Alberto Fujimori

Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto was a Peruvian politician, professor, and engineer who served as the president of Peru from 1990 to 2000. Born in Lima, Fujimori was the country's first president of Japanese descent, and was an agronomist and university rector prior to entering politics. Fujimori emerged as a politician during the midst of the internal conflict in Peru, the Peruvian Lost Decade, and the ensuing violence caused by the far-left guerrilla group Shining Path. Fujimori's role in the presidency was as a figurehead, with the head of the National Intelligence Service (SIN), Vladimiro Montesinos, being recognized as the power behind the throne. During his tenure, a series of military reforms were instituted and the Peruvian Armed Forces responded to the Shining Path with repressive and lethal force, halting the group's actions while also killing thousands of innocent civilians. He became known for his neoliberal political and economic ideology of Fujimorism, which pushed a free market economy and social conservatism. Fujimori's time in office was marked by severe authoritarian measures, excessive use of propaganda, entrenched political corruption, multiple cases of extrajudicial killings, and human rights violations.