Peru’s Minister of Culture, Salvador Solar, has resigned, amid outrage over the recent presidential pardoning of jailed ex-dictator, Alberto Fujimori.
“I thank the president of the Republic for giving me the opportunity to serve our country,” Solar wrote on Twitter, without specifically mentioning the pardon.
There have been protests across Peru after President Pedro Kuczynski pardoned Fujimori, who was jailed for human rights abuses, on humanitarian grounds after he was admitted to hospital.
The pardon came three days after Kuczynski survived an impeachment vote in which Fujimori’s lawmaker son Kenji led an unexpected rebellion against it, leading critics to suggest that a deal was done between the pair.
The Prime Minister, Mercedes Araoz, denied the accusation during a news conference on Wednesday, saying, “This decision was not taken overnight”.
The president has been following and studying Fujimori’s health for months.”
Three members of the ruling party have also resigned over the affair, as well as the director of the ministry of Justice’s office of human rights.
A major protest against Fujimori’s pardon is expected in Lima later on Thursday.
Fujimori ruled Peru from 1990 to 2000 before fleeing massive corruption and human rights abuse charges.
After being extradited from Chile in 2007 and jailed for six years for abuse of power, he received another 25-year sentence in 2009 for human rights abuses committed during his rule, including ordering the massacre of 25 people.
