President Alberto Fujimori of Peru has called for new elections and said he will not be a candidate.
Mister Fujimori made the announcement after a top adviser created a political crisis.
It began with a videotape.
The tape appeared to show the adviser offering money to an opposition member to join Mister Fujimori's political party.
The adviser was Vladimiro Montesinos,chief of Peru's National Intelligence Service.
The president ordered the agency"deactivated."
Mister Montesinos has strong links to the army.
For days the powerful military said nothing about the situation.
This silence worried people.Peru has a history of military overthrows.
But on Thursday the armed forces expressed support for Mister Fujimori.
Critics condemned Mister Montesinos and demanded his arrest.
They also demanded that President Fujimori immediately resign.
But the president told a crowd of supporters that he will contine to govern until July twenty-eighth.
Mister Fujimori also held a news conference.
He told reporters that he had a surprise for them about what he is going to do in Two-Thousand-Six.
The reporters took this to mean that he may again seek office.
They asked President Fujimori if the United States government had urged him to resign.
He said there had been no such suggestion.
The president did not answer questions about Mister Montesinos.
Peru's justice minister said Mister Montesinos would answer to the justice system.
Opposition leaders say there must be a full investigation into recent government activities.
And they demanded that Mister Montesinos face trial.
Late in the week,anti-government demonstrators held noisy protests outside the presidential palace in Lima.
Political experts have both praised and criticized the administration of Alberto Fujimori over the past ten years.
More importantly,they say,his administration has ended the years of terrorism that harmed Peru.
And he helped to lower the inflation that had severely damaged the economy.
Political experts say Mister Fujimori has improved the economy by decreasing import taxes and easing government controls on business.
Experts say increased investment and economic growth helped to strengthen democracy in Peru.
But critics say President Fujimori's plans for economic growth have now slowed.
They also say his administration is not democratic.
They say he has acted illegally in the past and has become a dictator.
Observers in Peru say just what President Fujimori will do in the coming weeks is not clear.
They say he has survived more than one political crisis,and may do so again.