Interim Report - Report No 287, June 1993

Case No 1598 (Peru) - Complaint date: 20-AUG-91 - Closed

1. 392. The Committee has already examined this case on three previous occasions (see 281st, 284th and 286th Reports of the Committee, paras. 463 to 479, 962 to 971 and 412 to 425, approved by the Governing Body at its 252nd, 254th and 255th Sessions (March and November 1992 and March 1993)), when it presented interim conclusions.
2. 393. The Government sent new observations in communications dated 27 February and 14 April 1993. Peru has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention, 1948 (No. 87) and the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. Previous examination of the case

1. 394. The allegations which remained pending at the Committee's February 1993 meeting referred to the following issues which arose during the course of a strike which lasted several months in 1991: the arrest by the army of seven teachers on 17 May 1991 in the province of Ayacucho, the bodies of five of them having subsequently been discovered in a common grave; the disappearance of teachers Marcelino Navarro Pezo, Leopoldo Navarro Diaz and Luis Torres Camilo in the province of Ucayali-Pucallpa, and of the teachers Betty Panaifo, Nicolás Lavajo and Moisés Teneiro (who, according to the complainants, were thrown from a helicopter); the murder of teachers Porfirio Suni (13 May 1991), Pablo Mamani Marchena and Germán Maceda (24 May 1991) in the province of Pucará, Puno, and of the teacher Abdón Félix Pariona (who, according to the complainants, disappeared in the province of Huancavelica); the arrest of trade union leader José Ramos Bosmediano (General Secretary of SUTEP), Soledad Lozano Costa (Deputy General Secretary of SUTEP) and Auris Melgar (the officer responsible for international relations), who, according to the complainants, were subjected to brutal treatment and arrested in the course of the violent assault by the police against SUTEP trade union leaders on 30 May 1991.
2. 395. In view of the Government's failure to furnish sufficiently detailed observations in response to the allegations, the Committee made the following recommendations on the occasion of its last examination of the case (see 286th Report of the Committee, para. 425):
   • (a) extremely concerned by the seriousness of this case, the Committee deeply deplores the fact that the Government has not replied to the allegations concerning:
     • - the arrest by the army of seven teachers on 17 May 1991 in the province of Ayacucho, the bodies of five of them having subsequently been discovered in a common grave,
     • - the disappearance of teachers Marcelino Navarro Pezo and Luis Torres Camilo in the province of Ucayali-Pucallpa; and
     • - the murder of teachers Porfirio Suni (on 13 May 1991) and of Pablo Mamani Marchena and Germán Maceda (on 24 May 1991) in the province of Pucara, Puno.
       • The Committee once again urges the Government to conduct a judicial inquiry into these murders and disappearances with the aim of identifying the responsible parties and punishing the guilty.
     • (b) The Committee insists that the Government conduct inquiries to determine the whereabouts of the missing teachers (Betty Panaifo, Nicolás Lavajo, Moisés Teneiro and Leopoldo Navarro Díaz), and that it keep the Committee informed both in that respect and on the results of the proceedings concerning the murder of Abdón Félix Pariona.
   • (c) The Committee requests the Government to inform it as to whether the trade union leader José Ramos Bosmediano (General Secretary of SUTEP) has been prosecuted for the offence with which he is charged (disturbing the peace) and whether he is at liberty or still in detention, and also to indicate whether Soledad Lozano Costa (Deputy General Secretary of SUTEP) and Auris Melgar (SUTEP officer responsible for international relations) are in detention or free.

B. The Government's reply

1. 396. In its communication dated 27 February 1993 the Government states that the violence perpetrated by extremist groups over a period of 12 years has cost the country 25,000 deaths and financial losses in the order of $25,000 million. In a joint effort with the civil population and the forces of law and order, the Government is making efforts to bring peace to the country.
2. 397. The Government states that almost all of the SUTEP trade union leaders against whom physical attacks were allegedly made are subversive elements connected with the Tupac Amaru (MRTA) revolutionary movement and with the Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) which, under Peruvian law, amounts to treason, for which the maximum penalty is life imprisonment under the provisions of Legislative Decrees Nos. 25475 and 25659. In these circumstances, SUTEP is in no moral position to denounce the Government over alleged violations of trade union rights when its highest leader, along with other of its members, are subversive elements operating in collusion with drug traffickers who violate the human rights of every citizen of Peru.
3. 398. More specifically, the Government reports that Marcelino Ramírez Pezo was detained by the Peruvian Navy and subsequently handed over to the Judicial Police in Ucayali on 23 May 1991 on suspicion of having links with subversive elements; that the teacher Leopoldo Navarro Díaz was not detained by the Navy, and that this fact led the Public Prosecutor's Office provisionally to shelve the case; that lecturer Abdón Félix Pariona García died as a result of subversive action; that on 2 June 1991, the teacher Moisés Teneiro Banda Bazán, appearing to be in good physical and mental condition, was interviewed in a political affairs programme on television, during which he denied having been thrown from a helicopter; that the teacher Nicolás Lavajo López is a member of the Tupac Amaru (MRTA) revolutionary movement and that he probably took part in the subversive attack in the town of Rioja in the San Martín region; that the teachers Betty Panaifo, Pablo Mamani and Germán Maceda have been neither detained nor captured; that, with regard to the alleged murder of the teacher Porfirio Suni Quispe, he provided constant support to Shining Path terrorists and took part in the organization of peasant squads, his last activity having taken place on 11 May 1991 in the town of Juliaca, Puno, where he took part in a meeting of peasant communities.
4. 399. As regards the SUTEP trade union leaders (arrested on 30 May 1991 according to the complainant organization), the Government, in a communication dated 14 April 1993, states that Nicolás Olmedo Auris Melgar was released on 16 April 1992 and that the teacher Soledad Lozano Costa was not arrested.

C. The Committee's conclusions

1. 400. The Committee regrets the difficult and violent situation which the country has been experiencing for several years and which has led to huge losses of human life and economic resources, and takes note of the efforts that the Government has been making to bring peace to the country. The Committee notes that the Government stated generally that the highest leader of SUTEP and others of its members are subversive elements linked to the Tupac Amaru revolutionary movement, the Shining Path and to drug traffickers, all of which violate the human rights of the population.
2. 401. The Committee wishes to emphasize that, in accordance with its mandate, its responsibility in the present case is to express its position in relation to the allegations of murder, disappearance, detention and physical assaults against SUTEP leaders and members and, if necessary, to evaluate any behaviour on the part of such persons which might have gone beyond the exercise of trade union rights or which could imply that crimes or terrorist acts have been committed. The Committee therefore reminds the Government of the importance of presenting, with a view to their objective examination, detailed and accurate replies as to the substance of the alleged occurrences.
3. 402. In this connection, the Committee once again deplores that, despite the extreme seriousness of the allegations, which date from 1991 and which refer to the murder, disappearance and detention of trade unionists from the teaching profession, the Government has not sent detailed and accurate information on the majority of those allegations, or has done so in an incomplete and imprecise manner.
4. 403. The Committee therefore once again deplores the fact that the Government has not replied to the allegations concerning the arrest by the army of seven teachers on 17 May 1991 in the province of Ayacucho, the bodies of five of them having subsequently been discovered in a common grave; the disappearance of the teacher Luis Torres Camilo in the province of Ucayali-Pucallpa; the murder of teacher Porfirio Suni (on 13 May 1991), the Government having gone no further than relating his last movements up until 11 May 1991 and of teachers Pablo Mamani and Germán Maceda (on 24 May 1991) in the province of Pucará, Puno, in which connection the Government states that they had not been detained. In these circumstances, the Committee once again urges the Government to carry out a judicial investigation into these murders and disappearances with the aim of identifying the responsible parties, punishing the guilty and determining the whereabouts of those persons who have disappeared. It is necessary that the Government transmit detailed and accurate information on the allegations of the complainant organization; if the above-mentioned persons are or have been involved in subversive actions, court decisions confirming that fact should be submitted.
5. 404. As regards the allegation that teachers Betty Panaifo, Nicolás Lavajo and Moisés Teneiro were thrown from a helicopter, the Committee notes that the Government denies that the teacher Moises Teneiro Banda Bazán was thrown from a helicopter and that it states that he was interviewed on 2 June 1991 on a televised political affairs programme, at which time he appeared to be in good physical and mental condition. The Committee takes note that according to the Government, the teacher Betty Panaifo is not under arrest, and that the teacher Nicolás Lavajo López probably took part in the subversive attack in the town of Rioja. The Committee would like to know whether the latter's death occurred in that context. As regards the other missing trade unionists (Marcelino Navarro Pezo, Leopoldo Navarro Díaz and Abdón Pariona García), the Committee notes that the Government confirms the death of lecturer Abdón Felix Pariona García as the result of subversive action, that teacher Marcelino Ramírez Pezo (Navarro Pezo according to the complainants) was handed over to the Judicial Police in Ucayali on 23 May 1991 on suspicion of having links with subversive elements, and that the teacher Leopoldo Navarro Díaz was not detained by the Navy, his case having been provisionally shelved by the Public Prosecutor's Office.
6. 405. In these circumstances, the Committee once again strongly insists that the Government open judicial inquiries to determine the whereabouts of Mr. Leopoldo Navarro Díaz who has allegedly disappeared. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed in that respect, and also to indicate whether the teacher Marcelino Ramírez Pezo (handed over to the Judicial Police in May 1991 on suspicion of having links with subversive elements) has been released or is being prosecuted, indicating, in the latter case, the specific nature of the charges being brought against him.
7. 406. As regards the allegation concerning the arrest by the police of trade union leaders José Ramos Bosmediano (General Secretary of SUTEP), Soledad Lozano Costa (Deputy General Secretary of SUTEP) and Auris Melgar (the officer responsible for international relations) on 30 May 1991, the Committee notes that Soledad Lozano Costa was not arrested and that Nicolás Olmedo Auris Melgar was released on 16 April 1992. The Committee urges the Government to indicate whether trade union leader José Ramos Bosmediano has been prosecuted for the offence with which he was charged (disturbing the peace).

The Committee's recommendations

1. 407. In the light of its foregoing interim conclusions, the Committee invites the Governing Body to approve the following recommendations:
   • (a) The Committee regrets the difficult and violent situation which the country is experiencing and expresses its deepest concern at the fact that, despite the extreme seriousness of the allegations, which date from 1991 and refer to the murder, disappearance and detention of trade unionists from the teaching profession, the Government has not sent detailed and accurate information on the majority of those allegations, or has done so in an incomplete and imprecise manner.
   • (b) The Committee once again deeply deplores the fact that the Government has not replied to the allegations concerning the arrest by the army of seven teachers on 17 May 1991 in the province of Ayacucho, since the bodies of five of them were subsequently discovered in a common grave, or to those concerning the disappearance of teacher Luis Torres Camilo in the province of Ucayali-Pucallpa, and the fact that the Government has supplied incomplete and imprecise information concerning the murder of teachers Porfirio Suni (on 13 May 1991), Pablo Mamani and Germán Maceda (on 24 May 1991) in the province of Pucará, Puno. The Committee once again urges the Government to conduct a judicial inquiry into these murders and disappearances with the aim of identifying the responsible parties, punishing the guilty and determining the whereabouts of the missing persons. It also requests the Government to provide further details concerning the death of teacher Nicolás Lavajo López.
   • (c) The Committee once again insists that the Government conduct judicial inquiries to determine the whereabouts of teacher Leopoldo Navarro Díaz who allegedly disappeared and to keep the Committee informed in that respect. It also request the Government to indicate whether teacher Marcelino Ramírez Pezo (handed over to the Judicial Police in May 1991 on suspicion of having links with subversive elements) has been set free or is being prosecuted, indicating, in the latter case, the specific nature of the charges being brought against him.
   • (d) The Committee once again urges the Government to inform it as to whether trade union leader José Ramos Bosmediano has been prosecuted for the offence with which he is charged (disturbing the peace).
   • (e) The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that trade union rights may be exercised in a normal manner, and once again draws the Government's attention to the fact that a climate of violence which gives rise to the murder or disappearance of trade union leaders and trade unionists constitutes a serious obstacle to the exercise of trade union rights and that such acts call for prompt and effective measures by the authorities to rectify such a situation.