A new development has been reported today by BBC regarding the trial of Miguel Etchecolatz. Apparantly one of the witnesses, Jorge Julio Lopez, 77, went missing one day before the conviction last week of Etchecolatz. Buenos Aires provincial minister of government commented on Identidad radio, "Everything makes us believe his disappearance had something to do with [the trial]."
Though at this time there is no conclusion to Lopez's whereabouts, this could end up be a strong reminder that the repressive workings and ideology of a dictatorship still have a lingering affect on Argentine society. Though "El Proceso" ending 23 years ago, there are still supporters of that regime that are very much still young and able to actively take part in human rights violations -- such as the popular method of "disappearing" people.
last301
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Argentine Investigator from "Dirty War" Gets Life
Miguel Osvaldo Etchecolatz, 77,Another person associated with "El Proceso" in Argentina during the so-called "Dirty War" was convicted this week. He was convicted for involvement for the disappearance of six people. You can read the details from Yahoo News. I don't mean to sound harsh, but I can't say I sympathize with Etchecolatz when he comments, "They are going to convict me...They have no shame condemning an old, ailing man." This is the second case of person being convicted in Argentina after impunity laws from the 1980s were anulled in 2005.
tag: last301
tag: last301
Castro Singing
As many probably know, Fidel Castro fell ill with a gatro-intestinal disease this summer. Many people felt he had actually died, and that the government was covering up his death. Well, according to Hugo Chavez, Castro is "singing, fit for baseball." Anyhow, I kinda liked this pic since I saw the original movie years ago.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Reading Response - Dave - Sept. 17
Some points:
1776 US Declaration of Independence: The anti-England language sounds like rhetoric, if not propaganda. In the Hamilton and Jay critique of this declaration there is commentary on p.112 that some of the laws that men were being arrested for were arbitrary violations and were “breaches of no said law.” This reflects many of the students comments about many of the declarations of the various constitutions we are reading about how vague the language is. The authors of this article seem to also critique that those in power are adhering to their own interpretations of law and rights. I was also quite impressed to see the writers concerned about the need for more, and clear language about the freedom of press.
Amendment III, U.S. Constitution: “No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner.” I noticed in one of the other declarations something about soldiers being quartered and misread it as the other quartered – all four limbs being tied to a horse. Makes more sense now. It looks like in the 17th century soldiers were perhaps abusing authority, or were given lots of authority over citizens to a point where citizens were regularly taken advantage of.
In the French constitution (p. 118, Human Rights reader), part 1: “social distinction may be based only upon general usefulness.” Not sure exactly what that means, but it sounds like a huge loophole for dignitaries.
One of the parallels I noticed with many of these declarations is the “innocent until proven guilty” concept. Vague concepts of “born free” and “right to happiness” seem to be included.
Article 22, UN Declaration of Human Rights (regarding right to social security) seems to me to quite absent in many regions of Latin America (maybe a bit of an understatement?)
Overall, my feelings reflect some of the comments that have come in and what was mentioned in class. Though there are many good ideas in many of the declarations through the various regions and historic periods, much of the language can be vague and arbitrary. Serious issues, such as genocide, should be taken more serious. I’m a former accounting student, and I can tell you the text for the Canadian Tax course is as thorough and challenging as anything I’ve studied at UBC. Perhaps we don’t have the fine print of the UN declaration for genocide in our courseware, but I sure hope it exists and is as meticulous as the tax guide. Obviously there are problems with the actual effectiveness of the UN. I don’t know a lot of fine details about the organization, so I won’t go on a rant. But situations like Darfur seem to be a pretty good litmus test.
tag: last301
1776 US Declaration of Independence: The anti-England language sounds like rhetoric, if not propaganda. In the Hamilton and Jay critique of this declaration there is commentary on p.112 that some of the laws that men were being arrested for were arbitrary violations and were “breaches of no said law.” This reflects many of the students comments about many of the declarations of the various constitutions we are reading about how vague the language is. The authors of this article seem to also critique that those in power are adhering to their own interpretations of law and rights. I was also quite impressed to see the writers concerned about the need for more, and clear language about the freedom of press.
Amendment III, U.S. Constitution: “No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner.” I noticed in one of the other declarations something about soldiers being quartered and misread it as the other quartered – all four limbs being tied to a horse. Makes more sense now. It looks like in the 17th century soldiers were perhaps abusing authority, or were given lots of authority over citizens to a point where citizens were regularly taken advantage of.
In the French constitution (p. 118, Human Rights reader), part 1: “social distinction may be based only upon general usefulness.” Not sure exactly what that means, but it sounds like a huge loophole for dignitaries.
One of the parallels I noticed with many of these declarations is the “innocent until proven guilty” concept. Vague concepts of “born free” and “right to happiness” seem to be included.
Article 22, UN Declaration of Human Rights (regarding right to social security) seems to me to quite absent in many regions of Latin America (maybe a bit of an understatement?)
Overall, my feelings reflect some of the comments that have come in and what was mentioned in class. Though there are many good ideas in many of the declarations through the various regions and historic periods, much of the language can be vague and arbitrary. Serious issues, such as genocide, should be taken more serious. I’m a former accounting student, and I can tell you the text for the Canadian Tax course is as thorough and challenging as anything I’ve studied at UBC. Perhaps we don’t have the fine print of the UN declaration for genocide in our courseware, but I sure hope it exists and is as meticulous as the tax guide. Obviously there are problems with the actual effectiveness of the UN. I don’t know a lot of fine details about the organization, so I won’t go on a rant. But situations like Darfur seem to be a pretty good litmus test.
tag: last301
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Impunity Controversey in Uruguay
This week in Uruguay the debate about impunity was prominent. What happened is that some former members of the junta militar from 1973-1985 were convicted of crimes that they were previously given amnesty. You can read the BBC Mundo story about it here (sorry, but I couldn't find the article in English).
I find the topic complex because on the one hand I feel people quilty of past crimes should have to pay for them. On the other hand, countries have moved towards democracy (such as Uruguay), and often deals have been made for amnesty for the culpables as part of the package to move towards said democracy. If the deals aren't honored, then future deals would be unlikely if unfortunately dictatorial elements were to take over. With the current leftist movements in Latin America, a right-leaning backlash isn't entirely ridiculous.
I find the topic complex because on the one hand I feel people quilty of past crimes should have to pay for them. On the other hand, countries have moved towards democracy (such as Uruguay), and often deals have been made for amnesty for the culpables as part of the package to move towards said democracy. If the deals aren't honored, then future deals would be unlikely if unfortunately dictatorial elements were to take over. With the current leftist movements in Latin America, a right-leaning backlash isn't entirely ridiculous.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Cuban Exile Bombing Suspect Could Be Set Free
One strong area of interest for me is Cuba. So to kick off this blog I'm posting an article about Luis Posada Carriles. He's a Cuban exile suspected in a string of bombings of Cuban hotels, as well as much controversey regarding his involvement in the bombing of a Cubana airlines flight in 1973. You can find a BBC overview of Posada here.
Last year he was apprehended in the US for illegal entry, and was supposed to be deported. He may be set free now because a country has not been found that will accept him from the US, and the courts have ruled that he can't be held indefinitely. Here is the BBC update on the story.
This has been a political "hot pototoe" for the US government since many people consider Posada a terrorist. Despite that, defense from some Cuban exiles can be found for him in Republican-friendly south Florida.
Conclusion: Keep Posada locked up if no country accepts him. He likely won't get a fair trial in Cuba or Venezuela, and given the timing of the decision (five year anniversary of 9/11), people like him should not be set free. Whatever law could potentially set him free should be amended.
Last year he was apprehended in the US for illegal entry, and was supposed to be deported. He may be set free now because a country has not been found that will accept him from the US, and the courts have ruled that he can't be held indefinitely. Here is the BBC update on the story.
This has been a political "hot pototoe" for the US government since many people consider Posada a terrorist. Despite that, defense from some Cuban exiles can be found for him in Republican-friendly south Florida.
Conclusion: Keep Posada locked up if no country accepts him. He likely won't get a fair trial in Cuba or Venezuela, and given the timing of the decision (five year anniversary of 9/11), people like him should not be set free. Whatever law could potentially set him free should be amended.
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