Russell Tribunal II
Between 1974 and 1976, the Russell Tribunal (created in 1966 to investigate the US intervention in Vietnam) met to probe the crimes committed by the dictatorial regimes across Latin America. The work of this second tribunal, called ‘Repression in Latin America’, counted on the participation of internationally renowned intellectuals, such as Julio Cortázar, Gabriel García Márquez and James Petras, and brought together hundreds of testimonies and pieces of documentation.
Kidnapping of Jefferson Cardim and his Family in Buenos Aires
In the context of the early repressive coordination between Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, Jefferson Cardim was captured in Buenos Aires on 11th December 1970, alongside his son, Jefferson Lopetegui and his nephew, Eduardo Lopetegui.
Coup d’état in Brazil
The coup d’état in Brazil was carried out by military forces between 31st March and 1st April 1964. It led to the overthrow of João Goulart (from the Brazilian Labour Party, or “Partido Laborista”) and marked the beginning of the Brazilian military dictatorship, which lasted until 15th March 1985. On 2nd April, a military regime was formed, which called itself the “Comando Supremo da Revolução” (Supreme Command of the Revolution). Goulart went into exile in Uruguay.
The Restoration of Democracy and the Search for Justice
The countries which had participated in Operation Condor’s repressive coordination eventually returned to democracy. The democratic transition reinvigorated the demands for answers regarding the crimes against humanity committed under dictatorship. Today, the search for truth and justice continues for the crimes that the repressive forces committed against individuals and groups and the alliances that the totalitarian governments formed with businesses and powerful actors to strengthen their corruption.
Operation Condor
On 28th November 1975, representatives of the regimes of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay met in Santiago (Chile), where they established the so-called “Condor System” or Operation Condor.
Operation Condor reproduced the same range of human rights violations carried out by dictatorships within their borders but strengthening transnational clandestine actions to commit the crimes.
Authoritarian Context and Repressive Coordination
Authoritarian regimes -ideologically inspired by the National Security Doctrine- swept across the length and breadth of South America in the geopolitical context of the Cold War. The growing mobilisation of trade unions, student unions, and peasant movements with demands for better living and working conditions, confronted conservative forces and violent parapolice and paramilitary groups.