Zorreguieta trouble: 'Dirty War' priest gets life term in Argentina

WAR CRIMINAL FATHER OF FUTURE DUTCH QUEEN IN TROUBLE

Henk Ruyssenaars - Foreign correspondent

FPF - 10-10-2007 - Jorge Zorreguieta, the father of the future 'queen' of The Netherlands, Máxima, who was a minister in the Videla government during the so called 'dirty war' in which at least 30.000 Argentinians were jailed, tortured, killed or 'disappeared', has lost his parliamentarian immunity and knows he is in trouble. Dutch mainstream media however, never report on reality and the real trouble ahead.

But Argentine President Nestor Kirchner - who was jailed and maltreated by the junta himself - has pushed a human rights agenda, and persuaded Congress already in 2003 to annul two laws from the 1980s that pardoned human rights abusers. And that spells trouble for Jorge Zorreguieta too, even if the group in charge of the developments in The Netherlands covers up the crimes as best as they can.

TWO YEARS AGO THE SUPREME COURT DECLARED THOSE SAME TWO AMNESTY LAWS UNCONSTITUTIONAL.

Since then, courts have reopened cases and brought former military and police officers to trial. According to the Center of Legal and Social Studies, an Argentine human rights organization, 237 people are in jail while they are investigated in the reopened cases, and six people have been convicted.

Waiting are many of the victims and their parents. who want to see criminals like Jorge Zorreguieta behind bars too. Those who were responsible for the inhuman treatment, the stealing of the babies of people picked up, the jailing, the rapes, the torturing and the killing of their beloved. There are millions of people which hope that the devil has woken up and time has come to get the criminals and give them the punishment they deserve. More info and links at Url.:  http://indymedia.nl/nl/2007/04/43790.shtml

THE BBC TODAY HAS THIS STORY: 'DIRTY WAR' PRIEST GETS LIFE TERM

A COURT IN ARGENTINA HAS CONVICTED A FORMER ROMAN CATHOLIC POLICE CHAPLAIN OF COLLABORATING IN MURDERS DURING THE COUNTRY'S MILITARY RULE.

Christian Von Wernich, 69, was convicted for involvement in seven murders, 42 abductions and 31 cases of torture during the 1976-83 "Dirty War". Survivors say he passed confessions he obtained from prisoners to the police. As he was sentenced, Father Von Wernich showed no emotion. Protesters torched his effigy outside the court.

The trial in the town of La Plata, 60km (35 miles) south of Buenos Aires, had lasted for three months. Father Von Wernich initially avoided prosecution by moving to Chile, where he worked as a priest under a false name. However, he was eventually tracked down by investigators and extradited to Argentina in 2003 when amnesty laws passed at the end of military rule were declared unconstitutional.

PARTICIPANT

At the trial, several former prisoners said the former Roman Catholic priest used his office to win their trust before passing information to police torturers and killers in secret detention centres. They say he attended several torture sessions and absolved the police of blame, telling them they were doing God's work. "Von Wernich participated assiduously and maintained direct contacts with the detainees," the prosecution said in its indictment.

Father Von Wernich's lawyers said the case against him had more doubts than certainties and that he had been obliged to visit police detention centres as part of his duties. The priest said he had never violated the prohibition against revealing information obtained in the sacrament of confession and accused those torture victims who gave evidence in court of being influenced by the devil. "False testimony is of the devil, because he is responsible for malice and is the father of evil and lies," he said.

OUTRAGE

Once the judge announced the sentence, observers inside the courthouse erupted with relief and jubilation. Outside, crowds cheered and set off fireworks. "It's a historic day, a wonderful day... it's something we mothers didn't think we'd live to see," said Tati Almeyda, a member of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, a group of women seeking their sons and daughters who disappeared under military rule.

"JUSTICE HAS BEEN DONE. THE CATHOLIC CHURCH WAS AN ACCOMPLICE," SHE TOLD THE REUTERS NEWS AGENCY.

The BBC's Daniel Schweimler in Buenos Aires says Father Von Wernich's actions caused particular outrage in Argentina because he had abused the trust that believers placed in him. While human rights activists and survivors will be celebrating this verdict, they will now shift their attention to the Roman Catholic Church in Argentina, our correspondent says.

The church has remained silent on the case, saying it was waiting for the verdict, but it will again be asked about the role did it play in the "Dirty War", he adds.

BETWEEN 10,000 AND 30,000 PEOPLE WERE KILLED OR DISAPPEARED BEFORE ARGENTINA RETURNED TO CIVILIAN RULE WITH THE ELECTION OF PRESIDENT RAUL ALFONSIN IN OCTOBER 1983.

[andend] - Story from BBC NEWS - Published: 2007/10/10 - Url.:
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/7035294.stm

FPF - RELATED:

* HENK R. (EX-BBC) - GOOGLE 'SELECTION' ITEMS IN JORGE ZORREGUIETA - Url.:  http://images.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22Henk+Ruyssenaars%22+%2BZorreguieta

* JORGE ZORREGUIETA IS A WAR CRIMINAL - Google selection' - Url.:  http://www.google.com/search?q=%22Jorge+Zorreguieta%22+%2Bcriminal&btnG=Google+zoeken&hl=nl&lr=

* THE STATE OF OUR WORLD IN RELATED LINKS - Url.:  http://tinyurl.com/2ncumy

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