waver for a single minute in giving the order for this rescue operation," said Fujimori as he bragged that there was no other way to end this crisis. The celebration ceremony, presided over by the president, concluded with the singing of the national anthem, and later he addressed the nation to explain his decision and to praise the soldiers.

Washington did not hesitate, however, to place all the blame of the military blasts on the MRTA rebels. While president William Clinton, who hosted Fujimori in Washington during the crisis, did not make an immediate statement after the attack, he expressed relief that the hostage crisis in Peru was over. While claiming he "not entirely taken by surprise" about the military storming at the residence, Cohen insisted that Washington had received no "official warning" of Fujimori's decision. "I believe that the Peruvian government acted in a responsible fashion," said Cohen in an interview with CNN.

The Japanese government, while regretting they were not advised of the surprise attack, expressed full support for the Peruvian government's actions. "There should be no one who can criticize President Fujimori for this decision," Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto told reporters in Tokyo. The Chief Cabinet Secretary, Seiroku Kajiyama said the "timing could not have been better."

A statement from the Vatican said that result of the hostage-taking "was a lesson to terrorists," while Pope John Paul II expressed "profound grief" for the deaths in the raid.

Capitalist regimes in Latin America also backed the assault. From the Dominican Republic, president Leonel Fernández, who had offered asylum to the guerrillas, congratulated president Fujimori. "I lament the loss of life and that injuries resulted from the military operation, but I celebrate the fact that most of the hostages were rescued unharmed," said Fernández.

President Carlos Menem of Argentina said he "would have acted in the same way, the same manner," and praised Fujimori for his "spectacular courage."

United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan applauded "the determined efforts by the government of Peru over the past several months to find a negotiated solution." During the crisis Fujimori carefully built up an international image that he was doing all he could to negotiate the release of the guerrillas.

Equally, the Jornal do Brasil, a Brazilian daily, made a similar statement. "Fujimori unleashed the right blow at the right time," it said. Contrasting with these celebrations, a group of demonstrators painted "Murderers" and "Fujimori Assassin," on the walls of the Peruvian Embassy in Guatemala City, while others threw stones breaking windows and guards fired into the air in retaliation.

Meanwhile, Isaac Velazco an spokesman for the MRTA told the Associated Press Television in Germany that the "blood spilled will never be forgotten, and sooner or later, justice will be done in Peru." The rebels had refused any kind of safe passage if their main demand of freeing their 400 jailed comrades were rejected by the Peruvian government.  
 
 
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