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MARCH 20, 2001

A new public, civilian trial for an American accused of aiding an insurgent rebel group in Peru begins today in Lima.

Lori Berenson, a former Massachusetts Institute of Technology student, was previously convicted by a secret military tribunal of aiding the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement plan a thwarted takeover of Congress. The decision was overturned last year due to international pressure. Evidence was also recently unearthed which shows former spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos orchestrating Berenson's trial.

Exiled and ousted President Alberto Fujimori relatives and children include alumni of the school and other Boston universities. He had advocated keeping Berenson in jail.

The movement is named for Tupac Amaru, an Indian leader who was executed for arising against the Spanish in the 1700s.

Get the Story:
Retrial of New Yorker also puts Peru's judiciary in spotlight (AP 3/20)

Relevant Links:
Lori Berenson Downloads, from the MIT Social Justice Cooperative - http://web.mit.edu/justice/www/download.html
Free Lori - http://www.freelori.org

Related Stories:
Woman wins new trial (Global 08/29)
The 'Rebel Indian' campaigns (Global 05/04)