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Arrival of over 1,000 U.S. marines to Peru sparks debate in congress

Living in Peru
Israel J. Ruiz


Peru's government has authorized for a group of U.S. marines to carry out a humanitarian aid project in Ayacucho, a region located in the south-central Andes of the country.

According to opposition parties, the Andean country's government has authorized for "at least 1,000 armed U.S. marines" to be on Peruvian soil from Friday May 23 to September 10.

"These personnel will be entering the country to carry out the Humanitarian and Civic Assistance Program called "New Horizons 2008" in Ayacucho," said Peruvian congressional representatives after approving the government's request.

With nationalist leaders stating that the United States was looking to set up a military base in Peru, it was reported that the approval of the U.S. mission was not easy.

According to representatives, the topic was extensively debated.

Congresswoman Mercedes Cabanillas explained the mission included the construction of medical posts, water wells and school classrooms.

Peru's vice president called nationalists hypocrites for accepting aid from Cuba and Venezuela but refusing to accept help from the U.S.

"Ayacucho can't afford to turn away North American aid," said the vice president.

Ayacucho is remembered as the region that was worst affected by terrorism in the 1980s when Shining Path guerrillas began a war against Peru's government.

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# CapitanDan says :
22 May, 2008 [ 13:38 ]

Don't Freak out people. This is a good chance for the Marines to see what a beautiful and friendly country Peru is. They will build their humanitarian projects  and put dollars into the local economy.Many Marines are of Hispanic roots. It's good they see something other than CanCun , Tijuana or Puerto Rico. Their are probably more armed Peruvians in the U.S. than in this BLT. Chau

# E says :
22 May, 2008 [ 20:11 ]

Isn't there a war going on?  This is suspect.. oh well...

# U says :
23 May, 2008 [ 03:38 ]

This comment was deleted

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# FLDC says :
23 May, 2008 [ 07:56 ]

God - the lesser or three evils. I'd sooner die than my country accept "help" from the most ingnoble of leaders such as Chavez and the Castro clan.
Not overjoyed that the yankee-doodles are there, but oh well. Im not in government.

# Jason W. Smith, Ph.D. says :
29 May, 2008 [ 11:19 ]

Now that Garcia has brought capitalist combat troops into Ayacucho how long will it be until the civil war re-ignites and the killing begins? Perhaps the answer is with Bush and his Dark Lord Darth Cheney Garcia visited on behalf of his bosses (and Mr. Uribe) a few weeks ago.

# Jose Gutiérrez says :
31 May, 2008 [ 10:25 ]

To anyone who welcomes US military presence in Peru:

Enter the words "okinawa" and "marines" into Google, then press [enter].

Repeat search with the words "blackwater" and "iraq".

American policy is to insist on immunity for all their military personnel in foreign territory -- outside of the US of A. US soldiers cannot be tried for the crimes they commit while on foreign soil. Their government insists that this is done to "protect" their troops from any undue prosecution to which Americans are often subjected by the locals.

US policy is to insist on diplomatic-like immunity for individuals who are clearly not diplomats. The papers constantly report on US soldiers wandering off base, commiting crimes against the locals, and not being prosecuted by the local legal systems due to their "immunity."

The US insists that they "investigate" and "bring those guilty parties to trial," but more often than not, any investigation ends up in no charges, and even if they are tried, the suspect receives a slap on the wrist, and often, no time served.

If the troops are here to help the country, they're welcome. However, they should leave their "immunity" at the door. Peru (both the nation and the government) is not unfriendly to the US, but that will very quickly change if any soldier wanders off base, sexually attacks a child, then hurries back to the safety of their base, where they are free from the "undue" prosecution from the Peruvian legal system.

Considering the record of US troops misbehaving the moment they step into foreign land, I'm afraid that this is just a disaster waiting to happen.

# 1876 says :
31 May, 2008 [ 12:47 ]

Good  comment made by jose gutierrez!
 I totally agree with you. 
Much Respect to you.