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### Viewing cable 06MONTEVIDEO963, DICTATORSHIP'S WOUNDS STILL FELT IN URUGUAY

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
06MONTEVIDEO963 | 2006-10-11 13:01 | 2010-12-14 21:09 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Montevideo

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    VZCZCXYZ0000
    PP RUEHWEB

    DE RUEHMN #0963/01 2841337
    ZNY CCCCC ZZH
    P 111337Z OCT 06
    FM AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6388
    INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
    RUMIAAA/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL//J-5//
    RUEHMN/ODC MONTEVIDEO UY
    RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
    RUEHMN/USDAO MONTEVIDEO UY
    RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA 0071

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L MONTEVIDEO 000963

    SIPDIS

    SIPDIS

    DEPT ALSO FOR WHA/BSC AND DRL

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/05/2016
    TAGS: PGOV PHUM SOCI ELAB UY
    SUBJECT: DICTATORSHIP'S WOUNDS STILL FELT IN URUGUAY

    Classified By: Charge de Affaires a.i.
    James D. Nealon for reasons 1.5 (b) and (d)

    ¶1. (SBU) Summary and Introduction: Uruguay's ongoing debate
    over the teaching of history and a recent public shouting
    match between the sons of important actors during Uruguay's
    dictatorship both illustrate the importance of that period to
    modern politics and policy in Uruguay. The complex history
    of the dictatorship created heroes and villains for both the
    left and right. Some of the persons involved are still
    active in politics, and the real and imagined lessons from
    the period continue to inform modern politicians. Uruguay is
    only now devising a curriculum through which to teach this
    subject in its history classes, but sensitivities may still
    run too hot to effectively complete the project. A
    contentious debate between the son of the slain opposition
    congressman Zelmar Michelini and the son of Juan Bordaberry
    who was president at the beginning of the dictatorship,
    grabbed national attention October 4. Although the
    dictatorship ended more than 20 years ago, its conflicts are
    still unresolved in the public mind, and the policies of key
    factions of the governing Frente Amplio coalition continue to
    reflect a strong reaction to this period. End Summary and
    Introduction.

    RECAP: CAUSES AND DOWNFALL OF URUGUAY'S DICTATORSHIP
    --------------------------------------------- --------

    ¶2. (U) In the late 1960s, a long accumulation of
    deteriorating political and economic factors produced severe
    social and labor unrest and the rise of the National
    Liberation Movement - Tupamaros (MLN-T), a guerrilla group
    that began a campaign of urban terrorism. These conditions
    gradually ushered in a process of steadily increasing
    military involvement in the country's political life.
    Initially, the police were charged with suppressing the
    insurgency, but proved unable to stem the escalating wave of
    kidnappings, bombings, and assassinations. Successive
    Colorado Party Presidents Jorge Pacheco (1967-72) and Juan
    Bordaberry (1972-76) resorted to states of siege that
    permitted the military to act in the name of "national
    security" with scant regard for civil liberties and laws.
    During this period Tupamaros kidnapped three American embassy
    employees, including Dan Mitrione who, in 1971, was killed by
    the Tupamaros and later slandered in leftist circles as a
    "CIA torturer." In September 1971, President Pacheco called
    on the military to take primary responsibility for the fight
    against the Tupamaros. The armed forces were well equipped
    for the task and virtually wiped out the insurgency within a
    matter of months.

    ¶3. (U) However, once engaged, the military viewed its
    mandate as one to re-establish internal order at all costs
    and embarked on a campaign to purge the country of
    "undesirable leftists, opposition and union elements."
    Constitutional safeguards, suspended during the declaration
    of "internal war," were prolonged by new legislation that put
    draconian controls on the media and on dissent. The new laws
    also by-passed normal legal protections and allowed for
    persons charged with crimes against national security to be
    detained and subject to trial in military courts. In June
    1973, the military forced then-President Bordaberry to
    suspend the democratic process and accept military rule
    through a National Security Council (COSENA) composed of
    senior military officers and the ministers of Defense,
    Interior, and Foreign Affairs.

    ¶4. (U) During the early and mid-dictatorship period, the
    military moved brutally against anyone it deemed as a threat
    to national security. An estimated 6,000 citizens were tried
    in military courts, and human rights groups charged that tens
    of thousands had been detained, denied legal rights, or were
    tortured. Some 300,000-400,000 Uruguayans reportedly fled
    into exile, and in some instances became victims of the
    security forces in neighboring countries. The number of
    Uruguay's "disappeared" persons during the "dirty war" is
    estimated by some at around 150 with at least 28 confirmed
    dead. The statistics, however, remain in dispute. In 1980
    under intense international pressure including from the U.S.,
    military officials conducted a referendum to legitimize their
    rule through constitutional reform. The referendum failed,
    and negotiations began for a return to democracy. In 1984
    the "Naval Club Pact" -- a political agreement between the
    armed forces and four political parties paved the way for the
    military to exit power.

    ¶5. (U) In 1985 the military finally relinquished power
    following the election of Julio Maria Sanguinetti in October
    ¶1984. A blanket amnesty was granted to the Tupamaros and
    other opponents of the regime. But in the transition from a
    military dictatorship to a democracy, Uruguay still faced the
    dilemma of having to decide between prosecuting military
    officers for crimes committed under the period of military
    rule (and risk a military revolt) or granting them an
    amnesty. In December 1986, Congress approved the Expiration
    Law ("Ley de Caducidad") that granted amnesty to members of
    the military and police for acts committed prior to March 1,
    ¶1985. Seen as an "impunity law" by its critics, the
    controversial measure was put to a public referendum on April
    16, 1989 when citizens voted 57 percent in favor of keeping
    the law in effect. Successive governments of Luis Alberto
    Lacalle, Sanguinetti (second administration) and Jorge Batlle
    did relatively little to re-open investigations of human
    rights abuse cases, with the exception of Batlle's "Peace
    Commission" that was established to compile facts and helped
    him gain greater popularity. On March 1, 2005 Tabare Vazquez
    took office and promised to pursue human rights issues,
    declaring, "We are not hostages to the past, but Uruguayan
    society needs to know what happened so that it never happens
    again."

    USES AND ABUSES OF HISTORY
    --------------------------

    ¶6. (SBU) Uruguay's national curriculum committee (ANEP)
    continues to generate strong debate as it seeks to include
    the period of the Uruguayan dictatorship in the nation's
    history curriculum. Several sources believe the MPP, part of
    the FA coalition government and led by several former
    Tupamaro guerrillas, is behind the new interest in "recent
    history." In their eyes, the history of the period begins
    with the allegedly harsh police response to the visit of
    Ernesto "Che" Guevara in 1961 when one of Guevara's
    associates was killed by a militant right-wing activist. In
    hindsight they portray their movement as a defense of civil
    liberties. A former military officer of the era remembered
    the history differently and told us that civilians regularly
    acted as informants and applauded as police arrested
    Tupamaros. The Blanco Party hopes the new curriculum will
    honor one of its elder statesmen, Wilson Ferreira Aldunate,
    for what they believe was his key role in the end of the
    dictatorship. One of the historians working on the
    curriculum created a huge stir in September when he stated
    his "personal belief" that pressure from the United States
    was the primary cause of the end of the dictatorship. The
    depth of feeling over the issue on all sides demonstrates its
    hold on society, and may indefinitely delay agreement on the
    curriculum.

    ¶7. (U) On a television talk show October 4, Pedro Bordaberry,
    son of former-President Juan Bordaberry, described his
    ongoing attempts to clear his father's name. During the
    broadcast, FA Senator Rafael Michelini appeared in the studio
    and was granted permission to speak. On air, he accused the
    former president of complicity in the killing of Zelmar
    Michelini in Buenos Aires during the dictatorship. The
    senior Michelini, Rafael's father, was a vocal member of the
    banned opposition. In response, Bordaberry's son, Pedro,
    called Michelini "a liar" and played audio tapes of Michelini
    and another FA politician stating that they did not blame
    former-President Bordaberry for the crime. The acrimony
    between two sons searching for closure shows the emotional
    intensity still connected to the period, and the front-page
    coverage by major newspapers of the debate illustrates the
    continuing breadth of interest in Uruguay.

    MODERN IMPACT
    -------------

    ¶8. (C) Despite the GOU's general engagement with the U.S.,
    some elements of the left distrust the US and fear connection
    with a nation they believe supported the dictatorship. In
    mantra-like fashion, union leaders, Communists, the MPP, and
    hard-core Socialists regularly disparage the U.S. in terms
    identical to those used during the Cold War, and loudly
    grumble about cooperation with the U.S. But while the vocal
    few often do not hold real power, their lingering prejudices
    have a chilling effect on some aspects of US/GOU relations.
    Since the FA came to power, no GOU representatives have
    attended Trafficking in Persons or biotechnology seminars
    sponsored by the Embassy. The Embassy has limited access to
    several ministries controlled by far-left ministers. And
    more than 18 months after the beginning of the FA government,
    some bureaucrats work hard to avoid meeting USG
    representatives. The Vazquez administration must contend
    with virulent objections from within the FA in his quest to
    improve trade ties with the U.S.

    ¶9. (C) Memories of the dictatorship also affect FA policy
    toward the military and police. The GOU has kept a tight
    reign on military and police budgets despite a crumbling
    military capability and increasing crime. In addition
    Vazquez ordered the military in 2005 to allow forensic
    experts to search for the remains of the "disappeared" on
    select military bases. After personally ramming Uruguay's
    participation in the UNITAS naval exercise with the U.S.
    through Parliament in 2005, President Vazquez cancelled
    Uruguayan participation in 2006. He remains open to UNITAS
    pending the results of an ongoing review of Uruguay's defense
    structure, and pending an Uruguayan request to make UNITAS
    more relevant to Uruguay's defense needs. (Note: Although
    the armed forces quickly crushed the Tupamaros in 1971, a
    small remnant of dedicated Communist insurgents remained
    active far longer. This explains why many of the disappeared
    Uruguayans were Communists rather than Tupamaros. In 1986,
    President Julio Maria Sanguinetti reportedly entered into a
    tacit agreement with the Communists to get them to lay down
    their arms. This Colorado-Communist accord or "COCO" allowed
    the Marxists to maintain strong influence in the labor unions
    and higher education. Significantly, Communist influence
    remains dominant in both sectors to this day. End Note.)

    COMMENT
    -------

    ¶10. (C) Participants in the insurgency and the ideological
    left are still active in major parties of the FA coalition,
    but while they have passed on their ideological legacy, they
    have generally been unable to develop leaders to organize and
    direct the future of the movement. The leaders of the far
    left are in their 70s, and few have an heir apparent. When
    the Socialist party elder statesman Guillermo Chifflet
    retired, one of his proteges told us that the party
    increasingly saw him as out of step with the new course
    charted by Tabare Vazquez. Several political observers
    believe that when the current leadership of the MPP retires
    in the next few years, the movement will be ungovernable as
    inept radical deputies fight among themselves. The one
    exception to this rule is the powerful union movement in
    Uruguay (PIT-CNT) which continues to have strong Communist
    sympathies, fervent anti-U.S. rhetoric, and well-established
    institutions. Union institutions exercise power through
    GOU-established labor boards, short but regular work
    stoppages and occupations of production facilities. Because
    Vazquez continues to set a new course for the left, the
    future of the far-left is further in doubt. But leftist
    reaction to the dictatorship period remains high, and will
    continue to exert strong influence on Uruguayan politics for
    some time to come. End Comment.
    Nealon

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