Proceso de Reorganización Nacional

Proceso de Reorganización Nacional (Spanish, "National Reorganization Process", often simply Proceso) was the name used by its leaders for the right-wing military dictatorship that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983 (in Argentina it is simply known as "the Military Junta", even though several of them existed throughout its history). The Argentine military seized political power by force during violent factional conflicts between far-left and far-right-wing supporters of recently deceased President Juan Domingo Perón. With the support of United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger ^*, the junta continued the so-called Dirty War, the ongoing disappearance, torture, and murder of thousands of suspected political dissidents and leftists during the junta's rule; the SIDE secret service also cooperated with DINA and other South American intelligence agencies in Operation Condor. After losing the Falklands War to the United Kingdom in 1982, mounting public opposition to the junta led to its voluntarily relinquishing power in 1983.

Background

The military has always been highly influential in Argentine politics. The extremely popular Argentine leader, Juan Domingo Perón, three times President of Argentina, was himself a colonel in the army, and initially came to power in the aftermath of a military coup in 1943. His policies were highly nationalistic and he claimed to be opposed to both capitalism and Communism, proferring a third way between the two that became known as "Peronism". After winning re-election to the office of President in a popular vote, Perón was deposed and exiled by another military coup in 1955.

After a series of weak governments, and yet another short-lived military coup, Perón returned to Argentina amidst escalating political unrest and outbreaks of politically motivated violence. He was democratically elected President in 1973, but died in July 1974. His vice-president was his third wife, Isabel Martínez de Perón (not to be confused with Eva Perón), but she proved to be a weak, ineffectual ruler. A number of revolutionary organizations — chief among them Montoneros, a group of far-left-wing Peronists — escalated their campaign of political violence (including kidnappings and bombings) against the campaign of harsh repressive and retaliative measures enforced by the military, the police, and right-wing paramilitary groups such as the Triple A, founded by José López Rega, Peron's Minister of Social Welfare and a member of P2 masonic lodge. The situation escalated until Martínez was overthrown and replaced by a military junta led by General Jorge Rafael Videla, on 1976-03-24.

The Junta

The expression "national reorganization process" was used to imply orderliness and control of the critical sociopolitical situation of Argentina at the time, but the dictatorial regime soon showed its true colours. Forced disappearances on ideological grounds and illegal arrests, often based on unsubstantiated accusations, became common. Armed soldiers arrived at randomly selected people's houses to rob them. The police would pull over cars for no reason, beat the occupants senseless, and leave without explanation, as part of a program to intimidate the populace and decrease its willingness to protest against the government. Government spies were dispatched to infiltrate the universities; students who openly professed even slightly leftist political opinions would simply disappear. Official investigations undertaken after the end of the Dirty War documented the "disappearance" of about nine thousand persons, noting nevertheless that the correct number is bound to be higher, since many cases were not reported and the records were destroyed by the military authority ^*; unofficial estimates by most human rights organizations place the number closer to 30,000. Among the "disappeared" were pregnant mothers whose babies were then illegally adopted by military families. SIDE secret service also cooperated with DINA and other South American intelligence agencies in Operation Condor. It would also train the Nicaraguan Contras, for example in Lepaterique's base (Honduras).

The regime shut down the legislative branch and abolished freedom of the press and freedom of speech, adopting a severe media censorship. The 1978 World Cup, which Argentina hosted and won, was used as a means of propaganda and to appease the citizens.

Corruption, a failing economy, growing public awareness of the harsh repressive measures taken by the regime, and the military defeat in the Falklands War to the United Kingdom in 1982, eroded the public image of the regime. The last de facto president, Reynaldo Bignone, was forced to call for elections by the lack of support within the Army itself and the steadily growing pressure of public opinion. On 1983-10-30 elections were held, and democracy was formally restored on December 10 with the assumption of President Raúl Alfonsín.

Economic policies

General Videla appointed José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz as Minister of Economy, charged with stabilizing it and privatizing state-owned companies, along what would later be known as neoliberal lines. He was opposed by General Ramon Díaz, the Minister of Planning, who favored a corporatist model, with the state retaining control of key industries. Although Díaz resigned, military officers, many of whom looked forward to jobs running state enterprises, blocked Martínez de Hoz's privatization efforts. Meanwhile, the Junta borrowed money abroad for public works and social welfare spending. Martínez de Hoz was forced to rely on high interest rates and an over-valued exchange rate to control inflation, which hurt Argentine industry and exports.

Aftermath

The top military leaders of the Proceso were judged and convicted in 1985 (Juicio a las Juntas), but they were pardoned by President Carlos Menem in 1989, a highly controversial action. As of 2005, groups continue to stage weekly public protests in front of the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires calling for the military officers responsible for the atrocities of the junta to be punished.

Adolfo Scilingo, an Argentine naval officer during the junta, was tried for his role in jettisoning the drugged, naked bodies of political dissidents from military aircraft into the Atlantic Ocean during the junta years. He was convicted of crimes against humanity and sentenced to 640 years in prison in Spain in 2005.

Cristian Von Wernich, a Catholic priest and former chaplain of the Buenos Aires Province Police, was arrested in 2003 on accusations of torture of political prisoners in illegal detention centers, and is awaiting trial.

Former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has evaded arrest warrants in several jurisdictions issued by Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón, who wishes to question Kissinger on possible war crimes and crimes against humanity charges for his alleged knowledge and encouragement of the Junta's crimes (among other things). [http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/04/18/spain.kissinger/index.html

Commemoration

In 2006, thirty years after the coup d'état that started the Proceso, the Argentine Congress declared the date of 24 March a national holiday (Día de la Memoria), intended as a memorial for the disappeared and to increase public awareness. The anniversary of the coup was remembered by massive official events and demonstrations throughout the country.

External links

Nunca Más ("Never Again") - Report of CONADEP (National Commission on the Disappearance of Individuals) - 1984
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights report on Argentina
Search on Google for "national reorganization process"
Horacio Verbitsky, OpenDemocracy.net, 28 July 2005, "Breaking the silence: the Catholic Church in Argentina and the 'dirty war'"
The Dirty War in Argentina - George Washington University's National Security Archive page on the Dirty War, featuring numerous recently-declassified documents which clearly demonstrate Kissinger's knowledge and complacency in the junta's human rights abuses

Anti-communism | History of Argentina | Dirty War

Proceso de Reorganización Nacional | Prozess der Nationalen Reorganisation