Helicopeters were hovering over the Peruvian Defense Ministry on Thursday, where leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members will meet on the weekend to discuss such issues as the group's regional economic integration, the global financial crisis and the stalled Doha Round trade talks.
Peru has been tightening security in and around the capital city since last week, to prepare for the culmination of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum this weekend.
Police were taking extra precautions in the city to prevent possible violence and attacks from harassing the summit, the 16th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
A total of 19 leaders, including Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. Presiednt George W. Bush, are expected to attend the meeting.
STRICT SECURITY MEASURES
An integrated surveillance video network has been created in Lima with over 200 video-surveillance cameras watching over the leaders, said officials in charge of security for the week-long forum, called the APEC Leaders's Week that began on Nov. 16.
The vehicle of each APEC leader will be protected by a team of two police motorcycles, followed by a patrol sedan and two trucks carrying police officers. Police helicopters will guard the leaders' vehicle from the air to prevent any possible terrorist attacks.
Visitors and journalist who wanted to enter the International Media Center, a temporary building near the venue of the summit, must subject themselves to strict security checks.
Under the Plan of Operations APEC 2008, presented by Interior Minister Remigio Hernani, Peruvian authorities have deployed some 99,000 security personnel to protect the leaders, ministers and business dignitaries attending the forum, local newspaper Peru.21 reported earlier this week.
As the possibility of an attack with nuclear or bacteriological agents is always taken into account in international meetings like the APEC summit, Peruvian police and firefighters have reportedly set up units equipped with special devices against nuclear, biological and chemical materials.
These groups will be responsible for detecting and identifying bacteria or virus, which could be used as a weapon of mass destruction during the summit.
STREETS CLOSED FOR SUMMIT
The Peruvian government has announced a three-day public holiday as an additional measure to ensure that the APEC summit could go smoothly.
From Thursday to Saturday, residents in Lima will have to get around some streets closed for security reasons and choose detours if they want to leave the city during the holiday.
Police warned that they should get familiar with the restricted zones in advance to avoid traffic jams and bottlenecks near venues where the meetings would be held and hotels that accommodate representatives of the 21 APEC members, said Carlos Vega, head of the traffic police in Lima.
He suggested that the population in the next four days avoid travelling via Expresses Javier Prado, a main street in the city, as it would be closed for several times.
The street would be the route to move the delegations to the convention center at the Defense Ministry, located at the Army Headquarters in San Borja district, Vega was quoted by Peru.21 as saying.
BOMB ATTACK FOILED
Such high security is especially relevant after a man with a box of grenades was arrested only days ahead of the event.
On Monday, Peruvian police arrested the man for an alleged attempt to carry out a bomb attack during the annual forum.
The 31-year-old man, identified as Edwin Vallalodid, was carrying 36 grenades to downtown Lima when he was captured, Julio Vergara, who is in charge of the security of the forum, told local radio station RPP.
Vallalodid was travelling by taxi from the district of San Martin de Porres, north of Lima, to a historic center in the Peruvian capital, Vergara said.
Premilinary investigations showed that it was not an independent action of Vallalodid, he added.
Authorities' main concern is about the Shining Path, a rebel group which has been blamed for several ambushes against security forces since last month.
"We know he does not have a police record. We know he is not affiliated or does not belong to the Shining Path ..., at least there is no record of that. But a series of facts must be verified, and therefore, we must wait," Interior Minister Hernani said.
Source: Xinhua
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