The Executive Branch has decided to posthumously award the exceptional honor of the "Order of Merit for Women" to social fighter and grassroots leader from Lima's Villa El Salvador district, Maria Elena Moyano, who was assassinated by the terrorist organization
Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) 30 years ago.
It is a posthumous recognition of Moyano Delgado's outstanding career in defending the rights of women and vulnerable populations.
Maria Elena Moyano was brutally murdered by Shining Path on February 15, 1992, at age 33, as a reprisal for her opposition to terrorist brutality.
A group of Shining Path members shot her in Villa El Salvador and then blew up her lifeless body with explosives, when she was on her way to a public activity organized by the Vaso de Leche (Glass of Milk) program.
A day earlier, Shining Path members had called for an "armed strike" and warned of reprisals against anyone who attempted to come out of their homes.
However, Moyano took to the streets to express her rejection of the terrorist group, accompanied by a group of men and women from Villa El Salvador district.
Her murder was not an isolated incident. Moyano stood out as a leader who fought for human rights, women's rights, and against terrorist violence, which was at its peak in those years.
(END) VVS/CVC/RMB/MVB
Published: 2/16/2022