Last week, the public learned of a series of threats against the life of Dr. Salomon Lerner the former president of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Peru (TRC).
The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL) express our deep concern over this new wave of threats against Dr. Lerner, who is currently the president of the Institute of Democracy and Human Rights at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. We urge the government of Peru to take immediate steps to ensure the personal safety of Dr. Lerner and his family and to begin a thorough investigation to determine who is responsible for these threats.
This new intimidation campaign against Dr. Lerner seems to be directly related to his status as the former president of the TRC and to his tireless work on behalf of human rights in Peru. Dr. Lerner's commitment to the promotion of human rights has led him to consistently pressure the Peruvian government to comply with the most important recommendations of the TRC, which were published in 2003. Indeed, Dr. Lerner's dedication to human rights led to his designation by Peru's current government to the commission responsible for elaborating a proposal to create a Museum of Memory.
WOLA and CEJIL reiterate our concerns regarding the threats against Dr. Lerner and urge the Peruvian authorities to investigate this case and guarantee the safety of Dr. Lerner.
For more information, contact:
John Walsh, Senior Associate for the Andes and Drug Policy, WOLA
jwalsh@wola.org, (202) 797-2171
Jo-Marie Burt, Ph.D, WOLA
jmburt@gmu.edu, +(511) 247-3934
Viviana Krsticevic, Director, CEJIL
vkrsticevic@cejil.org, (202) 319-3000