The location of the memorial is under a high way. It's not a typical place for a memorial, but this location is supposed to be the site of some of the worst torture. When Emily and I arrived, there was no one there. It's a small park on one side, fenced in, which may be opened in the future. On one side there are 5 large posts (like flag poles) each with a digit on top, together spelling out 30,000, the reported number of "desaparecidos." On the other side is the number 500, the number of children of the "desaparecidos" who are unaccounted for. On the door of the park, we saw a flyer noting that the ceremony was the previous day. I was so sorry to have missed out. We spent some time peering through the fence though.
On the other side of the road was another part which looked like an archaeological dig. They may be doing some digging, but the bricks and flags were laid out in the shape of a person as part of the memorial. When I went home that evening, I spent hours and hours reading on the internet about the Dirty War and reading the personal stories of some of the people missing. Accounts of them being pulled from their home in the middle of the night, or people being drugged and pushed out of military planes to their death is terrifying and troubling. It was chilling to see the horror that one government was doing in the name of eradicating terrorism and to then reflect on what's going on in today's world in the same name.
http://www.desaparecidos.org/arg/victimas/eng.html
The entrance to the memorial. You can see the underside of the highway at the top of the photo.
Photos of the disappeared through the chain link fence, across the street from the memorial park.
Under the freeway
Memory, Truth, Justice
2 comments:
Nicola, how incredibly moving. It's too bad you missed the ceremony, but will it actually open up to the public eventually?
I studied a lot about the Dirty War. Between 1976-1983 Argentina underwent some of its darkest years in which de facto rulers imposed a right wing military dictatorship which claimed to strive for economic recovery via a 'National Reorganisation Process'. This involved thousands of unexplained 'disappearances', lives lost, families separated and violence to keep people in line with the wishes of the government. Last year I decided to get some Buenos Aires Real Estate and go to Argentina to devote my life to this cause, which I believe it is worth it, and the "desaparecidos" families will be thankful forever.
Lindsay
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