Being a former prisoner I tend never to derive pleasure from learning of anyone being compelled to live out the remainder of their days in jail. It is no place to die, far removed from family and friends and invariably in the company of people not disposed toward compassion for prisoner. It is how I felt when the Nazi leader Rudolph Hess ended his days in Spandau.
When news emerged that the military dictator who presided over the 1976 coup in Argentina and subsequent Dirty War had breathed his last in Marcos Paz Prison in Buenos Aires at the age of 87, any feeling of empathy completely eluded me. Jorge Videla had been serving a life sentence for his role in the mass killings of Argentine citizens and foreign nationals. Under his presidency many thousands died in custody quite often as a result of torture. Others were simply taken by navy helicopter and thrown into the River Plate estuary, never to be seen or heard of again.
Videla was also convicted and sentenced to fifty years for kidnapping babies from parents he later had murdered. Women detainees who were pregnant would be kept alive long enough to deliver a child before being murdered. ‘After the babies were pulled away, the mothers were removed to another site for their executions. Some were put aboard death flights and pushed out of military planes over open water.’
A prison death such as that underwent by Videla, that was not the result of either torture or execution, was merciful by the standards he employed.
Videla had been sentenced to life for his crimes in 1985 but served only five years, benefitting from President Menem’s amnesty law. With increasing public hostility to the amnesty a judge placed him under house arrest in 1998 where he remained for ten years before being sent down for life again in 2008.
The armed forces coup, although widely reported to be a reaction to the political violence of leftist groups like the Montoneros and ERP, coupled to the incompetence of the government of Isabel Peron, fitted into a long history of assaults by the military on the country’s democratic institutions. What followed was almost without precedent in the region. Jose Miguel Vivanco, director of Latin America for US-based Human Rights Watch, said:
Videla presided over a government that engaged in one of the most cruel repressions that we have seen in Latin America in modern times. He was arrogant to the end and unwilling to acknowledge his responsibility for the massive atrocities committed in Argentina. Many of the secrets of the repression will die with him.
There are some who no doubt hope that is true, including perhaps the current pope whose own behaviour during the military dictatorship has been subject to much scrutiny.
Yet it is misleading to claim that Videla did not acknowledge responsibility. Videla’s arrogance lay not in him denying responsibility but in failing to acknowledge anything wrong in what he did. 'I accept the responsibility as the highest military authority during the internal war. My subordinates followed my orders.’
Few will express regret if the same subodinates are to follow his fate.
Anthony what of the subordinates, "I was only obeying orders" is not good enough,I hope they a rotting in prison also.
ReplyDeleteone of the worst, Astiz, is serving life. The Brits captured him during the 82 war, took him to Britain where the Swedish among others wanted to question him, treated him like a dignitary, and then sent hom back to Argentina. But the thug couldn't walk the streets there because people kept attacking him and knocking the bollix out of him. He even disappeared the mothers of the disappeared. He raped and tortured with abandon. Few wil shed a tear if he dies in jail like his boss. By the way, they were good Catholics! Videla's one complaint during house arrest was that he could not attend mass!
ReplyDeleteI assume you would excuse Ireland for remaining neutral during the war ?
ReplyDeleteI would stab a guess that many republicans hated the brits so much they actually assuaged the Nazis horrors. For many crazy republican nationalists it has always been a case of my enemies enemy is my friend coupled with a lack of education. I make this point because ostensibly many of the Quill's contributors would snub the memory of those who fought against the nazis in the war.
whats your take mackers ?
Emmett,
ReplyDeleteI think whoever fought the Nazis during WW2 was right and whoever flirted with them was wrong
Emmett whilst I agree with Anthony here it should be remembered that that old saying worked in reverse,did not the Americans and brits use the very same ideology when it came to dealing with Stalin.
ReplyDeleteAM,
ReplyDeleteDid you not get my original comment? If not, use this one.
Stalin wasn’t a ‘good Catholic’ either, neither was Blair but he is now, god Bless his wee socks!
Strange that you felt for Hess and not Videla yet both were active participants in brutal regimes.
Emmet,
ReplyDeleteyou presume too much. Republicans were wrong to seek assistance from the Nazis.
Alec, In many instances republicans were the Nazis. They may not have been German nor hated Jews but many of their leaders false ideals and misinterpretation of socialist/marxisist philosophy was not to be lauded nevermind drank in by the majority who served them. Throw a heavy dose of romantic nationalism into the mix and what one has is a republican coctail that lead us to the totalrian status of present day sinn fein.
ReplyDeleteI am no supporter of sinn fein although I must confess I would expect no better from any of the other micro groups were they to gain power and attempt to run the country; for history tells us that nationalist republicanism seldom realizes the ideals it sets out to implement. smells a small bit like national socialism dont you think ;)
Niall,
ReplyDeleteI was away for two days so am just catching up. Carrie uploaded whatever came through. Yeah, I thought it strange myself that my opinions differed in relation to both and I am not sure why. The nature of our species perhaps.