The Dirty War In Argentina

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The Dirty War in Argentina Between 1976 and 1983, under military rule, thousands of people in Argentina were arrested and then vanished without a trace. This campaign became known to Argentina and abroad as the "Dirty War". Taken by force against their will, the victims no longer existed as citizens. Nobody knew who exactly was responsible for their abductions or even why they had been abducted. Under a policy called the "Process of National Reorganization", successive governments waged war against armed terrorists and unarmed civilians. The terrorists were defeated, but the torture, disappearance and murder of innocent civilians continued for several years after. The authorities had no record of these disappearances. Innocent parents and children made attempts to try to locate their loved ones. Fear spread through Argentina, and many were afraid that they would become the next victims. The estimated number of people killed in The Dirty War was about 15,000. Thirty thousand more were imprisoned under awful conditions, including extreme torture, and half a million citizens were exiled. The terrorism of the military resulted in these arrests, abductions, tortures and disappearances of people who had never participated in violent or armed attacks. The military targeted academics and over three thousand university professors were dismissed from their posts and many of them were arrested on charges of subversion (overthrowing the government) during the first six months of military rule. Another target was journalists who reported on disappearances or criticized the government in any way. Psychiatrists were also considered dangerous because they were believed to support subversion and encourage "free thinking." Most of the victims of the military kidnappings lived the rest of their lives in detention centers and were blindfolded and could not to talk to one

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