Peru: the neoliberal right is allied with the Fujimori …

From Lima

Peruvian right supports Keiko Fujimori’s candidacy to seek to arrest leftist Pedro Castillo, the rural teacher who surprised during the elections and who now participates in the second round to reach the presidency. Even the right wing sector that fought Fujimori, claiming it is an authoritarian option and a mafia that has corrupted politics, is now taking a turn and supporting the daughter of former dictator Alberto Fujimori, in prison with a sentence of 25 years imprisonment for crimes against humanity and corruption. The most notorious voice of the turn of this right which defines itself as democratic and liberal and which now joins the support of authoritarian and corrupt Fujimori is that of the writer Mario Vargas Llosa.

A few years ago, the Nobel Prize winner for literature declared that a Keiko presidency was “the worst thing that could happen to the country”, now he is calling for a vote. Against the left, whatever it is, that seems to be the writer’s slogan.

Vargas Llosa, who in 1990 lost the election to Alberto Fujimori, has spent three decades writing and speaking bluntly against Fujimori and his political heirs., in the last two elections, he campaigned against Keiko’s candidacy, but Now, with a left candidate fighting with Fujimori, he suppresses everything he said and supports candidate Fujimori by saying that she is “the lesser evil” against the left which proposes to change this neoliberal model that the Nobel defends above all.

“Peruvians should vote for Keiko Fujimori, because she represents the lesser evil and there are, with her in power, more possibilities to save our democracy, while with Pedro Castillo I see none,” wrote the Nobel.

The writer says candidate Castillo, who has had statements that could raise doubts about his democratic commitments, threatens democracy and therefore should not vote for him, but he forgets to say that In the case of Keiko and Fujimorism, for whom he is asking to vote, there is no doubt that the certainty of long authoritarian conduct, which includes a coup and an autocratic regime.

The ex-dictator’s daughter said she would forgive her father, a possibility that Vargas Llosa has repeatedly called unacceptable in the past, but is now ready to accept in return for preventing the triumph of a left-wing candidate.

Vargas Llosa’s turn and his support for Keiko surprised many in Peru. But maybe it shouldn’t be that surprising. The writer previously supported the coup in Bolivia against Evo Morales. In Fujimorismo, they hope that the support of the writer, an old enemy, will help their candidate overcome the strong resistance she has in sectors that do not support the left, but are unwilling to support the return of Fujimorism. in power and would. bend over to void your vote, as you can see on social media.

The author of Conversation in the Cathedral He asks Keiko, who has repeatedly shown signs of breaking his promises, a commitment to uphold democracy, and with that, he stays calm. The daughter of the former dictator called her new ally to thank him for his support.

In coincidence with what is written by Vargas Llosa, Keiko launched the campaign for this second round by betting on fear on the left and presenting himself as “the option to stop communism”. The candidate of the political group that has divided the country the most over the past three decades accuses her rival of “promoting hatred and division among Peruvians, the class struggle”. “The choice is between communism and a social market economy,” candidate Fujimori said, marking the ground of her campaign. In this expression, “social” is just a word without content in its economic propositions.

Aware of the high rejection it arouses – it went to the second round thanks to the fragmentation of the vote, with only 13.3% -, Keiko puts her hopes of victory not on her virtues or on her expectations and her confidence in a possible presidency of her own, but in a vote against her rival, being chosen as “the lesser evil”. as Vargas Llosa said to the delight of the ex-dictator’s daughter. In this sense, he is betting on fear and resuscitating an anti-communist coalition. Vargas Llosa has already signed for this coalition.

On the other hand, Professor Pedro Castillo, who won with 19%, called for a broad dialogue, but clarified that he would not back down in his proposals for change. He began his campaign for the second round by focusing on the inequalities that exist in the country.

“There is total indifference from the state. There are people who have nothing to eat and next to them there are millionaires who live in mansions, who have taken care of everything, even the dignity of the people. This must end, ”says the candidate who terrorizes the establishment. To the polarization proposed by Keiko between a supposed communism and an anti-communism, he replies: “I see a second round between rich and poor, between opulence and the beggar Lázaro, between the boss and the worker, between Lima and the interior. ”

The rest of the left, led by candidate Verónika Mendoza, who won 7.8%, hope to speak with Castillo to seek an agreement. The candidate’s opposition to the policies of gender equality, marriage equality and abortion are obstacles to this agreement. There are coincidences in the change of the neoliberal model and the Fujimori Constitution.

By the sum of the votes from the right, Keiko seems to have an advantage, but it is a fragile advantage.