From: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel)
Subject: MOTHERS OF PLAZA DE MAYO-ARGENTINA
Followup-To: alt.activism.d
Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
Organization: PACH
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 01:45:00 GMT

/** reg.samerica: 322.0 **/
** Topic: MOTHERS OF PLAZA DE MAYO-ARGENTINA **
** Written  7:07 pm  Dec 21, 1992 by chefernandez in cdp:reg.samerica **
MOTHERS OF PLAZA DE MAYO (ARGENTINA)
Year VIII  No. 92 - November 1992
 
Published on the first Thursday of each month
 
EDITORIAL - IT'S EITHER SOLIDARITY AND STRUGGLE
OR STARVATION AND REPRESSION
 
While retired people go into the Social Security offices and fight
with the police, Menem's Nazi gang very opportunistically tries to get
favorable media coverage.  But this gang hasn't solved the retirees'
problems.  Being the demagogues they are, they just paid the retirees
a small part of what they are owed.
 
Meanwhile, the [General Confederation of Labor bureaucrats] CGT
announced a "weekend strike".  However, the CGT leaders are still not
sure if they'll go through with it.  The media tells "the average
citizen" that he will have every safety guarantee if he ignores the
strike.
 
Also, according to the media, [Buenos Aires'] mayor resigned or was
forced to resign because he stuck his hand in the cookie jar.  An
economist has replaced him.  The media criticizes the former mayor and
explains to "the average citizen" what's going on.
 
All these games the powers that be are playing have the purpose of
diverting attention from that "flexibility labor law" they are already
implementing.  Menem's government is forcing people to work off the
books, or work with contracts that impose even worse conditions.  Now
everything will be worse, but it will also be legal.  Big business and
Menem's cabinet are convinced that the way to be competitive in the
international market, is by lowering workers' wages and giving only
temporary work to the unemployed.  These practices are precisely what
have shown the failure of capitalism in that First World that Menem
and his followers love so much.
 
These clowns we have for rulers are so slow, that they don't even
privatize.  They give things away.  The needs of the people are not
taken into account.  They simply smash the people.  The constitutional
system is not respected.  Now it's an imperial system.
 
The followers of Menemism or any other cult of personality must
understand that our people cannot be fooled all of the time.
Naturally, slowly but surely, the people are uniting, because we know
that our two choices are either solidarity and struggle or starvation
and repression.
 
MOTHERS OF PLAZA DE MAYO: "CAPITALISM IS SUFFOCATING US" THE MOTHERS
GET A WARM WELCOME IN TRELEW AND PUERTO MADRYN
 
The Mothers were just in Trelew and Puerto Madryn, Chubut province.
Their trip was part of a nationwide and international tour to talk
about their struggle for true justice and liberation.
 
Mothers' representatives Maria del Rosario Cerruti and Elsa Manzotti
were warmly welcome by the people of Chubut.  Shortly after arriving
in the provincial capital, the first activity took place at the
newspaper "El Chubut".  There, the Mothers spoke before numerous
journalists.  "Both [former President Raul] Alfonsin and [President
Carlos] Menem, and other politicians who hold office today had
negotiated with those who murdered our sons and daughters a long time
ago", said the Mothers.  "They even pardoned the military, and they
had the audacity to allow military men to participate in politics.
They allowed them to proselytize and run for president and other
positions."
 
The Mothers further pointed out that, "[the government had] all the
evidence it needed in the courts about how people disappeared during
the dictatorship.  Still, independent judges who could really do
justice were not appointed.  This is how, little by little, many
politicians were unmasked.  These politicians ended up betraying the
motherland and the people."
 
In their meeting with the press, the Mothers emphasized that "we don't
cry, we struggle.  With ethics, with firmness.  First, the system put
on the horror show of the exhumation of the bodies.  Our answer was:
we don't want dead bodies, we want them alive.  We want those who
disappeared back alive.  We want justice.  We want the murderers in
jail.  Having the dead doesn't help.  What we need is to jail the
murderers.  Then they came up with the idea of financial reparations.
We said no again, because death doesn't have a price.  Besides, the
few murderers who were jailed, had all the luxuries they wanted.
Later, they were rewarded with the pardon."
 
Further, the Mothers explained that "our sons and daughters were
kidnapped because they fought against the policies of hunger,
unemployment and social injustice."  Said the Mothers, "We as members
of the Association of Mothers of Plaza de Mayo, vindicate the struggle
of our sons and daughters, but without being partisan.  Ours is a
political struggle, without sectarianism.  However, if you wish to
identify us with a political current, then you should identify us with
the left.  The right wing represents capitalism, and capitalism is
suffocating us.  It is oppressing us, and looting us.  It doesn't let
us lift our heads up.  Capitalism is destroying our human, cultural,
economic and spiritual resources."
 
Later, the Mothers inaugurated an exhibition of posters and photos
about their struggle at School 714.  Many people followed all the
details with great interest.  This same exhibition has been presented
in other parts of the country with great success.
 
Very early the following day, the Mothers went on to Puerto Madryn
accompanied by several members of human rights organizations of the
area.  Also with the Mothers were members of the Mothers' Support
Group such as Ruben Grammatico, Olga Ochoa de Morejon, Ana Bosco,
Alberto Panizzi, Juan Arcuri and others.  The Mothers met with local
people at the Sitravich office, at the Auditorium of the Italian Club,
and in the poor neighborhoods.  In all their meetings, Maria del
Rosario and Elsa spoke not only about the fact that the Mothers'
struggle is still valid, but also about the daily problems of the
people of the area.
 
In Puerto Madryn, the Mothers were sponsored by the Culture
Secretariat of the Association of Government Workers (ATE), the
"Alfredo L. Palacios" People's Library, the Puerto Madryn Human Rights
Defense Committee, the Broad Human Rights Commission, and the
University Artists of Puerto Madryn.  The Mothers were also
interviewed by the local newspaper "Jornada".
 
THE VOICE OF THE MOTHERS: "THE POWER OF DOMINATION"
 
In 1492, capitalism was born.  The same capitalism that is imposed
today, with the same methods.  With domination, exploitation, and
murder.  With the support of The Church, always ready to put the cross
next to sword.  Pirates, plus power, plus The Church, is equal to
social domination.  They all showed who they really are.  In five
centuries, the circumstances have changed, but not the objective: the
enrichment of the few, and the oppression of the many.
 
But beware, because the people are getting tired.  We just saw this
happen in Brazil, where cheap labor is abundant.  They make the people
believe they are kings during Rio's Carnival.  For a while, the people
wear silk costumes and crowns of lights.  Then, they continue to
starve.
 
We see this happening in our country.  The workers give everything of
themselves, and they are rewarded with the repression of humiliating
wages.  Now they've said enough, and they protest.
 
This system that is sick with arrogance and consumerism wants to
destroy everything: the people, the land, the oceans, and even the air
we breath.  What they cannot destroy is our hope for a socialism that
will liberate the people from foreign domination.  We need to
mobilize, educate and organize the people to change this capitalist
system.  This way, power and the economy will be in the hands or at
the service of the majority.
 
These were the dreams of our sons and daughters.  They were very clear
in what they wanted and very generous.  They believed in equality.
That is why we are here today.  To defend the dreams of the youth of
today, along with our indigenous brothers and sisters.  All of them
are part of the working class.
 
Now the retirees are in the news.  The tenacity of their demands, and
their indignation for the abuse they are subjected to are not in vain.
They continue getting more and more support and more people going to
their demonstrations.
 
We are all with the retirees because of our biological age, but also
because of a political decision.  Because the retirees' struggle is
part of the working class struggle.
 
On this October 8, we want to remember "Che".  It is the 25th
anniversary of his assassination.
 
In our set of values, which we developed since the day we understood
why they abducted our sons and daughters, Commander [Ernesto "Che"]
Guevara is an example of dignity.  Especially when confronted with the
violence and corruption of the powers that be.
 
So that we always remember Che and all those who have fallen
throughout the Americas for the dignity of their people, we will not
forget, we will not forgive.
 
 
"IN DEFENSE OF THE CHILDREN" THE PRESENCE OF THE MOTHERS HAD A GREAT
IMPACT AT A SEMINAR IN PORTO ALEGRE, BRAZIL
 
A Mothers' delegation made up of Mercedes Merono and Elsa Manzotti
received a warm ovation by those attending the First Latin American
Seminar on the rights of children and adolescents.  The seminar was
held between October 16-18, 1992 in Porto Alegre, Brazil.
 
The meeting truly became a forum, where participants denounced the
devastation caused by the present system of exploitation in Latin
America.
 
In addition to the Mothers, other renowned figures were present: Dom
Elder Camara (Bishop of Recife, Brazil);  Rene Queiros Perez
(Professor of Criminal Law at the University of Havana, Cuba);
Benedito Antonio Diaz da Silva (human rights lawyer from Brazil);
Alfredo Mofat (social psychologist from Argentina): Albertina Duarte
(gynecologist from Brazil); Maria da Graca Diniz Bolov (Brazilian
lawyer and psychologist who specializes in children and adolescents);
Franklin Farinatti (pediatrician and member of the Association for the
Prevention of Child Abuse from Denver, Colorado); and many others.
 
In their presentation, the Mothers noted that the military murdered a
whole generation of Argentinian youth who fought for a better
distribution of wealth, in order to impose the present unjust system
of oppression.  "The same notorious system that kidpped, tortured, and
made our sons and daughters disappear, now brutalizes the poor of
Latin America.  The children and adolescents are especially targeted,
in order to prevent them from gaining consciousness about their
oppression, and from struggling." said the Mothers.
 
"But this system is doomed to fail.  Throughout our Americas,
crucified by the oligarchies and imperialism, the peoples are
rebelling against this suffocating and genocidal system," concluded
the Mothers.
 
In the following two hours, the delegates asked the Mothers all kinds
of questions about the Mothers' struggle and activities.  Most answers
were followed by applause.  By the end of the meeting, a young
Brazilian woman summarized how the audience felt: "I ask myself what
we have done to fight against this system of death and starvation.  We
should immediately begin to follow the heroic example of the Mothers
of Plaza de Mayo."  The seminar was orgaized by the Brazilian Lawyers
Association.
 
------------------------------------------------------
 
These are articles from the monthly newspaper Mothers of the Plaza de
Mayo of Argentina. The hard copy contains 24 pages of information
about the situation in Argentina and Latin America rgarding human
rights, labor, and history of past struggles. For a one year
subsription, please send a money order for $60 (no personal checks) BY
REGISTERED MAIL to:
 
Juana M. de Pargament
Hipolito Yrigoyen 1442
Capital Federal - 1089
Argentina
 
Telephones:  011-54-1-383-3983
                  383-6430
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