Political Violence and Trauma in Argentina. Antonius C. G. M. Robben

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       Political Violence and Trauma in Argentina

       The Ethnography of Political Violence

      Cynthia Keppley Mahmood, Series Editor

       A complete list of books in the series is available from the publisher.

       Political Violence and Trauma in Argentina

      Antonius C. G. M. Robben

      University of Pennsylvania Press

      Philadelphia

      Copyright © 2005 University of Pennsylvania Press

      All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations used for purposes of review or scholarly citation, none of this book may be reproduced in any form by any means without written permission from the publisher.

      Published by

      University of Pennsylvania Press

      Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4112

      First paperback printing 2007

      Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

      Robben, Antonius C. G. M.

      Political violence and trauma in Argentina / Antonius C. G. M. Robben.

      p. cm. (The ethnography of political violence)

      ISBN-13: 978-0-8122-2006-3 (pbk. : alk. paper)

      ISBN-10: 0-8122-2006-4 (pbk. : alk. paper)

      Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.

      1. Political violence—Argentina—History—20th century. 2. Argentina—Politics and government—1943–. 3. Argentina—Social conditions—1945–1983. 4. Argentina—Social conditions—1983–. I. Title. II. Series

HN270.Z9 V555 2005303.6′0982—dc22

2004052007

      To Ellen,

      Oscar, and Sofia

       Contents

       Preface

       Part I. Groundswell: The Rise and Fall of Argentine Crowds

       1. Changing the Course of History: Dignity, Emancipation, and Entrenchment

       2. The Time of the Furnaces: Proscription, Compromise, and Insurrection

       3. A Breeze Turned into Hurricane: The Apogee of Crowd Mobilization

       4. Crowd Clashes: Euphoria, Disenchantment, and Rupture

       Part II. Utopia Lost: Guerrilla War and Counterinsurgency

       5. Shots in the Night: Revenge, Revolution, and Insurgency

       6. The Long Arm of Popular Justice: Punishment, Rebellion, and Sacrifice

       7. Revolution Postponed: Anger, Frustration, and Entitlement

       8. The Shadows of Death: Improvisation, Counterinsurgency, and Downfall

       Part III. Breaking Hearts and Minds: Torture, Self, and Resocialization

       9. The War of Cultures: Hierarchy Versus Equality, Christianity Versus Marxism

       10. The Wheelworks of Repression: Assault, Abduction, and Annihilation

       11. The Operating Theater: Torture, Dehumanization, and Traumatization

       12. Political Prisons and Secret Detention Centers: Dismantlement, Desocialization, and Rehabilitation

       Part IV. Argentina’s Nightmare: The Forced Disappearance

       13. The Disappearance: Despair, Terror, and Fear

       14. The Search: Hope, Anguish, and Illusion

       15. The Call for Truth: Defiance, Resistance, and Maternal Power

       16. Recovery and Reburial of the Past: Democracy, Accountability, and Impunity

       Conclusion: The Spirals of Violence and Trauma

       Appendix 1: Interview List

       Appendix 2: Acronyms

       Notes

       Bibliography

       Index

       Acknowledgments

       Preface

      This is the story of a country of great natural wealth and economic promise torn asunder by violence and trauma. Decades of mounting political violence cost the lives of more than ten thousand people, inflicted unimaginable suffering on many more, and traumatized society in the process. This traumatization was not apparent to me when I visited Argentina in 1978 during a break from fieldwork in Brazil. In retrospect, I understand that the deceptive calm of public life in Buenos Aires had been imposed by state terror and concealed a national tragedy. The atmosphere was entirely different in April 1983, when, again away from fieldwork, I became swept up in the popular effervescence of a protest march against the transitional military government that had replaced a military junta discredited by losing the 1982 Falkland/Malvinas war.

      On 16 April 1983, twelve thousand people joined the March for Human Rights to present the military government with a petition demanding that they