Christian People's Party (Peru) Cristiana party that defected by ideological motifs. While their former party supported a constitutional break to accelerate the reforms needed by the country, the founders of the PPC, led by Luis Bedoya Reyes still believed in the constitutional order. Thus they retired from Democracia Cristiana and founded the new party. In 1968, General Juan Velasco Alvarado staged a coup d'etat against President Fernando Belaúnde Terry, an ally of Luis Bedoya Reyes. The PPC did not support the military regime and was one of its most fierce opponents, along with the Partido Aprista Peruano (APRA). The latter was declared illegal. In
Juan Velasco Alvarado another uprising or a takeover from the APRA party, seized absolute power and close down Congress, almost all of whose members were briefly incarcerated. General Velasco seized power on October 3, 1968, in a bloodless military coup, deposing the democratically elected administration of Fernando Belaúnde, under which he served as Commander of the Armed Forces. President Belaúnde was sent into exile. Initial reaction against the coup evaporated after five days when on October 8, 1968, the oil fields in dispute were taken over by the Army. The coup leaders named their administration the Revolutionary Government of the Armed Forces, with