Polay Campos, Víctor (1951–)

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Polay Campos, Víctor (1951–)

Víctor Polay Campos is a founding member of the Movimiento Revolucionario Túpac Amaru (Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, MRTA), a Peruvian guerrilla movement. Born April 6, 1951, in Callao, the son of Víctor Polay Risco, a prominent leader and former deputy of the Peruvian Aprista Party (APRA), Polay Campos grew up in a family affected by frequent paternal absences caused by political persecution. A member of APRA since his preteen years, Polay Campos rose rapidly through its ranks. In the early 1970s he studied in Paris (where his roommate was Alan García, a fellow APRA member and future Peruvian president) and Madrid; during this stay in Europe he abandoned APRA and adopted a left-wing ideology. Polay Campos contributed to the creation of the MRTA in 1982. In February 1989 he was captured by the Peruvian police but escaped from prison in July 1990 with dozens of other MRTA leaders. He was recaptured in June 1992 and in April 1993 was sentenced to life in prison. Polay Campos is now incarcerated in the Callao Naval Base.

See alsoMovimiento Revolucionario Tupac Amaru (MRTA); Peru, Political Parties: Peruvian Aprista Party (PAP/APRA).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Jiménez Bacca, Benedicto. Inicio, desarrollo y ocaso del terrorismo en el Perú: El ABC de Sendero Luminoso y el MRTA ampliado y comentado. Peru: Impr. Sanki, 2000.

McCormick, Gordon H. Sharp Dressed Men: Peru's Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement. Santa Monica, CA: RAND, 1993.

                                        Julio Carrion