Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori has died at the age of 86 in Lima, the capital of Peru. His death was announced by his daughter, Keiko Fujimori, through a post on X.
Fujimori, who served as president from 1990 to 2000, initially gained widespread support for stabilizing Peru’s economy and combating a violent insurgency. However, his presidency ultimately ended in scandal due to autocratic actions that led to his imprisonment. In December, he was pardoned for his convictions related to corruption and his responsibility for the deaths of 25 people. In July, his daughter Keiko revealed that he was planning a fourth run for the presidency in 2026.
A former university president and mathematics professor, Fujimori was a political outsider who rose to prominence by defeating novelist Mario Vargas Llosa in the 1990 presidential election. Throughout his turbulent political career, Fujimori made a series of bold decisions, earning both praise and criticism. He took office during a period of hyperinflation and guerrilla warfare, implementing aggressive economic reforms such as privatizing state-owned enterprises. His efforts to defeat the Shining Path insurgency eventually won him broad public approval.
However, Fujimori’s presidency unraveled dramatically. In a controversial move, he shut down Congress and secured a third term. His administration fell apart in 2000 after leaked footage showed his spy chief, Vladimiro Montesinos, bribing lawmakers. Fujimori fled to Japan, where he submitted his resignation via fax. In 2005, he unexpectedly arrived in Chile, where he was arrested and extradited to Peru, hoping to run for president in 2006. Instead, he faced charges of abuse of power and became the first former president to be tried and convicted in his own country for human rights violations. Although he was not found to have directly ordered the 25 death-squad killings, he was held accountable because they occurred under his government.
Despite his 25-year sentence, Fujimori continued to seek political redemption from a prison built on the outskirts of Lima. His daughter Keiko, who became a congresswoman, ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in 2011, 2016, and 2021. During the 2021 campaign, she narrowly lost by 44,000 votes, having promised to release her father if elected.
Fujimori, known for his strategic approach to politics, once likened his rivals to chess pieces, maneuvered with detachment. His presidency epitomized the authoritarian style of leadership known in Latin America as “caudillismo,” at a time when the region was transitioning away from dictatorships toward democracy.
Born on July 28, 1938—Peruvian Independence Day—Fujimori was the son of Japanese immigrants who worked as cotton pickers before opening a tailor shop in Lima. He earned a degree in agricultural engineering in 1956, pursued further studies in France and the United States, and obtained a graduate degree in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin in 1972. Fujimori later became the rector of the Agricultural University in Lima. In 1990, without prior political experience, he ran for president, presenting himself as a clean alternative to Peru’s corrupt political elite and capitalizing on his image as a hardworking, honest Asian. His campaign, promising Japanese aid and technological advancement, resonated with a country in economic distress. Fujimori surged in popularity, ultimately defeating Vargas Llosa in a runoff, a victory he attributed to the same frustrations that had fueled the Shining Path insurgency.
Fujimori is survived by his four children, including his eldest, Keiko, who became Peru’s first lady in 1996 following his bitter divorce from Susana Higuchi. His youngest son, Kenji, also served as a congressman.
