ABSTRACT
The insurgent movement that calls itself the Communist Party of Peru Partido Comunista del Peru (PCP) and is called by others Shining Path is both a paradox and an anachronism. Shining Path had its origins in 1962 and 1963, in the provincial Ayacucho organization of Peru's then single-line Communist Party. The PCP, Shining Path, Guzmán holds, is following the correct communist line almost alone and will eventually be vindicated by revolutionary triumph in Peru. Shining Path, in effect, pursues ideology at the expense of reality, convinced that its own "scientific interpretation of history" represents the real interests of the proletariat and will inevitably triumph. The United States government played a significant role in this process out of concern for Peru's domestic crises, including the insurgency, and committed some $90 million in economic and military assistance as well. Expenses may include some arms brought in by the mostly Colombian drug smuggling planes.
