Who trusts the generals? 107 by Ernesto Herrera
DESPITE ATROCIOUS AND CONTINUOUS violations of human rights, there has never been a Latin American equivalent to the
Nuremberg trials, or thet condemnation of the Greek colonels. The closest we came trial of members of
Argentinean military junta at the beginning of the Alfonsin government.
But the "Punto final" (full stop) and
"Obediencia debida" (duty to obedience)
laws that Alfonsin introduced after the
"carapintadas" mutiny of the military made it possible for his successor,
President Menem, to pardon those responsible a few years later,
In Uruguay, a referendum
Sanguinetti's first presidential term imposed a statute of limitations on the atrocious crimes committed by the previous dictatorial regime.
In Chile, Pinochet's military wrote and approved their own amnesty legislation at the end of the 1970s, and, except for those involved in the murder of
Orlando Letelier at the United
States, none of the Chilean state terrorists have been taken to most severely devastated by the 12 year civil war). Their victims are mainly former guerilla members and leaders of social movements. And the criminals go unpunished: "as the power structures used by the governments that committed massive violations of human rights are still in place, former soldiers who form new armed groups can find new work, and be a useful barrier against any possible upsurge of the popular movement," as one FMLN leader complains.
Impunity seems to be a real Latin American characteristic. In Colombia, national and international human rights organizations have denounced over 2,000
Latin America radio station permanently shut down. A few low-level officers have been convicted, without prison term, for not stopping the excesses of subordinates".
Meanwhile, the managers of the radio and some of the demonstrators (i.e. the victims of the shooting) have been sentenced for a series of crimes, all involving prison terms, such as slander, insult, encouragement to disparagement of the nation, the State, or its representatives, and incitement to delinquency. In other words, the
"cause of the state" is still being protected against the destabilising "subversion" of the "democratic" system.
This is happening all over Latin
America. But most left-wing forces don't want to see. They place their bets on institutional channels, as though the rules of the game were the same for all of us. Or, more dangerously, they assume that state terrorism is a thing of the past, or something specific to dictatorial regimes.
Reality is different. Today, it is no longer sufficient to denounce the concentration of economic power, the media monopoly, and electoral fraud. The neo-liberal project, even in a more-or-less court.
In fact, apart from the Bolivian ex-dictator Garcia Meza and a The mothers of the 'dissapeared' demonstrate - 2,000 of their few Paraguayan police chiefs, sons were sedated and thrown into the Atlantic to drown. none of the criminals that wreaked terror on South America from the 1970s to the 1990s is currently imprisoned. What democracy are we talking about, when state terrorism continues to threaten -and the terrorists act in the expectation of full impunity?
In Honduras, the death squads are being revived. As well as former agents of the secret police, the para-military 3-16 Death Battalion, the group responsible for most of the "historic" disappearances is back in action. According to senior human rights worker Leo Valladares, the total stoppage of court trials (one of the main accused parties being the current head of the army, General Luis Alonso Discuba) is due to the fact that "the structures of impunity are intact".
In El Salvador, the story is similar. Some eight far-right groups, counting about 25 members each, (according to the civilian police) are particularly active in the Morazan province (one of the regions disappearances and more than 3,000 political killings over the last five years. Most of these crimes were perpetrated by the army and para-military groups linked with the drug trade. In Peru, President Fujimori's "dirty war" has cost over 20,000 lives. In Mexico, more than 500 people have "disappeared' in recent years, and, over 200 political crimes were committed under Salinas de Gortari's government alone. In Paraguay and Brazil, hundreds of peasants have been murdered by the army and armed thugs in the pay of large land-owners. Something similar is happening in Equator. Even "democratic" and "peaceful" Uruguay belongs on this gruesome list. For example, on 24 August 1994, the Republican Guard savagely repressed a demonstration in solidarity with three Basque prisoners - later extradited. One young worker was killed and over 40 wounded by gunfire, and one credible parliamentary democracy, requires more and more heavily armed "institutions" to keep down those forces which contest those in power. The possibilities of building a democracy are minimal if fighting the impunity of those responsible for state violence and dismantling the repressive mechanisms are not among the focuses of the political and social struggle. Otherwise, as one Guatemalan historian predicts, the rot will emerge again sooner of later. *
increase control of 'aliens' and 'Europeans' alike
— at the external frontier and everywhere inside the bosses' Europe.