Shining Path Peru

Peru made headlines after achieving democracy in 1980 as a result of its long-running internal conflict. Internal fault lines between the individuals continued for more than a decade, far into the 1990s. It required the fall of the Fujimori dictatorship in 2001 for Peru to re-acquaint itself with peace (Holmes 2). Similarly to other countries, Peru determined to learn from its past and construct a brighter future for the next generation. Peru currently has a relatively growing economy and a stable government, which are bolstered by its primary exports. However, the past is haunting the nation after the re-emergence of violent political environment courtesy of the two remnant groups of the Sendero. This paper summarizes the insights by Jennifer S. Homes on Sendero Luminoso after Fujimori which translates to the shining path of Peru.
Dark past
As highlighted in the introduction, Peru came from the ashes of a dark past which saw millions of innocent citizens lose their lives and scores of others injured. The period between 1979 and 2001 was characterized by the devastating struggle which brought the country to its knees. Repression and state violence made the days as Tupac´ Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA), Marxist groups, Rondas and other illegal groups drove the society into chaos. Continued anarchy forced the President, Alberto Fujimori, to dissolve the congress as well as the judiciary. His actions amounted to a "self-coup" as it saw the end of democratic governance. However, Fujimori was soon to be re-elected after the capture of the Abimael Guzman, the leader of the Sendero Luminoso. The reign of Fujimori was short lived after he was faced with corruption charges which led to his exile and later his imprisonment.
Peru today
Peru is popularly known for its export of Cocoa. However, the gradual eradication of the cash crop has opened new economic avenues to some of its departments. The introduction of microfinance has led to the formation of development projects promising a prosperous economy with low inflation rates. Research also reports a ground-breaking poverty extermination progress in the country (Holmes 5). While the current success of Peru faces threats from two remnant groups of Sendero Luminoso, the nation is more prepared to face the violent groups and maintain its status quo. The population is also more aware of negative ethnicity and ideology which divides the country into the fault lines and fuel chaos. To the advantage of the nation, the violent groups do not cooperate in their missions as they possess varying allegiance to the mother group.
Sub-national perspective
The study of the impact of Sendero Luminoso in Peru requires the engagement of the sub-national characteristics. Otherwise, research activities and analysis will amount to biased results. The sub-national aspect aids to reveal the interrelationship between economic parameters and contemporary violence. From the view, it is easy to point out that Peru exhibits an uneven distribution of resources which reflects the unequal balance of security, growth, and development. As a result, we see that some departments experience a high level of terrorism while others do not have a single experience of the same. In fact, more than half of the Peruvian departments do not experience terrorist violence. In matters concerning growth and development, only 20% of the departments export oil nationwide. Similar differences are also reflected in the cocoa plantation. While 52% of the departments do not grow cocoa, other departments have more than 20,000 hectares of Cocoa plantations (Holmes 24). Thus, the variation in the Peruvian departments warrants a sub-national analysis.
Insurgency and war
To understand the causes of insurgency and war in modern Peru, the analysis abandons the traditional literature on war to venture into the economic and political elements promoting the re-emergence of the Sendero Luminoso. Three factors are found to cause the modern war and potential insurgency. These include,
• Prior conflict and Geography
• Government failure
• Poverty
The role of Peruvian government has been in question for the last couple of years. Government failure in providing equal security, services and development could contribute to the modern war as experienced in the country. High unemployment rates in most districts also bring misery to the majority. As result, miserable citizens are more susceptible to pledge their allegiance to the Sendero when compared to the working class in towns. Lastly, the history in terms of prior conflict forms as a breeding ground for political ideologies that could spur insurgency. The rough terrain also promotes guerilla warfare since it is difficult to monitor and control.
Conclusion
The Peruvian situation is on the verge of destruction if the government does not act swiftly. The growth of resources such as oil and cocoa plantation has a positive correlation with peace. While white collar jobs are rare in the rural areas, the government can improve its presence by supporting development projects that maximize on the production of cocoa and oil among other economic resources. Such activities are associated with lower instances of violence as people become committed to their work. To curb the evil brought by prior conflict and geography, the government is expected to make new policies and increase its spending on security in order to counter violence in modern Peru. All the efforts combined will lead to a shining path to Peru's prosperous and secure society.
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Works cited
Holmes, Jennifer S. Sendero Luminoso after Fujimori: A sub-national analysis. Dallas, University of Texas. Pr, 2015. Print.