Peruvian Concerns
Dear Population Research Institute,
My name is Rafael Rey Rey. I am a congressman in the Peruvian Congress. Only a few days ago I had the opportunity to peruse the January/April 1996 issue of your magazine and paid especial attention to the article, written by David Morrison and entitled “With honor aborted: A closer look at Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori.”
Quite recently we have strongly opposed Mr. Fujimori in not uncertain terms regarding population control (a matter in which, incidentally, we share common perspectives with your magazine).
Like this issue, there have been a number of others in which we have strongly contested Mr. Fujimori and his congressional majority. The point being made, I would now like to express my personal views regarding the above referred article. My first reaction and impression are quite negative.
Mr. Morrison’s sources are basically the U.S. State Department, Gustavo Gorriti and a couple of’ reports and journals. To begin with the U.S. State Department, I think I would not be unfair if I were to affirm that its appraisal of the human rights problem in Peru comprises a maximalist view that would by no means be officially applied to the same field of study in the U.S. The question would be why would we expect absolute respect for human rights of all the individuals in Peru and not apply the same measure in any other country of the world, including the U.S.?
Mr. Gorriti is a well-known antagonist of the current political regime in Peru. His are views which he has all the right in the world to sustain and disseminate. But the author of the article should, I would expect, at least try to obtain a contrast with some other source in which the alternate position may be considered. Then Mr. Morrison quotes “one prominent Peruvian publication” the periodical The Tablet. In the edition of 26 August 1995, appears a certain Mr. Michael Garnett’s article entitled “A Napoleon of Peru.”
The truth is our best weapon to fight population control policies. There is a very delicate balance that should be maintained. I do not think that that article gives the kind of help we really need. More than anything because it gives the impression that we do not have adequate arguments and that we cannot perceive what the rationale of our crusade really is.
Sincerely yours,
Rafael Rey Rey
Representante al Congreso
Lima, Peru
Editors’ reply: Since Mr. Rey takes issue primarily with the context of the facts presented in the story, and not the facts themselves, it seems his argument is more with the U. S. Department of State, Mr. Gorriti and international human rights organizations than it is with us. For the record we should state that we attempted to contact someone at the Peruvian embassy to the United States to comment on Mr. Fujimori is population control program but were told, several times, that no one was available.
We regret that our endnote did not make it clear that The Tablet is published in the United Kingdom. It was that journal’s Peruvian correspondent, not us, who was quoting a prominent Peruvian publication. We stand behind the rest of our article.
Australian group forming
Dear Population Research Institute,
I have founded Australians for Population Justice, and have registered apj.org at www.ozemail.com.au/~gerard/apj. In the future I will put www.apj.org on its own site.
We publish a newsletter which appears on the Web site and also goes out in hard copy. The antipopulation arguments are so intellectually vacuous that in my view one doesn‘t even begin to have to appeal to religious teaching to combat them, and I do not want to restrict membership or interest in my organization to any one religious group.
At some stage I would like you to reference my API page both on your Web site and in your PRI Review, I would like to make my page look more attractive, but I am limited by time, money, and expertise.
Sincerely,
Gerard Joseph
Australia
Pleased to oblige.
