Latin American Society

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It was until after Argentina’s defeat in the Falklands that military run country had to hold elections and turn control over to civilians so it could cover itself. Even still the military was able to get away with the deaths of the disappeared by declaring them unregistered deaths. This allowed the military to label the deaths as “presumably dead” because the person had been missing for more than three months. Even on the way out the military regime declared their repressive actions were acts of service to protect the people of Argentina. Those mothers who were hoping for justice would see their government go back and forth on not allowing and allowing the members of the military responsible for their loved one’s disappearance go punished and then unpunished.

The aftermath of Argentina’s dirty war has left is people in chronic mourning according to Robben. It is because of those who denied the atrocities committed that the victims of that violence cannot properly mourn their losses until the truth has been spoken (Robben). Even to this day the mothers go out in protest because their quest to find out what happened to their love ones has not come to an end. Even though governmental oppression still happens around the world, in Argentina it has come to an end, but not without cost to its citizens. Violence was committed on both sides, but it was the side of the government that took it a step further, they oppressed their people, which ultimately led to violence and the disappearance of thousands, and we see through groups like the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo that effects of the Dirty War have been felt for many years after it happened.

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Works Cited

Skidmore, Thomas E., Peter H. Smith, and James Naylor Green. Modern Latin America. 8th ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2014. Print.

Goldberg, Maren, and Amy Tikkanen. "Dirty War." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 Nov. 2009. Web. 16 Oct. 2016.

Robben C.G.M., Antonius 2005, “How Traumatized Societies Remember: The Aftermath of Argentina’s Dirty War’, Cultural Critique, no. 59, p. 120.

Knudson, Jerry W. “Veil of Silence: The Argentine Press and the Dirty War, 1976-1983.” Latin American Perspectives 1997: 93. JSTOR Journals. Web. 15 Sept. 2016.

"BBC NEWS | Americas | Q&A: Argentina's Grim past." BBC News. BBC, 14 June 2005. Web. 16 Oct. 2016.