LIMA, Peru, Oct. 29 -- A Peruvian army lieutenant colonel led about 50 soldiers Sunday in the seizure of a small mining town near the Chilean border in southern Peru, declaring president Alberto Fujimori unfit to lead the country.
The rebellion came a day after Fujimori replaced the military high command, whose ranks were filled with former military academy classmates of disgraced ex-spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos.
Lt. Col. Ollanta Humala Tasso indicated the move was merely a show and that the new leaders were just lesser known Montesinos cronies.
Peru's military command condemned the move in an official decree, deeming the uprising a "grave act of insubordination."
The traditional promotion system within Peru's army changed early in Fujimori's decade-long presidency as advancement was based on proximity and allegiance to Montesinos. Some analysts feel many mid- and low-level army officers -- mainly between the ranks of captain and lieutenant colonel -- resented the crony system.
Humala Tasso said that Fujimori needed to step down as part of a process of restoring honor to the military forces.
The morning uprising in Toquepala did not meet with resistance and ended when the troops left in the early afternoon and headed toward the city of Puno on the Bolivian border, Peruvian radio reported.NEWLN:
