Argentina round-up

March is always the month of memory in Argentina, with the anniversary of the attack on the Israeli embassy on the 17th and the coup anniversary on the 24th. This year, with the 30th anniversary of the invasion of the Falklands/Malvinas coming up, the commemorative trend is particularly obvious and continuing into April.

Here's a selection of articles of interest from this week:

- On Monday, the memory commission of the province of Buenos Aires submitted an appeal to the Argentine supreme court requesting that the mistreatment of recuits during the Malvinas conflict amounted to crimes against humanity:
Piden a la Corte que se defina por las torturas en Malvinas (La Nacion)
Legal actions against Argentine officers who tortured conscripts during Malvinas war (Mercopress)

Not everyone in Argentina is convinced that the country has a right to the Falkland Islands. The BBC gives space to historian Luis Alberto Romero, who says,

"I'm not really bothered about the claim over the Malvinas. [...] What does worry me is the rise of a nationalistic feeling that can cause traumas in our society," he says, referring to public support for the country's military regime when it decided to invade the South Atlantic islands in 1982.

I'd agree with that.
Falkland Islands: Argentina's dissenters (BBC)

Oh, and incidentally, if you're a bit hazy about the exact dates of all the Falklands stuff, the BBC has sorted that with a handy timeline:
The Falklands War: Key dates (BBC)

And definitely check out The Atlantic's amazing images from the war:
30 Years Since the Falklands War (The Atlantic)
- One of the major human rights trials, dealing with the abduction of babies during the dictatorship, is drawing to a close. IPS particularly looks at the story of found grandchild Francisco Madariaga. However, on a broader front, "the aim of this trial is also to show that there was a systematic plan to steal children", according to Grandmothers' lawyer Alan Iud.
Argentine Baby Theft Trial Nears End (IPS)

The Grandmothers want a 50-year jail term for former dictator Jorge Videla for his role at the top architect of the baby stealing.
“La Justicia consolidará la democracia y el Nunca Más” (Pagina/12)

- This week also saw 35 years since the death of writer Rodolfo Walsh, murdered by the regime in 1977. A monument to him by artist Leon Ferrari was unveiled at the former ESMA site. Walsh is best known for his "Open letter from a writer to the Military Junta" and the entire text of it is reproduced on the 14 glass panels of the memorial.

Carta abierta por la memoria de Walsh (Pagina/12)
“Se quedó acá y lo mataron” (Pagina/12 - an interview with Ferrari)