Argentina's Dirty War

[Cierra]

OLAVARRIA, Argentina — Shade trees hide the crumbling farm house outside of Olavarria. Hidden at the end of a dirt path, the white plaster coating is falling away from the brick foundation like scabs peeling off an unhealed wound.

Araceli Gutierrez guards the memories of this place like a fragile keepsake. A voluntary caretaker, the 61-year-old with faded blonde curls watches over the house known as Monte Peloni where, as a young woman, she was tortured and raped by her military captors.

"This is a faithful reflection of the memory," she says, walking through the decaying rooms, her expression lost in time. "If it collapsed, it would be as if the most important part of my life were to collapse."

The events that took place in 1977 now are coming to light, forcing residents of this pastoral community to examine their role in Argentina's Dirty War against those who challenged the military regime.

One secret unearthed this summer already cracked Olavarria's facade of quiet rural life.

In August, residents learned an Olavarria music teacher named Ignacio Hurban was, in fact, Guido Montoya Carlotto, the lost grandson of Estela de Carlotta, whose Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo group searches for children taken by the regime.

Now, Olavarria is learning about the secrets of Monte Peloni. Gutierrez is among the witnesses testifying before a judicial panel investigating the detentions of 21 people taken there by military officials.

A hearing set for next year will uncover abuses allegedly committed against 40 other people at Monte Peloni by 70 defendants, including former police officers, prison officials and town leaders who served as advisers to the regime that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983.


"With this tribunal, plus the appearance of Guido," Gutierrez said, "Olavarria has woken up."

But it has been a difficult awakening. Olavarria, some 220 miles (350 kilometers) southwest of Buenos Aires, is a prosperous farming and industrial town that holds onto tradition. The afternoon siesta is still a part of life for many of the 90,000 residents. The twin steeples of the Catholic church stand over Olavarria's tree-lined central square, right next to city hall.

The process is exposing secrets long buried by Olavarria, where victims and the accused share the same streets and know the same people.

Four aging military men could be sent to prison for life as a result of the tribunal that opened Sept. 22 and is expected to conclude before the close of the year.
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