Argentina: Mothers' headscarf recognised as national symbol

The white headscarf worn by the Madres de Plaza de Mayo has been declared an Argentina national symbol by the country's chamber of deputies.

A little bit of background: the mothers looking for their children in the early, and extremely dangerous, years of the dictatorship needed a way of identifying each other. They chose a white cloth nappy (diaper) to wear on their heads, but this soon developed into the proper headscarf, often with the name of their child embroidered on it. The mothers of the Linea Fundadora group (see image above) still wear these, but the Asociación Madres do not single out any one of the disappeared over the others. The headscarves are now painted on the square in the front of the Casa Rosada where the mothers have been gathering for over 30 years.

The initiative of Leonardo Grosso (FPV) was backed by 176 deputies, while seven voted against and four abstained. 

There has been some opposition to the move on social media, however, with users drawing attention to the links between the Madres group and the Kirchner regime, and the allegations of corruption the Madres have been linked with.

An editorial in La Nación also criticises the decision as one of "political correctness" and accuses it of fostering division in the country rather than reconciliation.

I do see the headscarf as an important symbol for Argentina, but I cannot deny that the reputation of the Madres (by which I am referring to the Asociación Madres led by Hebe Bonafini) has suffered in recent years. The group has broadened its mandate very significantly from a focus on justice for the disappeared to education and explicit political aims. It has also been linked with a shady housing scheme. It's hardly surprising if these things stick in people's minds more than, or alongside, the original uses of the iconic headscarf.

El pañuelo blanco de las Madres (Pagina/12)
Siete diputadas opositoras rechazaron declarar “emblema nacional” al pañuelo de las Madres (Telam)
Los pañuelos de las Madres de Plaza de Mayo serán símbolos patrios (La Gaceta)
Un nuevo e inaceptable emblema oficial de la Nación (La Nación)

Peruvian interior minister accused of murder

The new Peruvian interior minister, Daniel Urresti, has been accused of the murder of a journalist in 1988 when he was an intelligence officer fighting the Shining Path.

Ideele Radio broke the news that Urresti - a former soldier - is alleged to have been involved in the killing of Hugo Bustíos, of Caretas magazine, in 1988. Bustios was investigating extrajudicial killings in the Ayacucho region, which was the centre of the violence. He was unarmed and riding a motorbike when he was killed by the army.

Two military men, Víctor La Vera Hernández and Amador Vidal Sambento, were later convicted of the crime. Vidal has now pointed the finger at Urresti as having given the order.

It almost beggars belief that someone could take up a ministerial position with this hanging over them, but Urresti claims president Ollanta Humala knew of the accusation when he was appointed.

The interior minister denies that he ever met Bustios, and says he had no involvement in his murder. He stresses to La Republica that he was "brought up to have respect for life" and claims there is no proof of his guilt.

Humala appears to be backing Urresti so far, saying the government "does not see his guilt" and "believes in the presumption of innocence". Writing in El Comercio, Fernando Rospigliosi points out that some think that if "Carlos" (the nom de guerre of Ollanta Humala) can be president, why can't "Arturo" (Daniel Urresti) be interior minister?

The case is certain an illustration of the unresolved cases at the heart of the Peruvian political system. When it will be resolved remains unclear, since the prosecutor has indicated that he has other major cases to process first.

Ministro Urresti está procesado por el asesinato de periodista Hugo Bustíos (Ideele Radio)
Ministro Urresti es procesado por asesinato de periodista (La Republica)
Daniel Urresti: “No existe ninguna prueba sobre mi supuesta participación en el crimen de Bustíos” (La Republica)
Ollanta Humala: no vemos culpabilidad en Daniel Urresti (La Republica)
‘Carlos’ y ‘Arturo’, por Fernando Rospigliosi (El Comercio)

Peru's interior minister Daniel Urresti accused of journalist's 1988 murder (Guardian)

Guardian special report on transitional justice

I thought it was worth linking to this special report from the Guardian newspaper on how various countries, including Chile and Colombia, have dealt with their traumatic pasts. The article is necessarily an overview so it doesn't reveal much to someone who is already well-read about a particular country - but I'd be surprised if anyone was well-read about all those countries, and the transcontinental comparison is really interesting.

[Colombian] President Juan Manuel Santos, re-elected in June to a second term, denies impunity is on the table, but says demanding full punishment would derail peace. "If you ask a victim today he would lean towards having more justice," said Santos. "If you ask a future victim, he will lean more towards peace."

Special report: Truth, justice and reconciliation (Guardian)

Colombia: Axis of memory

Bogotá's Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación has been worked on what it calls "axes of memory". You can see on the website how they use Google maps to pinpoint sites of memory in the city, with images and information.

Peru: Captor of Abimael Guzmán arrested

This is an odd postscript to the capture of Shining Path leader Abimael Guzmán.

This week Benedicto Jiménez, the leader of the police squad which arrested the terrorist head, was himself arrested on suspicion of involvement in moneylaundering and organised crime. He was acting as the lawyer of Rodolfo Orellana, who is accused of masterminding a network of corruption in Peru.

Jiménez generally comes out of the Shining Path period as one of the good guys, so if these allegations are true it's disappointing.

Héroe en 1992... Villano en 2014... La historia de Benedicto Jiménez (espacio360.pe)
¡Cayeron! Benedicto Jiménez, detenido. Rodolfo Orellana, prófugo. Estas son TODAS las acusaciones en su contra (utero.pe)