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Pope Francis and Argentina’s Military Junta’s Policy of Mass Assassinations
By Prof Michel Chossudovsky and James Corbett
Global Research, March 19, 2013
Corbett Report
Url of this article:
https://www.globalresearch.ca/pope-francis-and-argentinas-military-juntas-policy-of-mass-assassinations/5327398
Interview with Michel Chossudovsky on the Corbett Report:
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With the election of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the next Pope comes some ghosts from his past.

As evidence continues to mount that Bergoglio was complicit in the Dirty War of the Argentinian military junta in the late 1970s, we talk to Michel Chossudovsky about his latest article, “‘Washington’s Pope’? Who is Pope Francis I? Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio and Argentina’s ‘Dirty War’.”

Excerpt 
According to lawyer Myriam Bregman:  “Bergoglio’s own statements proved church officials knew from early on that the junta was torturing and killing its citizens”, and yet publicly endorsed the dictators. “The dictatorship could not have operated this way without this key support,” (Los Angeles Times, April 1, 2005 emphasis added)(Image right: General Jorge Videla takes communion. Date and name of priest unconfirmed)

The entire Catholic hierarchy was behind the US sponsored military dictatorship.  It is worth recalling that on March 23, 1976, on the eve of the military coup:

Videla and other plotters received the blessing of the Archbishop of Paraná, Adolfo Tortolo, who also served as vicar of the armed forces. The day of the takeover itself, the military leaders had a lengthy meeting with the leaders of the bishop’s conference. As he emerged from that meeting, Archbishop Tortolo stated that although “the church has its own specific mission . . . there are circumstances in which it cannot refrain from participating even when it is a matter of problems related to the specific order of the state.” He urged Argentinians to “cooperate in a positive way” with the new government.” (The Humanist.org, January 2011, emphasis added)

In an interview conducted with El Sur, General Jorge Videla, who is now serving a life sentence for crimes against humanity confirmed that:

He kept the country’s Catholic hierarchy informed about his regime’s policy of “disappearing” political opponents, and that Catholic leaders offered advice on how to “manage” the policy. 

Jorge Videla said he had “many conversations” with Argentina’s primate, Cardinal Raúl Francisco Primatesta, about his regime’s dirty war against left-wing activists. He said there were also conversations with other leading bishops from Argentina’s episcopal conference as well as with the country’s papal nuncio at the time, Pio Laghi.

“They advised us about the manner in which to deal with the situation,” said Videla” (Tom Henningan, Former Argentinian dictator says he told Catholic Church of disappeared Irish Times, July 24, 2012, emphasis added)

Read article at: “‘Washington’s Pope’? Who is Pope Francis I? Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio and Argentina’s ‘Dirty War’.”

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