Augusta la Torre

Augusta la Torre Carrasco (c. 1946 – 1988), also known as Comrade Norah, was a Peruvian Maoist revolutionary noted as number two in command of the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) guerrillas. La Torre's influence on her husband, Sendero Luminoso founder Abimael Guzmán, was credited with establishing the equality for women's participation within the revolutionary organization and during its militant actions.

Early life and Political Involvement
Augusta La Torre was born in Huanta in 1946 into a family with a prominent political lineage. The daughter of Communist party leader Carlos la Torre Córdova and Delia Carrasco, "she grew up in a family where political activity, party membership and protest against the Peruvian state were routine, making it unsurprising that she too entered radical politics." She joined the Peruvian Communist Party in 1962 at the age of 17. She met Abimael Guzmán, a professor of philosophy, through her parents. Guzman was a regular guest to their home in Ayacucho, meeting with la Torre's father to discuss politics. In February 1964, she married Guzman. La Torre also encouraged Guzman to establish the Popular Women's Movement in Ayacucho in 1965. She was active within the Maoist political organization, Bandera Roja (Red Flag) and helped found the Socorro Popular del Peru (Popular Succour).

Sendero Luminoso
La Torre was instrumental in helping Guzman to create the Sendero Luminoso. She led the first offensive of the Shining Path on December 24, 1980. She went into hiding with Guzman in 1978 and died in November 1988, although the circumstances of her death remain unclear She was succeeded as number two of the Sendero Luminoso by Guzman's second wife, Elena Albertina Iparraguirre Revoredo.