More on Julian Salazar Calero

[detcom@xxxxxxxxxxx]

>From the WILTON [CT] BULLETIN, June 5. 1996
-------------------------------------------------------
Wiltonians, relatives show concern for Peruvian exile facing extradition

by DAVID FRIEDMAN

Play by the rules and only good things will happen.

That was the game plan that Julian Salazar Calero carried with him when
he emigrated to the United States in 1991. Now, relatives say that it
may turn out to be Mr. Calero's undoing.

A man who worked as a nurse's aide for an elderly Wilton couple and at
odd jobs here and in Ridgefield, Mr. Calero, 46, is being held in the
Metropolitan Correction Center, a maximum security federal prison in
Manhattan. He faced extradition proceedings on the request of the
Peruvian government

Officials in Peru claim that Mr. Calero has participated in the Shining
Path, a revolutionary group. They have asked the U.S. government to send
Mr. Calero back to Lima, where he faces charges of terrorism, murder and
accessory to murder.

Tough road ahead

Mr. Calero's attorneys said they doubt that their client will be granted
bail in Friday's bond hearing. They said they will likely file an appeal
in hopes that  a hearing on their client's political asylum application
will precede any extradition hearing.

Meanwhile, family members in Ridgefield, employers and friends are
circulating a petition. The goal is to collect 5,000 signatures and send
the petition to state and federal lawmakers in order to gain their
support, said Magali Calero, Mr. Calero's 27-year-old niece. The two
live in Ridgefield with Mr. Calero's sister, Lila C. Roesch.

Secret Isn't safe

Immigration and Naturalization Service authorities apprehended Mr.
Calero in the lobby of Manhattan's 26 Federal Plaza on May 30. According
to his attorney, Katya Plotnik of the New York City law office of Bruno,
Joseph and Bembi, Mr. Calero was scheduled to present his political
asylum application before an immigration judge that day.

Family members suspect that information was leaked to the Peruvian
government in order to locate Mr. Calero during what they believed to be
a confidential proceeding. But that is not their greatest fear.

If Mr. Calero were to lose his extradition case, he would be tried in a
Peruvian military court without due process. He would face a death
sentence or life in imprisonment if convicted, Ms. Plotnik said.

Assessing the situation

"I don't know what to expect," Ms. Calero said, "but I do have very high
hopes that we're going to win because I know my uncle is innocent and I
know he wouldn't do anything like this. I still do believe in the
justice (system) in the United States because it's better than in Peru."

Others are less optimistic. Mr. Calero's brother-in-law, Hans Probst of
Ridgefield, said he cannot understand why the U.S. officials would
cooperate with the corrupt Peruvian government, which is led by
President Alberto Fujimori. Peru's government will "shoot first and ask
questions later," Mr. Probst said. Mr. Calero's family has witnessed the
government's evil acts first hand.

Ms. Plotnik said that military police tortured Mr. Calero's brother
in-law, Roberto Calderon Garagate to death in September 1993. It May
1994, Mr. Calero's wife Fresia Calderon Garagate was imprisoned in Peru.
She is now in another country seeking political asylum after U.S.
officials intervened, Mr. Probst said.

"What bothers me about this case is not the Peruvian government,'' he
said. "I can't expect much from scumbags and criminals. What bothers me
is the U.S. government ? that we even follow a corrupt government. For
example Fujimori, he's a one-person government. He's like Mussolini."

Being deported to countries without strong traditions of due process can
spell doom for any individual unlucky enough to fall into the situation,
Mr. Probst said.

"There's a lot of work ahead of us," he said. "If Qaddafi says 'Hans
Probst is a terrorist in Libya and we have a treaty,' they could very
well pick me up. It's amazing."

Humble beginnings

Mr. Probst described Mr. Calero as a glorified farmer, a peasant who
lived a meager existence off the land in the Andes Mountains. His
daughter, 17, and sons, 13 and 9, remain in Peru, where they live with
grandparents. Terrorists are common to the area, and many young people
are accused of being
a part of such groups, Mr. Probst added. Meanwhile, military police
often operate through payoffs and kickbacks, using force whenever
necessary, Mr. Probst said. Mr. Calero's father-in-law was severely
injured and taken to jail by Peruvian authorities in May 1994.

To charge Mr. Calero with participating in the Shining Path is absurd
since he did not participate in political groups, Mr. Probst said.

"All he was was a family man who took care of his family " Mr. Probst
said. "He had no political ambition, never."

Down on the farm

Relatives contend that Mr. Calero has been falsely accused. Mr. Calero
explained the circumstances surrounding these allegations to Wiltonian
Robert Harris from prison on May 30. Mr. Harris employed Mr. Calero to
work as a gardener and at various odd jobs at his Ridgefield Road home.
Mr. Calero told Mr. Harris that he fled from his home in Cajatambo,
Peru, after police charged him with being
a Shining Path sympathizer.

The charge stems from an incident where criminals stole cattle from Mr.
Calero, who turned the thieves in to police, Mr. Harris said. Mr. Probst
added that the police condoned the crime and apparently received
pay-offs for looking the other way.

Case Work

Ms. Plotnik began working on Mr. Calero's case a year ago. She said that
her client first applied for political asylum in 1993. An officer of the
Immigration and Naturalization Service conducted an informal interview
and denied the application in 1995, placing Mr. Calero under deportation
proceedings. Ms. Plotnik said the setback is not an uncommon one in the
process of seeking asylum.

"The political situation in Peru is such that the government accuses
numerous people of terrorist charges that are baseless" Ms. Plotnik
said. "The reason Mr. Calero left is because he would have no chance of
defending himself in that system."

In Mr. Calero's case, police are retaliating because he renounced their
acts of corruption in his town Ms. Plotnik said. She said it is crucial
for the political asylum issue to be resolved before extradition is
considered.

The challenge ahead

Ms. Plotnik said since the extradition proceeding is not a criminal
hearing, Peru does not have to prove Mr. Calero's guilt beyond a
reasonable doubt Instead, U.S. Attorney Jeff Zimmerman, who will
represent the Peruvian government, only has to prove the lower standard
of probable cause.

Some of the charges brought against Mr. Calero may have taken piece
after he left Peru in 1991, Ms. Plotnik said. Still, the defendants'
case will be difficult to present since some witnesses may still be in
Peru. Since Mr. Calero lacks political asylum, Ms. Plotnik said
attorneys cannot easily defend him in extradition proceedings on the
grounds that be is being charged with committing a political offense.

"My opinion is that he's in a bad position," Ms. Plotnik said. "He's
suffering, in a sense, a life sentence or a death sentence. It's not
going to be easy for him. I don't feel that optimistic about the case. I
also think it is outrageous."

Attorney Bert H. Nisonoff, who is also representing Mr. Calero, said he
does not expect bail to be granted at Friday's bearing, which will take
place at the Federal Courthouse of the Southern District of     New
York.  Mr. Calero has a greed card, a driver's license and a Social
Security number. He has followed all the rules associated with
establishing legal immigrant status in the United States, according to
relatives. He also reported to all hearings related to his immigrant
status.

>From the very beginning, he told immigration officials of the charge
that the Peruvian government was bringing against him and of the human
rights violations in Peru, Mr. Probst explained.

"Being honest has certainly not worked out here," Mr. Probst said. "I
have completely lost faith in the U.S. government.

"We wanted to do everything legal," he said. "That probably was the
biggest mistake we made. It hasn't worked here, and that's unfortunate."

Family concerned

In addition to Ms. Roesch, Mr. Calero has three other sisters in the
area.  Lila Probst and Angelica Quinoz reside in Ridgefield, while Dora
Perez lives in Danbury. All are having to accept that their bother has
been reduced to federal registration No. 43027054.

Ms. Calero said in addition to The New York Times, Spanish radio and
television stations have publicized accounts of her uncle's arrest.

"My brother, he came to the United States looking for a safe place where
can he live, because he was in danger in Peru," Ms. Quiroz said. "All of
the charges against him by the government of Peru? there is no proof."

Impact on the community

Mr. Harris said he and his wife were stunned upon learning of Mr.
Calero's arrest. An article on the topic appeared in Tuesday's edition
of The New York Times. "We were shock, we couldn't believe it," he said.
"Of all the people, you could imagine you'd never believe that Julian
could be involved in anything. A lot of people were moved to tears when
they read the story and they wanted to know what they could do about
it."

"He has a lot of roots in the community and he is a person that everyone
is very fond of," Mr. Harris said. "I don't know what we we can let the
courts know, except for that he is not a person who presents any danger
in the United States." Mr. Calero played pick-up soccer in a program
that Karl Noivadhana of Sugarloaf Drive started four years ago. A team
of men over the age of 35 who live or work in Wilton compete against
teams from Westport, Bridgeport and Darien.  Mr. Noivadhana said that
Mr. Calero was well-liked by teammates and clearly knew the game well.

"He's a quiet gentleman who doesn't say much became his English is not
that well," Mr. Noivadhana said. "He comes in, plays, has a good game,
and then he goes home. He gets his exercise."

Relatives plan on setting up stands at the Village Market in Wilton and
at Stop & Shop in Ridgefield to collect signatures for their petition on
Saturday from 10 a m. to 4 p.m.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Send letters or postcards of support to:

Justice for Julian
8 Huntington St.
Suite 139
Huntington, CT 06484

Write to Connecticut's sentators and urge them to help Julian get
political asylum:

Sen. Joseph Lieberman
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC
Fax: 860 549-8478

Sen. Christopher Dodd
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC
Fax: 860 258-6958







     --- from list marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ---