INR WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS OF DEVELOPMENTS IN HUMAN RIGHTS NO. 23, SEPTEMBER 20, 1977[SANITIZED] - 1977/09/20

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Keywords: 1977-1981
• Keywords: DEVELOPMENTS
• Keywords: HUMAN RIGHTS
• Keywords: INR
• Keywords: IRM PROGRAMS AND SERVICES
• Keywords: WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS
• Collection: Argentina Declassification Project - The "Dirty War" (1976-83)
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 00724490
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: April 3, 2019
• Document Release Date: April 12, 2019
• Publication Date: September 20, 1977

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� INR WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS
OF DEVELOPMENTS TNHUMAN RIGHTS
No. 23, September 20, 1977
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' Argentina
'Vide1a Tells Officers Rights Abuses are Counterproductive.
in a
LATIN AMERICA
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speech to army officers assigned to the Buenos Aires area,
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President Jorge Videla argued for curbing human rights abuses,
not as a means of improving relations with the US, but on
the grounds that:
--he, as army commander-in-chief, is deter-
mined to fulfill his. personal responsibility
to prevent repressive acts which impair the
government's reputation; and
--terrorists are using repression and the
human rights policy of the US to their
advantage in propaganda.
Videla also justified the openhanded official treat-
ment accorded recent high-level US visitors by saying that
their personal contact with Argentina would undermine the
impact of subversive propaganda. At the same time, he
assured those present that he would not permit the US to
instruct Argentina about how to conduct its affairs.
INR Comment: Videla recognizes the seriousness of
Argentina's human rights problem and the difficulties it
creates for relations with the US. His problem is to
implement corrective measures in a way which protects him
from charges that he has knuckled under to US pressures.
His choice of an audience of officers from the Buenos
Aires area to hear his strong personal commitment to halt
human rights excesses is particularly significant. In
recent months, official abuses have been more frequent in
the city, and province of Buenos Aires than anywhere else in
the country, largely because they fall within the juris-
ictions of two hardline generals, General (ret.) lberico
Saint Jean (provincial governor) and General Carlos Suarez
Mason (Commander, Corps I). Videla's clear message was
little short of a direct challenge to;the security practices
tolerated by these two officers. Videla's dispute with military
hardliners and his personal style of leadership have dictated
slow, cautious actions. Nonetheless, he has increasingly
tied his personal fortunes to success in curbing human
rights abuses.
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