Oscar Ramirez Durand (16 March 1953-) was a Shining Path leader who was the overall commander from 1992 to 1999, succeeding Abimael Guzman and preceding Comrade Artemio.
Biography[]
Oscar Ramirez was born on 16 March 1953 to a retired Peruvian general, the second of seven children. Ramirez was the cousin of Vladimiro Montesinos, the intelligence chief of Peru under President Alberto Fujimori who would later be his adversary. He was awarded the medal of academic excellence from the College of St. Francis of Assisi in Arequipa for his chess skills and his good work in school, and he later became a follower of Marxism. Ramirez joined the Shining Path revolutionary movement and became its leader as Comrade Feliciano when Abimael Guzman was arrested in 1992. By 1999, he was the last Shining Path leader at large, and 1,500 commandos chased him and three female fighters down for two weeks; he was captured by them. In 2006 he was sentenced to 24 years in prison, with his collaboration with authorities, enmity towards Abimael Guzman, and his apology for the Shining Path's crimes reducing his sentence.