In a special session, Congress voted 65-0 to lift the immunity of Fujimori and three
                 former Cabinet ministers, which allows prosecutors to file charges of
                 embezzlement and criminal activity against them. The 55 other members of
                 Congress either did not attend the session or abstained from voting.

                 Fujimori, 63, allegedly signed a secret decree in September 2000 to divert $15
                 million in defense funds for an illegal payoff to former spy chief Vladimiro
                 Montesinos, the ex-president's top aide, so that he would leave without a fight last
                 year.

                 Fujimori is in self-exile in his parents' native Japan, which has refused to extradite
                 him on other charges. Fujimori and the three former officials deny any wrongdoing.

                 The vote came as Attorney General Nelly Calderon announced Tuesday that she
                 asked the legislature to approve further charges of embezzlement as well as illicit
                 enrichment against Fujimori and 10 former officials.

                 Calderon said the charges involve Fujimori's alleged responsibility for more than
                 $372 million in public money that went missing during his administration, including
                 some $260 million that has been found in foreign bank accounts linked to
                 Montesinos and his cronies.

                 At the time of the alleged $15 million payment to Montesinos, Fujimori was under
                 pressure from public opinion and other governments, including Washington, to fire
                 the spymaster.

                 Days before, a leaked videotape showing the intelligence chief bribing an opposition
                 congressman plunged Fujimori's government into chaos, sparking rumors of a coup
                 plot by Montesinos loyalists in the military.

                 Montesinos fled the country shortly after, going into hiding until he was captured in
                 Venezuela in June. He is now jailed in a maximum-security naval prison and faces
                 dozens of charges, including drug trafficking, extortion and homicide.

                 Fujimori held onto power for just two more months until November, when he fled
                 to Japan as his 10-year government collapsed under the growing weight of scandals
                 involving Montesinos.

                 The charges, punishable by six to 10 years in prison, would be the latest in a series
                 of accusations that Peruvian officials hope will persuade Japan to extradite
                 Fujimori. Prosecutors have five working days to file the charges.

                 Japan granted Fujimori citizenship shortly after his arrival there, and Japanese law
                 prohibits the extradition of Japanese citizens to stand trial for crimes committed in
                 other countries.

                 Despite persistent demands from top Peruvian officials that Japan extradite
                 Fujimori, Japanese officials have repeatedly said they will not force the ex-president
                 to return to Peru.

                 Fujimori also faces an international arrest warrant accusing him of homicide and
                 forced disappearance for allegedly sanctioning two massacres by a paramilitary
                 death squad in the early 1990s. He is also charged with abandonment of office and
                 dereliction of duty.

                 On his "From Tokyo" Web site, Fujimori claims he is the target of political
                 persecution in Peru, brushing off the accusations against him for lacking proof and
                 credible witnesses.

                  Copyright 2001 The Associated Press