Peru's Political Opportunity

  
Peruvians will elect a new president on April 8, putting to test the new political forces that have emerged since the corruption scandals that toppled the government of Alberto Fujimori and his advisor, Vladimiro Montesinos. If the process runs smoothly, the elections could usher in a new opportunity for change in Peru.

The most recent polls reveal the leading candidates to be Alejandro Toledo, leader of the movement Perú Posible, and Lourdes Flores, of Unidad Nación. A nationwide poll by IMA-Estudios de Marketing SAC showed Toledo in first place with 37.3% of the vote, followed by Flores with 23.9%. Former president Alan García wasn't far behind, with 20.5%. In case of a run off, the poll predicted that Toledo would beat Flores by 45.9% to 41.3%, and García by 45.9% to 30.8%. Toledo was also projected to defeat a fourth candidate, Fernando Olivera, by 45.5% to 38.8%.

In the context of the moral and political crisis affecting Peru, the candidates have tried to distance themselves from the policies of the Fujimori era. Toledo urges citizens to take on "the challenge of being protagonists in building a new Peru with a different face." Political analysts point to Toledo's skill in making the most of his indigenous background, raising the possibility that he will become the first Indian to be elected president of Peru.

Flores has emphasized the role that her government would give to political institutions. Under her administration, she claims, the executive branch "would not try to control everything. The president should not be indispensable for carrying out tasks. He or she cannot and should not be everywhere at once. To fulfill the responsibilities of the position, the president must respect the autonomy of the different government branches and institutions and know how to delegate."

García has proposed a model for development that stresses hard work and democracy, pledging to correct the excesses of the Fujimori era without letting the pendulum swing backwards. "Peru must join the so-called globalization process," García says, "but in a way that is progressive and prudent, without destroying our society." Despite his campaign, however, García may not have succeeded in shedding his association with the hyperinflation and economic chaos that affected the country during his 1985-1990 administration.

So far, international observers have had positive assessments of the electoral process. In its most recent report, the OAS mission in Peru-comprised of 50 observers at 13 sites across the country and volunteers from embassies and international organizations-noted that an electoral commission had succeeded in guaranteeing that all candidates had equal access to the media. Unequal access to the media was one of the problems identified in Peru's last elections. The OAS concluded that "citizens are participating in a process that marks the beginning of renewed confidence in the electoral system and public institutions. This has helped end the fatalism that people felt during the last elections, in which the authorities did not carry out their responsibilities because they were prisoners of a system that in practice annulled the independence of the forces necessary for the free exercise of democracy."

In contrast, the watchdog organization Transparencia has identified some negative aspects of the electoral process, among them: insufficient debate and discussion of the candidates' policies; too much attention to their private lives; and a lack of information about campaign finances. However, Transparency also praised the efforts of Peru's electoral officials-the Jurado Nacional de Elecciones and the Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales-to ensure free and fair elections within a short time frame.

After the unsavory events of the last administration, Peru now has the chance to show the world that it can carry out an exemplary electoral process that compares favorably with the 2000 elections and lays the foundation for a new era of democratic renewal.