April 11, 2006

The Wind from the South

The NYT reports:

Ollanta Humala, a former military officer and fierce nationalist, received the most votes in the presidential election on Sunday, edging out a pro-globalization candidate, a former president and 17 other candidates by pledging to guide Peru away from Washington-backed market reforms. By Sunday night, unofficial results showed that Mr. Humala, 43, was far from securing the majority needed to win the vote outright and avoid a runoff...

His father founded an ultranationalist movement, etnocacerismo, that celebrates the superiority of the Indian race over those Peruvians descended from the Spanish. His mother has called for gays to be shot and a brother, Antauro, led a rebellion against the government last year.

Ollanta Humala has distanced himself from his family and tried to stress his message of a new economic direction for Peru. He has provided little detail, saying his plans are similar to those in countries like Venezuela, Bolivia and Argentina, where leftists have won office.


My published articles are archived at iSteve.com -- Steve Sailer

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