Memoria Chilena (5)

Exiled Chileans, 1973.

Image credit: Exiliados chilenos . Disponible en Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-70719.html .

#10añosMCH

Memoria Chilena (4)

This is the cover of APSI after the victory of the "no" campaign in the 1988 referendum. 

Image credit: APSI: n° 272, octubre de 1988 . Disponible en Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-81480.html .

#10añosMCH

Memoria Chilena (3)

Poet Pablo Neruda at a Communist Party event, around 1970. 

Image credit: Neruda en un acto del Partido Comunista, hacia 1970 . Disponible en Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-72668.html .

#10añosMCH

Memoria Chilena (2)

To mark the tenth anniversary of the Memoria Chilena project, I'm going to show a few of their images over the next few days. This man needs no introduction, but this kind of unposed, partial shot of him is not that common.

Image credit: Augusto Pinochet. Disponible en Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-98660.html .

Argentina: Right to identity for kids

This little video from Pakapaka, the children's channel of the Argentina education ministry, explains the history of the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo and the right to identity, with Estela Carlotto voicing herself. 

Memoria Chilena

The national library of Chile's fantastic open-source project Memoria Chilena is celebrating its tenth anniversary. The site is well worth checking out.

Image credit: Ehrmann, Hans. Víctor Jara, ca. 1970 . Disponible en Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-75031.html .

Chile's anniversary in photos

Just a quick link to two great blog posts by Emily Achtenberg on the NACLA site about Chile's 40-year anniversary. Lots of interesting photos, of which I'll add just one here to tempt you to go and check out the rest.

Chile’s 40 Year Anniversary in Photos: Part 1, Recovering Memories (Rebel Currents)
Chile’s 40 Year Anniversary in Photos: Part 2 – Resistance, Past and Present (Rebel Currents)

Colombia: Bogotá's memory museum

Despite the fact that in Colombia, perhaps even more than other countries in the Americas, its period of violence is by no means "over", memory efforts occur alongside current events. One commemorative space is the Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación in Bogotá.

It's a striking building. As "thecitypaperbogota.com" describes, its "four walls encourage peace, promote a culture of democracy and demonstrate the importance of human rights in a society skewed by violence. There are sunlit corridors and glass enclosed conference rooms for art exhibitions and as a public space, the centre looks to promote a collective dialogue around the causes and consequences of political violence."

The 'Memory' museum (The city paper)
The official website of the site is down, but they are quite active on Twitter. 

Thank to Mike for drawing my attention to this. Image credit: Pedro Felipe at Wikicommons.

Its four walls encourage peace, promote a culture of democracy and demonstrate the importance of human rights in a society skewed by violence. There are sunlit corridors and glass enclosed conference rooms for art exhibitions and as a public space, the centre looks to promote a collective dialogue around the causes and consequences of political violence. - See more at: http://thecitypaperbogota.com/city/building-for-remembrance/#sthash.kCaFx2sv.dpuf

Its four walls encourage peace, promote a culture of democracy and demonstrate the importance of human rights in a society skewed by violence. There are sunlit corridors and glass enclosed conference rooms for art exhibitions and as a public space, the centre looks to promote a collective dialogue around the causes and consequences of political violence. - See more at: http://thecitypaperbogota.com/city/building-for-remembrance/#sthash.kCaFx2sv.dpuf

Its four walls encourage peace, promote a culture of democracy and demonstrate the importance of human rights in a society skewed by violence. There are sunlit corridors and glass enclosed conference rooms for art exhibitions and as a public space, the centre looks to promote a collective dialogue around the causes and consequences of political violence. - See more at: http://thecitypaperbogota.com/city/building-for-remembrance/#sthash.kCaFx2sv.dpuf

Its four walls encourage peace, promote a culture of democracy and demonstrate the importance of human rights in a society skewed by violence. There are sunlit corridors and glass enclosed conference rooms for art exhibitions and as a public space, the centre looks to promote a collective dialogue around the causes and consequences of political violence. - See more at: http://thecitypaperbogota.com/city/building-for-remembrance/#sthash.kCaFx2sv.dpuf

Its four walls encourage peace, promote a culture of democracy and demonstrate the importance of human rights in a society skewed by violence. There are sunlit corridors and glass enclosed conference rooms for art exhibitions and as a public space, the centre looks to promote a collective dialogue around the causes and consequences of political violence. - See more at: http://thecitypaperbogota.com/city/building-for-remembrance/#sthash.kCaFx2sv.dpuf

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación

Less democracy makes for an easier World Cup

This story is not new; the article is from April but I was just sent it by Erik Jennische and I couldn't let it pass. I don't recall it being picked up on too much at the time, but apologies if it was.

Too much democracy can be a hindrance when organizing a World Cup, FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke said on Wednesday. ...
"When you have a very strong head of state who can decide, as maybe Putin can do in 2018...that is easier for us organizers than a country such as Germany....where you have to negotiate at different levels."
FIFA president Sepp Blatter then told the audience that he was relieved that hosts Argentina won the 1978 World Cup, which was held under an oppressive military government.
"I remember my first World Cup where I was directly involved was the one in Argentina and I would say I was happy Argentina won," he said.
"This was a kind of reconciliation of the public, of the people of Argentina, with the system, the political system, the military system at the time."

Well, I'm so happy for FIFA that they were able to organise the Argentina World Cup without the hassle of having to deal with all those people. How nice that a brutal authoritarian government smoothed the way for an international sporting event which took place while detainees were being held incognito and tortured just down the road.

By the way, see these two great posts from the Unredacted blog of the National Security Archive on Argentina '78. The first of them notes that human rights abuses did ease off during the time that the eyes of the world were on the country (which is not the same as saying that holding the tournament there was a good idea). The second details then-Secretary of State Henry Kissinger predicting that Argentina will win the World Cup and giving his support to the military junta:

We have followed events in Argentina closely. We wish the new government well. We wish it will succeed. We will do what we can to help it succeed.
We are aware that you are in a difficult period. It is a curious time, when political, criminal and terrorist activities tend to merge without any clear separation. We understand you must establish authority. 

Soccer: Less democracy makes for an easier World Cup - Valcke (Reuters)

Also. What Otto said. 

Peru: Construction of Lugar de la Memoria

Here's a short clip of the construction of the Lugar de la Memoria in Peru.

Nicaragua: Proposal to turn Chipote prison into museum

Nicaragua's opposition BDN party wants the notorious Chipote prison, where inmates were tortured during the Somoza dictatorship and Sandinista government, to be converted into a museum. 

The Nicaragua Dispatch notes that there have been previous unsuccessful attempts to do this and that there is no guarantee that the ruling Sandinista Front will accept the bill. But you never know. I find it interesting that the prison is still a working one so it would first need to be closed before it could be renovated and its use changed. In examples like that of Argentina's ESMA, there was a significant gap between the use of the site as a clandestine detention centre and its re-opening as a cultural site. 

Human rights organisations want the prison closed in any case because of its extremely poor conditions.

Thanks to Mike at Central American Politics for drawing my attention to this story.

Prisons to peace centers following civil wars (Central American Politics)
Nicaragua's opposition wants to turn jail into torture museum (Nicaragua Dispatch)
Oposición pide declarar museo a un centro de tortura de la dictadura Somoza (elconfidencial.com)

Exigen a la Asamblea Nacional cerrar "El Chipote"

Exigen a la Asamblea Nacional cerrar "El Chipote"

Exigen a la Asamblea Nacional cerrar "El Chipote" (confidencial.com.ni)
ONG respalda el cierre de un centro de tortura de la dictadura de los Somoza (eldiario.es)
El Chipote, una historia macabra (laprensa.com.ni - this is an older article providing background info)

Exigen a la Asamblea Nacional cerrar "El Chipote"

Exigen a la Asamblea Nacional cerrar "El Chipote"

Exigen a la Asamblea Nacional cerrar "El Chipote"

Nazi war criminal Erich Priebke is dead

Erich Priebke, a captain in the Waffen SS convicted of participating in the Andeatine caves massacre in Italy, has died under house arrest in Rome. He was 100.

After helping to co-ordinate the execution of 335 Italians on the outskirts of the Italian capital in 1944, Priebke fled to Argentina at the end of the war and lived for decades in Bariloche. He was "found" there in the '90s by a US film crew.* I say "found" because it doesn't seem to have been that hard. According to the Telegraph, he was listed in the phone book!

Watch this clip (above), it's truly extraordinary. Priebke (speaking quite good English; it was his language skills which got him sent to Italy in the first place) shows little surprise and openly admits his involvement in the killing of civilians. However, he claims to have been just following orders and denies anti-Semitism. He concludes by accusing the journalist, Sam Donaldson, of not being a gentleman.

Argentine journalist Uki Goñi documented the case of Priebke in his book, The Real Odessa. He tweeted yesterday that Priebke attempted unsuccessfully to sue him twice over the material. He describes the case in more detail here. Priebke was also the subject of a documentary, Pacto de silencio, which you can see here.

Foreign minister Hector Timerman apparently says that Priebke's body will not be welcome back in Argentina, to be buried next to his late wife.

For judgement on Priebke, a clear and dignified statement - cited in the Guardian - from
Riccardo Pacifici, president of Rome's Jewish community:

"Over Priebke's death there will be no tears and there will be no laughter because neither of these will bring the victims back to life.... There remains bitterness towards a person who never repented for what he did and who dirtied his hands with blood like all the Nazi troops. Now his victims are waiting for him up there in the hope that there will be divine justice."

Erich Priebke (The Telegraph)
Nazi SS captain Erich Priebke dies at 100 in Rome (The Guardian)
Argentina refuses body of Nazi war criminal Priebke (BBC)
El criminal nazi Erich Priebke murió a los 100 años (Telam)
Murió Erich Priebke, ex oficial nazi que se ocultó en Bariloche (La Nacion)
Desde Bariloche a Roma y de ahí al infierno (Pagina/12)

*Apparently an Argentine writer found him there before the US interview.

Brazil: Truth commission uncovers traces of dictatorship archive

Folha reports that documents uncovered by the Brazilian truth commission reveal the existence of a previously unknown archive of the armed forces about the dictatorship period. An operation known as "Netuno" (Neptune) was dedicted to preserving documents on microfilm between 1972 and 1974. The archive, whose whereabouts are still unknown, is thought to run to at least 1.2 million pages. The military denies all knowledge of it.

Sorry, just reporting in Portuguese or German:
Marinha fez cópias de arquivos da ditadura (Folha de Sao Paulo)
Wahrheitskommission findet Spur zu Geheimarchiv (Blickpunkt Lateinamerika)

Chile/US: El Mercurio owner admits meeting with CIA

Agustín Eastman Edwards, owner of Chilean paper El Mercurio, has testified in court that he did meet with former CIA director Richard Helms and former U.S. National Security advisor Henry Kissinger shortly after the election of Salvador Allende. He is currently accused of complicity in the dictatorship. However, he denies receiving funding from the US intelligence agency to destabilise the Allende regime.

I actually wrote about this meeting back in 2008.

Owner of Chile’s El Mercurio admits pre-coup contact with CIA, denies cooperation (Journalism in the Americas)
Chilean media tycoon admits meeting with CIA ahead of coup (Santiago Times)
Agustín Edwards reconoce vínculos con la CIA en Estados Unidos pero niega haber recibido dineros de la agencia norteamericana (El Mostrador)

Peru: Fujimori online update

As I wrote recently, former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori is using social media from jail, at least via proxies. Naturally this has become a controversial issue in Peru, and some are keen to ban him from the media. However, it's hard to see how this is possible since he is not tweeting or facebooking personally but passing on messages to his supporters.

The Associated Press has reported on this issue in detail, noting

Peru's prisons chief, Jose Perez, said there's nothing he can do about Fujimori's social media use. "The first problem is that Fujimori doesn't directly manage his Facebook and Twitter accounts. So how can one restrict something he doesn't manage?" 

 Well, quite. Surely the only way to really restrict his passing on content would be to ban all visitors and phone calls. Even if the government somehow managed to close down his Facebook and Twitter accounts, I don't see how they could stop other accounts popping up in the name of his supporters and reporting what he says in private conversations. 

Fujimori Gets Out of Jail via Twitter, YouTube (AP, on NYT)
Alberto Fujimori en Twitter y Facebook: ¿puede tener cuentas? ¿quiénes las manejan? (El Comercio)

Yes, I am following him. There's no point in just having people you agree with on your feed. At the time of writing, Fujimori has 10,518 followers and follows just 13 accounts, including those of two of his children, Kenji and Keiko (both also politicians); other accounts connected to the party Fuerza Popular, led by Keiko; and one about the operation Chavín de Huántar which declares its resistance to the "Communist" [sic] IACHR. He has tweeted 40 times.

Chile: Elections

This week's edition of "Time" has a piece on the Chilean presidential elections called "Chile's Haunted Vote". It's only available online to subscribers, but here are a couple of quotes from the candidates, Michelle Bachelet and Evelyn Matthei.

Bachelet: I have been evolving too. I mean, there was a time in my life when I had so much pain, so much rage. But that pain transformed into a constructive force, to say, O.K., the pain is because I lost not only my father, but my country's democracy. [The challenge is] to enable a democratic way of doing things so that nobody has to go through this again... so that we can be political adversaries, but never again enemies.

Matthei: Of course very bad things happened to my country, both before the coup, after the coup, during the coup. People died. People suffered. On the other hand, you cannot judge what happened in Chile if you do not judge what happened all over the world. It was a horrid time for humanity.... I have never, ever said that I was not aware, and when I had the opportunity to talk about it, I did openly.