| Country: | Peru |
| Details of Formation: | When Fujimori came to power in 1990 he convinced the military to provide the Rondas Campesians with weapons and he passed a law on 12th November, 1991 giving the Rondas legal status, officially naming them "self-defense committees". The change of government and the passing of this law thus changed the nature of this group from informal to semi-official. |
| Details of Termination: | Evidence suggests these groups remained in existence after the official end of the war and are an integral part of rural social structure (IPS 1998) |
| Purpose: | The group was part of the government’s counter-insurgency efforts and was mainly used for self-defence after becoming semi-official. It was specifically used against the Sendero Luminoso and its (suspected) members, as well as other insurgents. After the conflict ended, the group supplemented official state institutions, continuing to provide security to the local population and acting as a local dispute-settlement institution. |
| Organisation: | The new law that was passed in 1991 states that the group was to be put under the control of the army or police. Correspondingly, news sources report that the army commanded the PGM. |
| Weapons and Training: | Upon becoming semi-official PGM, the government armed the group with rifles. Members carried light arms such as rock slings, spears and sticks, as well as shotguns and self-made rifles. According to news sources, training was provided by the army. |
| Size: | A news source states that in one region (Junin) the number of members increased significantly from 20,000 in February 1992 to 50,000 in May. Another source estimates a total of 12,000 members around the same time in the interior of the country. |
| Reason for Membership: | -- |
| Treatment of Civilians: | The group was responsible for a massacre in 1993 and killed a large number of suspected insurgents. Reports state that it spiralled into vigilantism, abused its power, and committed revenge attacks. It contributed to the defeat of the Sendero Luminoso and continued to patrol rural areas after the end of the war. Following the end of the conflict, the PGM also served as a dispute-settlement body, which, as a result of being based on customary law, prioritised positive community relations over the needs of vulnerable groups. |
| Other Information: | -- |
| References: |
Amnesty International. 1993. “Peru. Ten Settlers Massacred by Civil Defence Patrol.” AI Index: AMR 46/38/93. November 1993. Information was taken from news sources listed in the PGMD. |