 Professional Background
Melissa Rocío Patiño Hinostroza is a 20-year-old poet and university student on trial for terrorism. She is member of the “Círculo del sur” (Southern Circle) poetry group in Lima and runs a poetry radio program and other cultural activities with young people.
Current Status
Melissa Rocío Patiño Hinostroza is on trial for terrorism, based on her alleged involvement with a left wing political organization, Bolivarian Continental Coordinator (Coordinadora Continental Boliviariana, or CCB), which the Peruvian authorities claim is linked to terrorist groups. Patiño denies any political affiliations and to date no concrete evidence has been produced to back up the charges. She was conditionally released on bail on May 8, 2008, after two and a half months’ incarceration. Peru’s antiterrorist prosecutor, Julio Galindo, appealed against the decision to release Patiño; however, his appeal was rejected in early October, meaning that Patiño will remain free on bail for the duration of her trial, which is in its preliminary stages. Patiño potentially faces 20 years in prison if convicted.
Case History
Patiño was arrested along with six other individuals in Tumbes, a small town on the border with Ecuador, on February 29, 2008. The seven were returning by bus from Quito, where they had attended the second congress of the CCB from February 24 to 28, which was reportedly held with the knowledge and consent of the Ecuadorian authorities. They were subsequently charged with “affiliation and collaboration with terrorism,” apparently on the basis of their attendance at the CCB meeting. Initially detained in Tumbes, Patiño was transferred to Santa Monica maximum security prison in Chorrillos, Lima, on March 15, where she was held until May 8, when she was allowed to return home. She was reportedly not provided with access to medical assistance during her detention.
The government alleges that the Peruvian chapter of CCB has links with the Peruvian Marxist rebel group Movimiento Revolucionario Túpac Amaru (MRTA) and the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group in Colombia. It also reportedly accused CCB members of planning to sabotage the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings scheduled to be held in Peru in 2008. Two of the six individuals who were detained along with Patiño are reportedly former MRTA members. However, Patiño’s presence on the same bus appears to have been purely circumstantial. She denies that she belongs to or has ever had any involvement in any political groups. Patiño reportedly attended the CCB congress after a colleague at the radio station where she works passed the invitation on to her as he could not attend, and her main motivation for attending was the opportunity to travel to Ecuador.
According to her lawyer, the accusations of terrorism against Patiño have also been made on the basis of her participation in a march at the end of conference when she reportedly partially covered her face and shouted anti-imperialist and pro-socialism slogans, and has been linked to graffiti criticizing Alan García, the Peruvian president. None of these activities can be said to amount to terrorist activities. |
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