Peru's Fujimori to ResignPresident Alberto Fujimori, whose 10-year authoritarian rule has crumbled in recent months over corruption scandals, said in Tokyo early Monday 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 had asked him to step in as president until special elections are held in April and a new leader takes office in July.The president made a decision to quit at 1 a.m. (Japan time) Monday in consideration of the new balance of power in Peru's parliament, the statement said. Fujimori, who was elected to his third five-year term in June, has been under pressure to step down in the wake of bribery and other scandals linked to his former aide Vladimiro Montesinos. Fujimori arrived in Japan last Friday after attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Brunei. The Peruvian president was originally to stay overnight in Japan, but the Peruvian government gazette said last Saturday he would extend his stay in Japan until Wednesday. Fujimori, a Japanese-Peruvian whose parents emigrated from Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture, was originally scheduled to step down next July after a new presidential election in April. |
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