Martha Hildebrandt

Martha Luz Hildebrandt Pérez-Treviño (La Libertad, January 13, 1925) is a Peruvian linguist and politician. Martha Hildebrandt was the second woman to occupy the Presidency of the Congress of the Republic of Peru in 1999 (Martha Chávez was the first). Since 1995 she has exercised her charge in the Congress of Peru. She is also the sister of César Hildebrandt, a Peruvian journalist.

In 1942 she studied education in National University of San Marcos. In 1952 she studied "Descriptive Linguistics" in Oklahoma, United States and subsequently "Structural Linguistics" in Illinois, also in the United States.

From 1947 to 1953, she worked at the National University of San Marcos as a teacher. Then she traveled to Venezuela, where she worked in the area of linguistics at the Department of Justice of Venezuela. In 1962 she returned to the National University of San Marcos as professor and remained there until 1973. From 1972 until 1976 she was also the General Director of the Institute of Culture.

From 1974 to 1978 she held important positions in the Organization of American States (OAS) and in UNESCO, in the area of linguistics.

Martha Hildebrandt may be the local linguist best known to the broad Peruvian public, though she speaks neither Quechua nor Aymara. She was Perpetual Secretary of the Academia Peruana de la Lengua from 1993 to the 2005. Her numerous books on subjects related to the Spanish Language are extensively quoted.

Her political life began in 1994 with her (professional) relationship with Alberto Fujimori. In the general elections of 1995 she was chosen by Cambio 90-Nueva Mayoría as the Congressperson of the Republic, initiating her first period in the Legislature. When the general elections of the 2000 approached and Alberto Fujimori desired to advance to the re-reelection, she defended the controversial project, along with Martha Chávez, Luz Salgado and Carmen Lozada.

In 1999 she was chosen as President of the Congress and in 2000 she was reaffirmed in the position. When the state of Alberto Fujimori began to collapse, Hildebrandt was removed from the position, to avoid "to be closely tied to the regime".

She was replaced by the First Vice-president Luz Salgado, and then after two quarrelled elections between government supporters and opposition, Valentín Paniagua Corazao (Accion Popular) was chosen temporarily, as the new President of the Congress and therefore as Transitory President of the Republic.

In the general elections of the 2001, she was not elected, but before the reproof of Luz Salgado, was her replacement in the Congress of the Republic. Already in the general elections of the 2006, advanced with the number 2 to the Congress and turned out to be chosen with the third voting inside Alianza para el Futuro, a coalition of the whole parted fujimoristas.

In August 2006, she criticized two congresswomen from Cusco, Hilaria Supa and María Sumire, for being sworn in before Congress in their native language Quechua on July 25, 2006. She demanded that Spanish should be used as the only language in Congress. However, the Congress decided that translations from Quechua and other indigenous languages should be taken into account for all sessions.

Martha Hidebrandt prompted the creation of a preschool for the children of Congresspersons, and left her grandchildren in that preschool. Since 1995 she has been involved in the Junta prep School of the Congress. In this meeting they gather upon more voting, that of under age and that of greater age, and Hildebrandt has always been that of greater age.

For the Meeting of 2006, they will accompany the most voted member (Keiko Fujimori of AF 2006) and that of smaller age (Luciana León of APRA). It is also curious that since Hildebrandt worked in the Junta, only women have occupied that role.