Peru asks Congress for crime-fighting powers

Peru's new government asked Congress on Wednesday to approve powers for a crime-fighting plan after President Keiko Fujimori's cabinet met for the first time.

A presidential statement said the 90-minute meeting produced measures to strengthen citizen security and that the cabinet asked Congress to grant the government the powers needed to confront urgent challenges. The statement did not specify which powers were being sought.

Fujimori took office Tuesday promising to address security concerns in Peru. In her inauguration speech, she set out plans to deploy the army in areas affected by extortion, drug trafficking and illegal mining.

Foreign Minister Carlos Espa said the public's main demand was action against insecurity and said he expected the opposition to support the request. Fujimori has also backed expelling undocumented people, creating courts with anonymous judges and making prisoners work for food.

Some Peruvians support another hardline Fujimori administration, while others, including families of state violence victims, fear a crime crackdown could lead to abuses. Fujimori is the daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori, who ruled in the 1990s and was later jailed for corruption and crimes against humanity.

Peru is facing what the item describes as its worst security crisis in decades, driven by local and foreign criminal gangs involved in contract killings and extortion.