Alberto Fujimori ascended to the presidency of Peru in 1990, boldly promising to remake the country. Ten years later, he hastily sent his resignation from exile in Japan, leaving behind a trail of lies, deceit, and corruption. While piecing together the shards of Fujimori's presidency, prosecutors uncovered a vast criminal conspiracy fueled by political ambition and personal greed. The Fujimori regime managed to maintain a facade of democracy while systematically eviscerating democratic institutions and the rule of law through legal subterfuge, intimidation, and outright bribery. The architect of this strategy was Fujimori's notorious intelligence advisor, Vladimiro Montesinos. With great skill, Fujimori and Montesinos created the appearance of a democratic public sphere but ensured it would work only to suit their personal motives. The press was allowed to operate, but information exchange was under strict control. The more government officials tampered with the free flow of ideas, the more they inadvertently exposed the ills they were trying to cover up. And that proved to be their downfall.Merging penetrating analysis and a journalist's flair for narrative, Catherine Conaghan reveals the thin line between democracy and dictatorship, and shows how public institutions can both empower dictators and bring them down.

Peruvians Dispersed presents an anthropological study of transnational migration to the United States, Spain, Japan, and Argentina. Karsten Paerregaard spent one year living with Peruvian migrants on four continents. This experience allowed him to make ethnographic descriptions of Peru's migrant communities and to discuss how immigration and labor market policies in the Global North both thwart and spur migration from the Global South. The book also offers an innovative contribution to the methodological debate about multisited field research, which in recent years has become prominent among scholars studying processes of globalization, transnationalism, and multiculturalism. Because of the wide span of social groups in Peru that migrate and the global dispersion of Peruvians in America, Asia, and Europe, the study of Peruvian migration offers a unique opportunity to rethink current attempts to theorize transnational and diasporic migration and develop the methodological and analytical framework for a global ethnography. Peruvians Dispersed will be of interest to all levels of students of anthropology. Book jacket.

Peru is one of South America’s most picturesque countries. Complete with ancient ruins, vast rain forests, and unique wildlife, this is a place worth exploring. This book discusses what it’s like to live in Peru, its landscapes, customs, languages, history, and people. With vibrant photographs and interesting facts, this book is perfect for young readers interested in exploring the world around them.