Argentina, too, confronts its past

The investigations of a charismatic young judge in Spain have obliged two countries in Latin America to confront their violent past - but in very different ways.

Judge Baltasar Garzn's efforts to extradite Chilean Gen. Augusto Pinochet from Britain have received worldwide attention in recent weeks. This week a new chapter of the story was opened when Britain ruled that the former dictator is not immune from prosecution on charges of killing Spanish citizens.

Different consequences

The extradition process has been bitterly divisive in Chile, where it has galvanized General Pinochet's supporters, given hope to his longtime accusers and opponents, and stimulated nationalist sentiments in the face of "foreign interference." Yet in Argentina, a less-publicized case, also sparked by a Judge Garzn pursuit, is playing itself out with distinctly different consequences.

Whereas Chile has been torn by debate and heated demonstrations, the mood in the Argentine capital is reflective. Last week, Argentines watched quietly as retired Adm. Emilio Massera was placed under house arrest in a case that echoes Pinochet's.

Garzn's interest in Admiral Massera involves the alleged murder of Spanish citizens. But Massera owes his current detention to charges involving Argentine victims. Garzn's case against Massera in Spain is not a central concern.

The Argentine courts are considering the legal points of the case, and the newspapers in Buenos Aires are providing sober, detailed coverage.

Argentina's path to judgment departs from Chile's. In the mid-1970s, Argentina, like Chile, experienced a military coup that overthrew an unstable civilian elected government. Massera, like Pinochet, was part of the initial junta. Pinochet emerged as dictator, but Massera remained part of a junta, where he served as second in command and prime ideologue.

'Disappearing' thousands

Both dictatorships consolidated their power through murdering and "disappearing" thousands of citizens, as well as foreign nationals.

Pinochet yielded his powers only gradually, eventually permitting presidential elections while granting himself lifetime immunity from prosecution and a political office for life.

The change in Argentina was more abrupt. The Argentines blamed their military rulers for the disastrous war in the Falklands in 1982, and they were obliged to resign in the face of overwhelming public opprobrium in 1983. In 1987, Massera was tried and sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the killings, along with a number of his counterparts.

But three years later, the civilian government of current President Carlos Menem, battered by barracks revolts by young officers, decided to ease his relations with the military by pardoning the middle- and senior-ranking officers convicted of murder and torture.

And there the matter seemed to end. But there were still some official crimes that could not be put to rest.

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