The Congress of Peru On Friday, the United States enacted a law that prescribes war crimes and crimes against humanity committed before July 1, 2022. and, according to which no one will be prosecuted, convicted or punished for such crimes under penalty of nullity and functional responsibility.
According to the new legislation, No event that occurred before the date indicated can be classified as a crime against humanity. or war.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights deeply regretted the entry into force of the law, stating that contravenes the country’s obligations under international law.
Neither amnesty nor prescription for these crimes
Volker Turk He considered that the fact is especially worrying in a broader context of human rights setbacks and the rule of law in Peru.
“Crimes against humanity and war crimes are among the most serious violations of international law and They should not be subject to amnesties or prescription“, Türk stressed.
Suspension of proceedings and annulment of convictions
With the promulgation of the law, The ongoing judicial process against former President Alberto Fujimori has been suspendedand investigations into human rights abuses committed in the 1980s and 1990s, including the forced sterilizations of indigenous people affecting some 350,000 women and 25,000 men.
In addition, the legislation will annul the sentences already handed down to the cases that occurred during the government of Alberto Fujimori, who was released from prison for humanitarian reasons last year.
Without accountability there is no truth, justice, or reparation
The High Commissioner insisted that those responsible for atrocious crimes must be held accountablein accordance with international law.
“The lack of accountability for these crimes, wherever they were committed, jeopardizes the rights to truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-repetition of thousands of victims of serious violations in Peru,” Türk stressed.
Advance warning
Last June, a group of independent experts had already spoken out against the adoption of the law. when its draft was being discussed in Congress.
“The imprescriptibility of crimes against humanity is a rule of jus cogens and customary international law, of which no derogation is allowed and to which Peru must adhere,” the experts stressed on that occasion.
They also deplored that at a time when most States have reformed their domestic legislation to comply with this fundamental principle, Bill 6951/2023-CR clashed with the basic values of the international community, would promote impunity and contradicted the rule of law.
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