Tupac Amaru leaders may have thought that they could extract similar concessions from Tokyo. In July 1991, for example, leftist guerrillas shot and killed three Japanese aid workers during a raid in central Peru. Marxist guerrillas also attacked the Japanese embassy in December 1990 and again in April 1991 during a series of raids on foreign embassies. Those incidents prompted Tokyo to beef up security at the Lima facility and to warn visitors to exercise care while traveling in Peru. Regardless of the attackers' true motives, the hostage situation is likely to contribute to an ongoing debate in Tokyo about Japan's foreign assistance program.
Government officials insist that current aid policy toward Peru is unlikely to change.
Despite the pride Tokyo displays in its stature as the world's largest aid donor, Japanese foreign assistance clearly is not universally welcomed in the developing world. The views expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the Japan Economic Institute.