[SANITIZED]LATIN AMERICAN TRENDS: STAFF NOTES JUNE 23, 1976 - 1976/06/23

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: Argentina Declassification Project - The "Dirty War" (1976-83)
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 06628108
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: April 3, 2019
• Document Release Date: April 12, 2019
• Publication Date: June 23, 1976

Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
3.5(c)
Latin Americart
STA FF NOTES
Jewel'
CI SNLA 76-026
No. 0706-76
June 23, 1976
Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
NR
NR
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Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
LATIN AMERICAN TRENDS
This publication is prepared for regional specialists in the Washington com-
munity by the Western Hemisphere Division, Office of Current Intelligence,
with occasional contributions from other of f ices within the Directorate of
Intelligence. Comments and queries are welcome. They should be directed to
the authors of the individual articles.
CONTENTS
June 23, 1976
Counterterrorism in South Ant rice
-Nte
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E T
Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
3.5(c)
Counterterrorism in South America
The security organization � f several South
American countries may be coope ting in actions
against political refugees in entina.
Early this month armed men ansacked the offices
of the Argentine Catholic Commission on Immigration
and stole records containing information on thousands
of refugees and immigrants. Argentine police did
not investigate the crime and dismissed it as a
simple robbery.
Two days later twenty-four Uruguayan and Chilean
refugees, many of whom were the subject of Commission
files, were kidnaped and tortured for several hours.
Some of the refugees later identified their interrogators
as security officers from Chile and Uruguay. Pre-
sumably, the Chilean-Uruguayan operation could not
have been undertaken without the cooperation of the
Argentine security forces.
In the past few weeks two prominent Uruguayan
political exiles and a former 11Ftist president of
Bolivia have been killed underlaysterious circumstances
in Argentina. Argentine Ministir of Economy Martinez
de Hoz recently told the US ambassador in Buenos Aires
that his government was not responsible for the mur-
der of ex-president Torres and speculated--without
providing evidence--that leftist extremists had
eliminated "one of their own."
There are also several reports that Chilean
leftist leader Edgardo Enriquez, who was arrested by
Argentine security forces on April 10, was subsequently
turned over to the Chileans and is now dead. Mean-
while, the Brazilian press reports that the Argentine
government has handed over to Chilean authorities a
Brazilian political exile wanted by Santiago.
June 23, 1976
Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108
The Argentine junta has denied allegations that
it has violated "human rights" and recently issued an
official communique declaring that it would not
repatriate refugees by force. Despite this and
similar disclaimers by respected Argentine leaders,
US Embassy officials in Buenos Aires suspect the
acquiescence, and perhaps the direct involvement, of
the Argentine security forces in many of these in-
cidents.
In early 1974 security officials from Argentina,
Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia met in Buenos
Aires to prepare coordinated actions against sub-
versive targets. They agreed to establish diplomatic
security liaison channels, to exchange intelligence
information on a regular basis, and to facilitate
the international movement of security officers on
official business.
June 23, 1976
SY.-4rET
Approved for Release: 2018/10/02 C06628108