TEXTS
This sampling of books, pamphlets and reports is designed to give a broad overview of the important topics on Sendero Luminoso, including history, ideology, military tactics, involvement with cocaine trafficking and effects on Peruvian life. It is divided into 4 sections: frequently mentioned texts (those often cited by other scholars), other important works, books on Peruvian history and important works in Spanish.
FREQUENTLY MENTIONED TEXTS
Poole, Deborah and Gerardo Renique. Peru: Time of Fear. London : Latin American Bureau, 1992.
Considered by some to be one of the
most authoritative texts in English on Sendero Luminoso, these two well-known
Senderologists provide an informative
and well-documented background of the dirty war in Peru. It brings together history,
governmental policies, the birth and support of Sendero, the abuse of the Peruvian
military and U.S. intervention in Peruvian politics. Unsympathetic to both the Peruvian
military and the guerrillas, the authors provide a gripping narrative of the lives of the
peasants caught in the conflict.
Call #: F3448.2 .P66 1992
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor
The Shining Path of Peru. Edited by David Scott Palmer. 2nd ed. New York : St. Martin’s Press, 1994.
A compilation of articles by leading Sendero scholars, including Degregori, McClintock, Tarazona-Sevillano and Gorriti. At times criticized for not providing any new scholarship on the movement, it remains a convenient source for a broad overview of many aspects of Sendero Luminoso - origins, thought, rural and urban strategies and expansion into the coca market. Although not supporters of Sendero, both the editor and some scholars (Cynthia McClintock, for example) argue that the insurrection has more of a popular base than Poole and Renique (authors of Peru: Time of Fear) would agree with.
Call #: F3448.2 .S54 1994
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor.
Strong, Simon. Shining Path: The World’s Deadliest Revolutionary Group. Hammersmith, London : HarperCollins, 1992.
Written by a journalist who lived and worked in Peru, this book became a best seller. Very readable and engrossing, especially in the examination of the psychology of Guzmán, it focuses on the origins and goals of Sendero Luminoso. Arguing that Sendero is a peasant organization that exists because of the duality and racism embedded in Peruvian culture, it has been widely criticized for being misguided in its analysis. Strong also sees parallels between Andean myths and Chinese myths, which many other scholars conclude are merely coincidental.
Call #: F3448.2 .S77 1992
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor.
Tarazona-Sevillano, Gabriela with John B. Reuter. Sendero Luminoso and the Threat of Narcoterrorism. Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C. (The Washington Papers, 144) New York : Praeger, 1990.
Written by a former Peruvian prosecutor, this source provides more than just a discussion of Sendero and narcoterrorism. Beginning with an overview of the history of Sendero Luminoso, the remaining majority of the text discusses the Peruvian definition of Peruvian terrorism and the way in which the judicial system has changed and adopted to the threat of the guerrillas. The section on narcoterrorism argues that although Sendero and the coca farmers have differing goals, their enemies are the same and therefore carry on a mutually beneficial relationship. This book intends to give practical solutions to problems, but these are more symbolic than realistic.
Call #: HV6433 .P4 T37 1990
Location: Davis Library, 5th floor.
McCormick, Gordon H. The Shining Path and Peruvian Terrorism. Santa Monica : The RAND Corporation, 1987.
This is the first of three RAND reports by McCormick, a leading U.S. Senderologist. McCormick predicts the demise of Sendero because it is too centralized, structured, isolated and extreme. It also has a good analysis of the differences between Sendero and other Latin American guerrilla movements.
Call #: AS36 .R28 P-7297
Location: Davis Library, 2nd floor.
McCormick, Gordon H. The Shining Path and the Future of Peru. Santa Monica : RAND, 1990.
With this report, McCormick retracts his original theory about the inevitable decline of Sendero Luminoso. Three years later, with increased Sendero activity and multiplying human rights abuses by both the military and Sendero, this report discusses the real possibility of a military coup to return the country to order. Sendero has proven more resilient than expected.
Call #: AS36 .R3 R-3781
Location: Davis Library, 2nd floor.
McCormick, Gordon H. From the Sierra to the Cities. Santa Monica : RAND, 1992.
Concentrating on the urban strategy of Sendero Luminoso since 1985, McCormick reviews the possibility of Sendero reaching its goals of surrounding the city from the outside and undermining it from within. The two policies are meant to be mutually reinforcing – the guerrillas would keep the military busy in the cities and thus relieve pressure in the countryside. Sendero has slowly gained some support in the shanty towns through terror and the breakdown of civil order, however it has not reached the level of support it has in the countryside.
Call #: AS36 .R3 R-4150
Location: Davis Library, 2nd floor.
Desplazado from Ayacucho, next to his new home in Lima, 1986. The Peru Reader.
OTHER IMPORTANT TEXTS / PAPERS / REPORTS
Brown, Cynthia. In Desperate Straits: Human Rights in Peru after a Decade of Democracy and Insurgency. New York : America’s Watch, 1990.
Published on the eve of Alberto
Fujimori’s ascension to the presidency, this pamphlet discusses the problems that he
will
inherit. Filled with statistics on
human rights abuses by the military, the police, Sender Luminoso and Tupac Amaru (another
guerilla group), this source humanizes the numbers. Brown questions United States aid to a
country known for its human rights abuses and its increased militarization.
Call #: JC599 .P4 B76 1990
Location: Davis Library, 6th floor
Committee to Support the Revolution in Peru. Revolution in Peru. Berkeley : The Committee, 1985.
Propaganda issued by the Committee to Support the Revolution in Peru, an organization based in Berkeley, California. This pamphlet describes the plans of Sendero, brushes off criticism and highlights the support it receives in rural areas and from women. The Committee also asks for financial support and fund-raising for their cause.
Call #: F3448.2 .R48 1985
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor.
Kay, Bruce H. Revolution, Inc.: Guerrillas and the illicit drug business in Peru. (Working Paper Series, 22) Durham, N.C. : Duke-UNC Program in Latin American Studies, 1997.
This paper examines the strategy of Sendero Luminoso from 1987 to the early 1990s in the Huallaga Valley and its alliance with the coca farmers. Kay argues that after 1993 the alliance between the guerrillas and the coca farmers began deteriorating due to Sendero’s intentions to reorganize society and impose authority and the decreasing profitability of coca production. The support of Sendero in the Valley, then, was one of pragmatism and, once the needs of the two parties conflicted, Revolution, Inc. was destroyed.
Call #: F1401 .W58 no. 22
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor
Kirk, Robin. Untold Terror: Violence against Women in Peru’s Armed Conflict. New York : Human Rights Watch, c1992.
Kirk describes, in gruesome detail, the abuses by both the military and Sendero Luminoso towards women. There are first hand accounts and interviews with women who have been victims, soldiers who have victimized and Sendero who have committed abuses. She provides a very idealistic solution to the problem – that they be recognized as illegal acts and that the perpetrators be punished.
Call #: HV6569 .P4 K575 1992
Location: Davis Library, 5th floor.
Koppel, Martin. Peru’s Shining Path: Anatomy of a Reactionary Sect. New York : Pathfinder Press, 1993.
A publication from the Socialist Worker’s Party, this pamphlet is based on previously published articles that appeared in the Militant from 1992-1993. It is an analysis of Sendero Luminoso from a socialist perspective. Sendero is considered a reactionary organization that uses scare tactics to gain support. Koppel compares Guzmán to Pol Pot and argues that the guerrillas are reactionaries that undermine independent, popular organizations.
Call #: F3448.2 .K66 1993
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor.
PERUVIAN HISTORY
The Peru Reader: History, Culture, Politics. Edited by Orin Starn, Carlos Ivan Degregori, and Robin Kirk. Durham : Duke University Press, 1995.
Excellent overview of Peruvian history, culture and politics to help put Sendero Luminoso in perspective. It includes chapters on ancient civilizations, conquest and colonial rule, modern politics, the demise of the "old order," Sendero Luminoso, and the cocaine economy. It is a mix of articles, interviews, literature, and poetry written by famous Peruvians and historians of Peru. It also includes the words to Guzmán’s "We are the initiators" speech delivered on April 19, 1980 to bring in the violent part of the insurrection.
Call #: F3431 .P478 1995
Location: Davis Library, 4th floor.
Undergraduate Library, On Reserve.
Reid, Michael. Peru: Paths to Poverty. London : Latin American Bureau (Research and Action), 1985.
This book begins with a brief chronology of important dates from 1532 with the landing of Pizarro at Tumbes up until 1984. Although a bit outdated, it remains a good source for background on the Velasco reformist military regime in the 1970s – the same period when Guzmán was forming an ideological circle of followers at the University where he taught.
Call #: HC227 .R388 1985
Location: Davis Library, 5th floor.
RECOMMENDED TEXTS IN SPANISH
Degregori, Carlos Ivan. Que difícil es Ser Dios: Ideologia y Violencia Politica en Sendero Luminoso. Lima : Zorro de Abajo Ediciones, 1989. Call #: HV6433 .P D44 1989
Gorriti Ellenbogen, Gustavo. Sendero: Historia de la Guerra Milenaria en el Peru. Lima : Editorial Apoyo, 1991. Call #: F3448.2 .G67 1991
(Both have plans for
English publication.)