Buenos Aires, Argentina
After World War II, Argentina was like most countries around the world, in an economical crisis. This one, next to political tension combined with corruption and external interests carried on during several years. In the 70s a group of terrorists were targeting high profile city officials.
In 1976 the army took power and began what is now known as the Dirty War. This was a dictatorship that went from 1976 until 1983, after the war in the Falklands (which on a side note, that war was the escape route for Videla, who was in charge at the time).
This “government” had the official and external front that they were fighting a war against terrorists in the country. The terrorists could be anybody that they considered to be a threat. Everybody I have ever met in Buenos Aires has a personal experience to tell about that period and can testify of someone that they knew (a relative, a neighbour…) someone who was taken by the police for interrogation for several days. I do not want to go on a tangent for long but my personal experience is my uncle, who was taken because he dressed like a hippie and was released because another uncle was a policeman and managed to get him out.
The people that were kidnapped were regular citizens, teachers, builders, anybody. A reason for example could be because they had started a free meal service for the locals who had nothing to eat. As you can imagine, there are several books, films, songs and all sort of information regarding this.
One of the most impressive things (in the unbelievable sense) that they (the “government”) did was the flights, they threw people alive from airplanes into the ocean with their hands tied at their back and a gag over their heads.
Part of the people that were kidnapped were women, many were raped and many were pregnant (some before being taken and some as consequence of being raped by their captors). They kept these women in captivity and took their children before they kill the mothers and gave the children away within their network.
Somehow, news about this came out and in 1977, still within the dictatorship, some of the mothers of those kidnapped people began searching for their children. They gathered in silent in front of the house of the government (Pink House, the equivalent to the White House) and walk in circles around the piazza. Above, some of them pose with a picture of their children.
They wear a white scarf on their heads which is the symbol of the organisation. It has been painted in commemoration of their acts in May Square, the piazza in front of the Pink House.
I think it is very important to bear in mind that Buenos Aires is just a city like any other in the world, people is no different either, they have regular jobs and have the same type of hobbies as other people do in any other place in the world. I would highly recommend having a look online to see what the place looks like because with a matter of this sort, one may think that this is a far land, different to other lands and things like this are their normal, or having an image of the place as some kind of insane town where shootouts happen in every street, which could not be further from the truth, this place, as I said, it is just the same as any other I have ever been, there are rough neighbourhoods and there are posh ones, shops, churches, cars everywhere, high buildings, etc, etc.
I cannot imagine the feeling of loss that these women incurred, the loss that the children that were given away incurred. How their lives changed, a stolen self, a stolen personality, stolen history. I do not know if it can be described the depths of this act. The cruelty.
As they searched for their children, they began to find their stolen grandchildren. In 1987 they found the first lost child.
The total number of kidnappings varies depending on the source, it is clear however that it was in the several thousands, no source that I have seen claims lower than ten thousand and non either larger than thirty thousand.
On Tuesday 5th August 2014, Estela Carlotto, 37 years after she founded the movement, was reunited with her grandson.
________________
NOTE: I have left several details out as I wanted this to be an introduction to this matter, feel free to ask any questions and I would be happy to answer what I know or look into it.
The links below serve a general purpose, these are not scholar links, they would be a good starting point, introduction, to anybody not familiar with the subject.
General information about this topic:
Madres de Plaza de Mayo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mothers_of_the_Plaza_de_Mayo
Dirty War: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dirty_War
National Reorganisation Process: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Reorganization_Process
Official sites:
http://www.madres.org/navegar/nav.php (Spanish)
http://www.abuelas.org.ar/english/history.htm (English)
Photographs of Buenos Aires:
http://www.photographyblogger.net/30-pictures-of-buenos-aires-argentina
Estela de Carlotto’s reunion in the news:
Annoying Fly Studio 