Since 1980 there has been a growing guerilla war in Peru. The Maoist Shining Path have been fighting special units of the Peruvian Armed Forces, who have been granted political as well as military control over many areas. The war has left over 5000 people dead or "disappeared."

In January 1983, the violence in Peru was driven home to the world with the discovery of the bodies of eight journalists in the remote Andean village of Uchurracay. A government commission said the journalists were murdered by peasants who mistook them for guerrillas. Others charged military complicity.

FIRE IN THE ANDES tells the story of this Andean region through an investigation into the fate of the journalists - eight men who set out to find the truth about the war, and instead became its victims.

"This balanced and up-to-date video is the only documentary available on the political violence and the systematic violations of human rights in Peru. Recommended for libraries acquiring documentaries on political violence and human rights problems and for university classes and human rights groups dealing with these subjects."—Choice