Tuesday, January 20, 2015

"Proving A Negative": Peru President Denies Government Spied on VP, Will Hand over Classified Info

1/120/2015

LIMA – Peruvian President Ollanta Humala on Monday “categorically” denied allegations that his administration’s intelligence services spied on Vice President Marisol Espinoza and his political opponents, promising to provide classified information to ensure transparency in the investigation.

In a televised address, Humala said in the company of his ministers that his Cabinet “approves no action that endangers democratic principles.”

“We’re the ones most interested in clearing up these accusations... I’ve ordered those authorities responsible for the operation of our intelligence agencies to facilitate the investigations and, if necessary, apply the strictest penalties,” the president said.

“This (cooperation) will include broad access to relevant classified information,” he added.

Humala made his remarks after the Frecuencia Latina channel’s “Sin Medias Tintas” program reported Sunday on a purported case of illegal surveillance of Espinoza involving an alleged employee of Peru’s DINI intelligence agency and an army commander.

Before the president’s address, Espinoza said in a Twitter post Monday that she was “indignant” over the alleged spying and that she “repudiates these criminal practices.”

“I demand a thorough investigation. I refuse to think that the government is behind this,” the vice president, congresswoman and member of the ruling Gana Peru party said.

Peruvian Prime Minister Ana Jara last week denied on Twitter that Humala’s administration engages in illegal surveillance of political opponents, as reported by Correo Semanal.

Last Thursday, that weekly published a series of photos and documents pertaining to foes of Humala’s government and said the materials were assembled by intelligence agencies.

The photos published by Correo Semanal include images of former Cabinet ministers Jorge del Castillo and Miguel Hidalgo – members of the administration of Humala’s predecessor, Alan Garcia – and of businessman Jaime Mur, who last year publicly accused Energy Minister Eleodoro Mayorga of a conflict of interest.

Correo Semanal said the photos and documents went to the DINI intelligence agency, which reports to the president’s office, and to the National Police intelligence unit, which reports to Interior Minister Daniel Urresti.

For her part, the president of Peru’s Congress, Ana Maria Solorzano, a member of the ruling party, said on Twitter that the legislature will “exercise its oversight function in the face of these reprehensible acts of surveillance of legislators and other people.”

The reports and photos reflect “very extended surveillance whose fundamental aim is to learn the weak points of political enemies to discredit and silence them,” an unnamed source told Correo Semanal.

Urresti and his counterpart at the Defense Ministry, Pedro Cateriano, used Twitter last week to dismiss the documents as “fabrications” by Garcia’s APRA party.

The two officials recalled that both of Garcia’s two presidential terms, 1985-2000 and 2006-2011, were marred by proven cases of political espionage.


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