Luis Marchand Stens

Luis Marchand Stens was born in Lima in 1930, attended Leoncio Prado military college, and studied law at San Marcos. Entering the foreign ministry at nineteen, he served in Chile, Ecuador, Venezuela, Washington, Geneva, and the OAS. ¹

His Washington work extended beyond the bilateral embassy, which he headed in the mid-1980s. As OAS ambassador in September 1979, he joined Foreign Minister Carlos García-Bedoya, UN representative Carlos Alzamora, and bilateral ambassador Alfonso Arias-Schreiber in talks with Secretary of State Cyrus Vance. Their discussion covered assistance to Nicaragua after Somoza’s overthrow, the lifting of the American tuna embargo, Panama Canal tolls, and Peru’s planned return to elected government. ^{2, 1}

Foreign minister in 1990–1991, Marchand resigned amid disputes over the diplomatic service. Returning to the OAS, he helped advance Resolution 1080’s defence of democracy. Following Fujimori’s April 1992 coup, he resigned that post too. Contemporary reporting records his departure alongside Washington ambassador Roberto MacLean’s resignation. ^{1, 3}

His later legal work emphasized access to justice. In a 1999 report to the Inter-American Juridical Committee, he argued that formal equality meant little when poverty prevented people from using courts, and called for effective access for disadvantaged and Indigenous communities. He also taught international law and diplomacy and contributed to Peru’s maritime case against Chile. ^{4, 1}