Thousands gather to honor Fujimori, Peru's late president, as he lies in state

Sept. 13 (UPI) -- Thousands of people in Peru lined up outside the Culture Ministry in Lima where the late President Alberto Fujimori is lying in state, officials reported Friday.

Fujimori, who served prison time for corruption and human rights abuses committed during his tenure in office, died at the age of 86 from an illness, his daughter announced Wednesday night.

"After a long battle with cancer, our father, Alberto Fujimori, has just departed to meet the Lord," Keiko Fujimori said in Spanish on social media. The message translates to "We ask those who loved him to accompany us with a prayer for the enter rest of his soul."

Fujimori's coffin was moved Thursday to the Ministry of Culture where the former president is lying in state until Saturday. Riot police and about 50 supporters surrounded the hearse as it moved through the streets of Lima.

Incumbent President Dina Boluarte, who has declared three days of national mourning, was among the first to arrive to pay her respects to Fujimori, a three-term president who often ruled Peru with an iron fist. His authoritarian approach won him high approval ratings, steered the economy on a more sustainable course and helped him capture Abimael Guzman, the leader of the Shining Path.

Critics say the government has gone too far by honoring a man who was convicted of serious crimes during a fight against Shining Path rebels in the 1990s.