Saturday, December 03, 2016

Nuncio tried to save 5000 Argentines, including Che's brother

Papal Nuncio LaghiFiles from the Vatican Archives reveal that the former papal nuncio to Argentina during the military dictatorship, who was accused of complying with the regime, tried to save at least 5000 people, including Che Guevara's brother. 

Chilean Vaticanologist Luis Badilla has studied one of the most controversial cases of the dictatorship, that of Cardinal Pio Laghi. 

In the 1990s, he was accused of complying with the regime and of not doing everything that was in his hand to save people from being executed by the regime.

Mr Badilla has uncovered files showing that people who thought their friends or family had been taken by the regime asked Cardinal Laghi for help.

He interceded for them before the government, demanding their freedom. He publicly criticised the military junta that ruled the country. 

In 1980 he was declared persona non grata and forced to leave Argentina.

The documents that the Vatican will make public about the dictatorship in Argentina will not only help to reveal the whereabouts of the victims of the regime. They will also shed light on the controversial role the Church played.

Mr Badilla explains: "The root of all this is the Pope, it's Francis. He accepted the petition to organise, classify, and open these documents to the people who need them. People had asked for this in the past and it was never granted.

"Pope Francis accepted it because he is aware that, if Argentina wants to be truly in peace, the first thing it needs is the truth. Because only the truth and justice allow for reconciliation. There is no reconciliation without truth and justice.”