Case Study:

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 A. Context

In order to understand the unique nature of the last military dictatorship in Argentina (1976-1983) and the fact that, in terms of human rights violations, it was the cruellest ever experienced in the Southern Cone, it is necessary first of all to outline some general historical characteristics of Argentina in the twentieth century.

The military regime which began in 1976 is not an isolated experience, but the most extreme expression of a series of militar interventions (1930-1932, 1943-1946, 1955-1958, 1962-1963, 1966-1973). These repeated authoritarian episodes – a constant typical of Argentine history in the twentieth century - can be explained by many different approaches and types of analysis. Firstly, those authors who concentrate above all on the functioning of the political system employ the concept of ‘pretorianism’ to explain the naturalised alternation between political parties and the military, which tacitly establishes a pendulum swing between authoritarianism and democracy within the same political model. According to this approach, the military interventions do not imply a rupture of the political system but a valid possibility inherent within it. The military alternative is justified by a ‘loss of faith in democracy’ by a majority of citizens, who then lend their support to this type of move, creating its legitimacy (Quiroga, 2004).

Other authors, while not losing sight of the relations between State and society, focus on social dynamics and find that this process is consistent with the increasing militarization of Argentine society and the politization of the armed forces: whereas in 1930 the protagonists of the military coup were a retired general and cadets at the Military college, in 1976 the instigators were the commanders-in-chief of the military establishment (Mallimaci, 1995:233). This process led to the gradual emergence of norms of social behaviour and shifts in meaning that created a political and ideological culture which naturalised the recourse to violence as an efficient, legitmate means of resolving conflicts. The early years of the twentieth century saw the first of a whole battery of laws aimed at reinforcing social discipline. 1901 saw Law 4,031 on Compulsory Military Service (to ‘civilise’ the male population), in 1902 came Law 4,144 on Residency (to get rid of ‘disruptive’ foreigners), and in 1910 Law 7,029 on Social Defence was passed, prohibiting associations and/or meetings for the spread of anarchism and making the return of anyone expelled from Argentina a criminal offence.

Gradually, with each successive military intervention, a social climate was created that showed great tolerance towards the treatment of the ‘other’ through repressive measures. During the military intervention from 1930 onwards, the ‘Special Section’ of the Federal police was created. This was aimed at combatting Communism and was led by Leopoldo Lugones (son), who was well-known for innovating in the use of the electric cattle prod during the interrogation of political prisoners (Funes, 2004: 36). From then on, the use of torture became systematic, and was used both on political prisoners and common criminals (Calveiro, 1998: 25). Moreover, repression was not exclusively employed in penal institutions such as jails, but was seen in different guises in the public space: in 1955, the bombing by 29 Argentine Navy planes of a civil demonstration in Plaza de Mayo, the government palace and the presidential residence, left a toll of more than 300 dead and hundreds of wounded, in a vain attempt to close the Peronist chapter of Argentine history. This event led to an 18-year proscription of the political party representing the majority of the electorate. After this came the abduction of Eva Perón’s corpse, repression of the Peronist movement’s leadership, and the attempt to ‘deperonise society’ by force, including a ban on using their leader’s name and any reference to ‘Peronism’, both of which were prohibited by decree (Calveiro, 2006: 28).

Some analysts see this ban on Peronism, even though it was brought in as part of a ‘democratic process’ that was only barely republican and pluralist, and introduced in the belief that ‘formal’ democracy should not stand in the way of ‘real’ democracy, as the final blow that destroyed all credibility in the restoration of democratic rule. In this context of the erosion of democratic legitimacy, the political system lost its ability to resolve social conflicts. These came to be settled in other scenarios, where corporate interests (businessmen, trade unionists, the armed forces, religious interests) came to the fore (Romero, 2001). The elected governments of Frondizi (1958-1962) and Illia (1963-1966) which this process gave rise to found themselves constrained by a ‘corset’ of ‘liberty under surveillance’ that was still further restricted by a succession of demands by the military which eventually led to coups that brought an end to their governments.

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