Aside from the excitement of my first date yesterday, it was also an interesting day in terms of learning more about the sad recent history of Argentina.
It started when we read a column in class which was written by one of "the grandchildren". It is very interesting here that there are "las madres" - the mothers, "las abuelas" - the grandmothers and now "los nietos" the grandchildren.
During the dictatorship and dirty war, thousands of people were picked up on the streets, thrown into Ford Falcons and disappeared. Many were tortured before they were killed. Las madres (de los desaparecidos) the mothers of the disappeared, began a silent protest in the Plaza de Mayo, where they began standing in front of the presidential palace holding photographs of their children, or husbands, who had mysteriously disappeared. The government told them they could not stand there as it was a protest, so they began walking in a circle. To this day, they continue their protest, every Thursday at 3:30, to remind people of what happened, and to continue to push for those responsible for the atrocities to be brought to justice. But now, many of them are grandmothers, and there is the new generation of grandmothers- those who now know that they had grandchildren who were born while their mothers were detained.
It turns out that at least 500 women were kidnapped who were known to be pregnant. And it appears that the generals kept the pregnant women alive until they gave birth and then gave those babies to families (of friends, cronies?), sometimes it was known by these families where these babies came from, and sometimes it was not. These are the "grandchildren". Through DNA testing, these children are beginning to find out their true story.
To me the whole thing is so unbelievable. How could it be that a country such as this, which seems so modern and civilized, could descend into such a dark period? Could that happen to us in the US? Is it already happening with people of Middle Eastern descent being picked up randomly and thrown into Guantanomo, being tortured and disappeared, their families not having any idea where they are or if they will ever return?
And then there is the peso crash of 2001. Hernan told me that the banks simply told people their savings were not available. It was due partly to the governmental policy of falsely pegging the peso, one to one, to the dollar. The peso was inflated and after owing enormous debts to the World Bank that could not be repaid, the whole thing collapsed. While it seems like the country, and the economy has survived, in part by refusing to repay the loans, shunning international investors and producing everything locally, Hernan told me people were devastated and many people committed suicide. I wondered, out loud, if that could happen in the US - our national debt is in the trillions of dollars - how can it be that we can have such a huge debt and not have to worry about the consequences? When I get home, I'm taking my money out of the bank and putting it under my mattress.
This recent history of Argentina adds a new layer of interest to the experience of being here. People are alive who lived through those times. Tango is music which relates a kind of bittersweetness, a longing, defiance, strength and weakness all at the same time. In many ways it seems that it defines the spirit of Argentina and its people. It is the perfect background music to my trip and it is ever present.
No comments:
Post a Comment