By
The Associated Press
LIMA, Peru - President Alberto Fujimori, whose 10-year authoritarian rule has crumbled in recent months over corruption scandals, said in Tokyo early today that he would resign within 48 hours.
Fujimori issued a brief written statement confirming announcements made hours earlier in Peru by his prime minister and his second vice president.
Second Vice President Ricardo Marquez said Fujimori, who has been in his ancestral homeland Japan since Friday, had asked him to step in as president until special elections are held in April and a new leader takes office in July.
The statement issued by Fujimori did not explain why he was stepping down. Prime Minister Federico Salas said the president would give his reasons when he presents his resignation to Congress today or Tuesday.
"What I know is that he does not want to be an obstacle to the process of democratization so that the next elections can be elections absolutely transparent for the Peruvian people," Salas told radio station Radioprogramas.
Fujimori refused to meet with a crowd of reporters who had gathered at his Tokyo hotel. A Peruvian embassy official, who refused to give his name, handed out a brief statement in Spanish confirming that the president would resign.
"President Alberto Fujimori confirmed ... that he is resigning as president," the statement said. "In the course of 48 hours, he is going to formalize the decision with the newly elected president of the Congress."
It was not immediately clear if Fujimori intended to go back to Peru to hand in his resignation.
In Washington, White House spokeswoman Mary Ellen Countryman said the United States would work with the Organization of American States to insure a smooth transition.
"What's important for Peru is that the transition to the April 8 elections proceeds smoothly and peacefully. And we will continue to work with the OAS on that process."
Fujimori's announcement came amid a growing corruption scandal around the president's fugitive ex-intelligence chief, Vladimiro Montesinos. The scandal forced the 62-year-old Fujimori to announce in September that he would step down in July after new elections - ending a decade of iron-fisted rule.
Normally under the constitution, First Vice President Francisco Tudela would assume the presidency. But Tudela presented his resignation hours after Montesinos returned to Peru on Oct. 23 after a failed asylum bid in Panama. Tudela complained that Fujimori was not in control of Montesinos and his allies.
Marquez, the second vice president, had said that he, too, would resign if Congress - which last week came under opposition control for the first time since 1992 - took measures to remove Fujimori. But he said yesterday that Fujimori asked him not to quit.
"I've just spoken with him and he has said he would like me to assume the position and I told the president that ... I am going to take the post," Marquez told radio station CPN.
But there were signs that a power struggle may develop.
Former presidential candidate Alejandro Toledo - who boycotted a May runoff against Fujimori, alleging fraud - said in a radio interview from France that Marquez's association with Fujimori's "illegitimate" government should rule him out as a transition leader.
Peru's human rights ombudsman Jorge Santistevan said Tudela, the first vice president, had the right to the post because Congress had not yet accepted his resignation.
"I am sure Tudela is up to the circumstances of administering the executive branch until the end and guaranteeing that Paniagua plays the role that corresponds to his democratic credentials in Congress," Santistevan said.
Next in line for succession after the second vice president is the Congress president, Valentin Paniagua, a political moderate who was installed last week by opposition legislators.
Fujimori's trip abroad prompted a wave of rumors that he would step down and seek asylum. He was criticized for leaving Peru to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in Brunei on Wednesday and Thursday.
On Friday, he made an unannounced detour to Japan, canceling a planned trip to Panama this weekend where Spanish-speaking and Portuguese-speaking leaders held an Ibero-American summit.
At first Japanese officials had said he was in the country only for a layover to change planes, then Japan's Foreign Ministry said Fujimori would stay longer than planned because he had a cold.
But later Saturday, the Peruvian government announced that Fujimori planned to remain in Tokyo until Wednesday to negotiate loans to ease Peru's financial problems.
Fujimori, who first came to power in 1990, was born to Japanese immigrant parents who picked cotton in Peru until they opened a tailor's shop in downtown Lima.
The president has maintained strong ties to Japan. His son, Hiro, lives there, as do his sister and brother-in-law, Victor Aritomi, Peru's ambassador to the country.
Fujimori's grip on power began to fall apart after Montesinos, his longtime top aide was seen apparently bribing an opposition lawmaker to support the government. A videotape of the meeting between Montesinos and the lawmaker was leaked to the media. Montesinos fled to Panama but was denied asylum and returned to Peru.
Since then, Fujimori has led an unsuccessful manhunt for Montesinos, who is wanted for alleged money-laundering after Swiss authorities froze $48 million in accounts linked to the former spymaster. The amount under investigation swelled to $58 million after other accounts were discovered, authorities said.
Montesinos faces criminal complaints in Peru ranging from directing state-sponsored death squads and torture to skimming profits from narcotics trades during his 10 years as Fujimori's top aide.
Despite Montesinos' dark reputation, Fujimori for years defended their close relationship, insisting that Montesinos had proved highly effective in helping to defeat leftist rebels and undercut narcotics trafficking.
Fujimori won a third five-year term last May in an election marred by irregularities and boycotted by international observers. His foes said Montesinos masterminded an illegal campaign of intimidation, fraud and dirty tricks to ensure Fujimori's victory.
"Fujimori's resignation under these circumstances does nothing but confirm his responsibility for 10 years of control of Peru by a mafia," said opposition Congressman Fernando Olivera. "Fujimori is mistaken if he thinks that this resignation will be enough to obtain complete impunity. The slate should not be wiped clean."
