Argentine given 25 years for Dirty War deeds
DEBORA REY

Associated Press

A former police officer was sentenced Friday to 25 years in prison for human rights abuses in connection with the 1978 disappearance of a married couple during Argentina's military dictatorship.

It was the first conviction since 1980s amnesty laws protecting former military and police officials accused of dictatorship-era atrocities were overturned last year by the Supreme Court.

A federal tribunal in Buenos Aires convicted former officer Julio Simon of the torture and “illegal privation” of liberty of Chilean Jose Poblete and his Argentine wife, Gertrudis Hlaczik, as well having taken away their daughter, who at the time was 8 months old, a court statement said.

Human rights groups hailed the ruling as a victory, saying it marked a step toward obtaining justice after the 1976-83 dictatorship.

Argentina's military rulers seized power on March 24, 1976, beginning seven years of rule in which prosecutors say they waged a systematic crackdown on dissidents known as the “Dirty War.” An official report said some 13,000 people disappeared during that period while human rights groups put the figure at around 30,000.

In June 2005, Argentina's Supreme Court struck down sweeping amnesty laws passed in the 1980s that shielded hundreds of former officers from prosecution for disappearances arising from the junta era. The ruling came after the centre-left government of President Nestor Kirchner, who took power in 2003, made human rights a priority.

Mr. Poblete had arrived in Argentina in 1971 after losing both legs in a train accident in his native Chile. In Buenos Aires, authorities said he was active in a leftist group and met his wife, a psychology student. The couple had a daughter in March 1978, and were captured eight months later.

Prosecutors said Mr. Poblete and his wife were apparently taken to a clandestine torture centre called “El Olimpo” and never seen again. A human rights group, Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo, said the couple's daughter was handed over to a military officer's family and her identity was re-established in 1998.

The trial began June 28 under heavy security as authorities called more than 30 witnesses who gave gripping accounts of torture and accused Mr. Simon of being involved.

Mr. Simon waived an opportunity to speak before the verdict and sentence. Defence lawyers argued there was insufficient evidence to convict him, and vowed to appeal.

Estela de Carlotto, president of the Grandmothers of the Plaza, rejoiced at Mr. Simon's 25-year sentence, saying, “this is a big day on the path for all the trials” in the future.

Mr. Poblete's stepbrother, Fernando Navarro, told reporters, “I can't express my joy.”

The 2005 overturning of amnesty laws has raised the possibility that scores of former officers could be called back to testify or eventually face prosecution.

Also in June, a 76-year-old former police investigator, Miguel Osvaldo Etchecolatz, went on federal trial in La Plata, 35 miles southeast of Buenos Aires, on charges of ties to the kidnapping, torture and disappearance of five people under military rule. That trial is ongoing.

The best things to happen to Argetina was the defeat in the Malvinas (Falkland) War. It helped the population to wake up from the super naive nationalism.

What do you mean by "super naive nationalism"? (I have to plead ignorance on the subject of Argentinian history!) Like they loved their country regardless of what the government did to them?

no,no...At the time of the Falkland war, the dictatorship was becoming quite inpopular, the population was getting pissed, already protesting, etc. So the guys on power had the awesome idea to start a war against some foreign country to "unite" the people on a patriotic cause. So the people got all excited about this "yeah, lets kick some british arses!" but it was the argetines who got kicked, after the beating, they really opened their eyes about the shit dictatorship that were ruling them.

I guess this'll do for the Falkland Islands war.

Initially I was checking up on recoiless rifles as I felt that Reuters had mislabeled a photograph of one as an "anti-aircraft gun" so I did some research on them prior to emailing them on the topic. Yes, I am incredibly lame, I am aware. Somehow I stumbled upon their use in the Falkland Islands war, and then I read up on the incident some more. Perhaps I have already discussed this, but I'll give it another go.

The Falkland Islands war. What gives? I understand that Britain has been our Ally for quite a while now, but where'd the Monroe doctrine go in this instance? I'm not saying that its necessarily a good doctrine, but we've been pretty adamant about it for what, two centuries? Considering that Britain was assuredly a "foreign power" considered when the doctrine was founded, one might presume that the US would play a key role in any conflict in South America. What was the US doing at the time, could it have done more?

The Falklands are pretty far off the coast, and have been under British rule since the early 19th century. Plus, the Argentines were under a military junta in 1982, and there was no way the US was going to get involved on THEIR behalf when they attacked the islands unprovoked.

You mean they weren't our kind of military junta? What did the US do as far as diplomacy goes? I'm just sayin' that if we completely sat this one out, it would seem as though we don't take the words of Mr. Monroe to heart anymore.

You mean they weren't our kind of military junta? What did the US do as far as diplomacy goes? I'm just sayin' that if we completely sat this one out, it would seem as though we don't take the words of Mr. Monroe to heart anymore.