AP News, December 29th, 2006
Peru's ex-presidential candidate Ollanta Humala vowed Thursday to defend himself against charges that he masterminded his brother's deadly 2005 takeover of a police station, calling the allegations a "judicial smearing."
Humala, who was charged earlier this week, faces 10 to 20 years in prison if convicted of planning the four-day siege, which left six people dead.
"I consider this judicial smearing ... to be like potholes that the political road presents to politicians who truly want change for the nation," said Humala, who is free on bail but barred from leaving Peru. "I am going to defend my innocence."
Humala, who lost the June presidential runoff to Alan Garcia, was a military attache in Peru's embassy in South Korea at the time of the attack.
His younger brother, Antauro Humala, led 160 ultra-nationalist rebels to seize a remote Peruvian police station, demanding the resignation of then-President Alejandro Toledo. Four police and two rebels were killed.
In a videotaped statement during the standoff, Antauro Humala said his brother had chosen the site of the uprising. He later said Ollanta Humala had ordered them to lay down arms.
Ollanta Humala reiterated Thursday that he had no prior knowledge of the attack. He noted that in a prison interview with local media in April, his brother said he had lied about Ollanta's involvement.
At the time of the takeover, Ollanta Humala was facing forced retirement from the military. From South Korea, he publicly called on army reservists in Peru to start a "popular insurrection" against Toledo's government.
But Ollanta quickly distanced himself from Antauro's action after it turned deadly.
It was the second time the brothers urged the military to help unseat a president. In October 2000, they staged a small, ineffective rebellion as President Alberto Fujimori's government collapsed as a result of corruption scandals.
