Tag: central & latin america

Torture’s Teacher

Posted on By 3arabawy

USAID on torture:

When you receive a subject, the first thing to do is to determine his physical state, his degree of resistance, through a medical examination. A premature death means a failure by the technician.
Another important thing to know is exactly how far you can go given the political situation and the personality of the prisoner. It is very important to know beforehand whether we have the luxury of letting the subject die…
Before all else, you must be efficient. You must cause only the damage that is strictly necessary, not a bit more. We must control our tempers in any case. You have to act with the efficiency and cleanliness of a surgeon and with the perfection of an artist.

On a related note, I strongly recommend you watch this movie.

State of Siege Movie Poster

Argentine Dirty Warriors jailed for life

Posted on By 3arabawy

From the BBC:

Two of the worst oppressors during Argentina’s military rule – known as the Dirty War – have been sentenced to life imprisonment.
Antonio Bussi, 82, and Luciano Benjamin Menendez, 81, were sent to prison for the kidnapping and disappearance of a former senator in April 1976.
The two generals were senior members of the military government that ruled the country during the 1970s and 1980s.
During that time tens of thousands of people were tortured and killed.

Life for Argentine Dirty War General

Posted on By 3arabawy

From the BBC…

An Argentine ex-army officer has been sentenced to life in prison for the 1977 kidnapping, torture and killing of four left-wing activists.
Luciano Benjamin Menendez, 80, was found guilty along with seven others of the crimes.
Prosecutors say the victims were dumped in the street to make it look like they died in a shoot-out.
Menendez was one of Argentina’s most feared army officers during military rule between 1976 and 1983.
The BBC’s Daniel Schweimler in Argentina says family and friends of the victims were in court, many in tears, others simply staring silently at Menendez as the verdict was read out.
He adds that hundreds of others watched on a giant screen outside the courthouse, to witness a chapter closing on one of the darkest periods of Argentine history.
Torture center
Menendez, who reached the rank of general, commanded the regional Third Army Corps for five years in the northern city of Cordoba.
He is viewed by Argentine human rights activists as a prime example of the military’s cruel rule in the 1970s and 1980s.
The left-wing activists who died in Cordoba in 1977 were Hilda Palacios, Carlos Laja, Ruben Cardozo and Humberto Brandalisi.
Prosecutors said the four were taken to a clandestine torture center and held bound and gagged for a month before being executed.
Their bodies were then dumped in the street to make it look like they had died in a battle with the authorities – a common practice at the time.

To learn more about Israel’s involvement in the Argentinian Dirty War, read this article and that one…