MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Malvinas war veterans file lawsuit against Argentine officers

Claims of abuses by Argentine officers finally reach the courts

About 39 Argentine war veterans from the 1982 Falkland/Malvinas conflict with Great Britain are expected to file a lawsuit before a federal judge in Río Grande, Tierra del Fuego, accusing their officers of torture during the war.

The men, all from the northern province of Corrientes, claim they were staked out on the ground naked in freezing temperatures, among other human rights violations. Federal judge Lilian Herraez, last Monday arrived in Corrientes City to listen to the testimonies of the ex-combatants led by Pablo Vassel who claimed that the veterans "hope the lawsuit will help the over 400 ex-combatants who are submerged in the post-traumatic stress caused by seeing how a partner was tied up and killed". "As well as heroic behavior, appalling things happened that we must not hide under the rug", underlined Vassel. The Corrientes former combatants also received the support from the Rio Grande Malvinas War Veterans whose chairman Jose Aranibar confirmed all the accusations before Judge Herraez. From Corrientes City the Argentine where a human rights forum it taking place, government Human Rights Secretary Luis Duhalde announced that his office will co-sponsor the demand and provide all the necessary support. "We've been following the evolution of the issue closely since it became public because it's important and is another aspect of "government terrorism" which remains unaccounted for, particularly the behavior of Argentine Armed Forces officers during the Malvinas conflict. This case can't be excluded from all the other human rights violations and "government terrorism" that occurred in Argentine territory", said Duhalde. The Human Rights secretary added that in the Malvinas abuse allegations "were involved some notorious figures of the illegal repression such as Astiz, caught by the British in South Georgia or Pernías in Puerto Stanley, therefore we will co-sponsor the case presented by the Human Rights Sub Secretary from the province of Corrientes which not only includes all kinds of abuses and staking of soldiers but also the homicide of conscript Portillo". The 39 accusations of abuse also include the alleged murder of at least two soldiers and starvation of another two conscripts. At federal level the Argentine Defence Ministry named last June a committee to collect information from former combatants regarding cases of "torture, abuse, treason and cowardice" during the Malvinas conflict.