wfn.org | Argentina: Economic Downturn Undermines Democratization Progress

["Frank Imhoff" <FRANKI@elca.org>]

Church 'Did Not Always Speak Out' for Human Rights

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina/GENEVA, 8 May 2001 (LWI) - An export-oriented
economic model introduced in 1976 by a violent military regime has seen
Argentina evolve from a country with a strong, active middle class into one
where the gap between the rich and poor widens daily, and vast sectors of
society are increasingly driven into poverty, says the Evangelical Church of
the River Plate (IERP).

In a pastoral letter "Remembering 24 March 1976", recalling the military
coup that ushered in general Jorge Rafaela Videla as president, the IERP
governing board said Videla's so-called "process of national
reorganization"-intended to re-establish order while instilling a permanent
animosity toward leftist thought-left an impact that is still felt today.

Twenty-five years ago, even amidst political violence, there were dreams of
progress, social mobility, and access to social assets which a state is
supposed to provide such as education, health care, and social insurance.
"Now we are living with the consequences of the destruction that started
then-a state with no resources of its own and no capacity to provide the
population's most basic requirements," the pastoral letter said. More than
30 percent of Argentina's 36 million people live below the poverty line. By
the end of 2000 the country's foreign debt stood at over USD 150 billion.

The Lutheran church called for state action and solidarity to provide a just
distribution of income among all citizens so that "there is a place in
society for everyone who lives there." Unless such a decision is taken, the
success of democracy "will always be incomplete", the pastoral letter
stated. Four free elections in the post-Videla era have underscored
Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation.

In the pastoral letter, the IERP admitted that as church it did not "speak
out loudly and clearly enough to move the conscience of society or our
congregations" when disappearances, kidnappings, tortures and murders
occurred during the seven-year military dictatorship.

"We confess that despite having opted for the defense of human rights" the
church's voice was not heard when a society rife with violence accepted the
distortion of language where the dead became the "missing", the illegally
arrested the "swallowed-up" and executions "clashes". More than 90 percent
of Argentinians are Roman Catholic. Protestants, including the 47,000-member
IERP make up around two percent of the population.

On 24 March 2001 church organizations, trade unions, human rights and civil
society groups organized a demonstration under the motto, "Remembrance,
Truth and Justice" marking 25 years since the military coup. Tens of
thousands of demonstrators who participated in the protest demanded that the
state provide an account on the fate of the disappeared victims and expedite
prosecution for murder, torture, kidnappings and rape carried out by the
military under Videla.

One of the most brutal regimes in Latin America, Argentina's 1976-1983
military dictatorship is held responsible for the killings of between
10,000-30,000 people.

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now has 131 member
churches in 72 countries representing over 60.2 million of the nearly 64
million Lutherans worldwide. The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches
in areas of common interest such as ecumenical relations, theology,
humanitarian assistance, human rights, communication, and the various
aspects of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the information service of the Lutheran
World Federation (LWF). Unless specifically noted, material presented does
not represent positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various units.
Where the dateline of an article contains the notation (LWI), the material
may be freely reproduced with acknowledgement.]

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