The UN Committee Against Torture urges the Argentinian Government to end mass detentions, police violence, and harassment of protesters.

The United Nations Committee Against Torture (CAT) called on the Argentinian government to take the necessary measures to prevent and end mass detentions, harassment, discriminatory practices, and disproportionate violence by law enforcement during public demonstrations, according to a sharply critical report on the state of human rights and the treatment of people deprived of their liberty in Argentina.

The Committee further urges the State to ensure that all complaints of institutional violence against protesters are investigated promptly, effectively, independently, and impartially, and that any officials found responsible are appropriately sanctioned.

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Preservation of historical memory

The report, produced amid the UN’s 83rd session reviewing compliance with the Convention against Torture, notes that Argentinian officials appeared in Geneva, where Undersecretary Alberto Baños drew criticism after denying the historically recognized figure of 30,000 kidnapped during the last civic-military dictatorship and attacking the country’s Human Rights organizations.

However, in its final paragraphs, under the heading “Reparations”, the Committee voiced its dismay at the dismantling of teams and programs tasked with investigating and analyzing existing documentation and archives on the actions of the Armed Forces during the civic-military dictatorship, as well as the budget cuts imposed on several institutions dedicated to memory, truth, and justice.

Argentina is therefore called upon to ensure the preservation of, and access to, strategic archives for judicial and historical investigations, as well as to guarantee comprehensive reparations for victims and their families, since the UN body emphasizes that all victims of torture and ill-treatment must receive reparation.

Current State of Police Violence

Regarding the Milei’s far-right administration, the Committee expressed concern over information received reporting disproportionate acts of violence by police officers, as well as the excessive use of force during arrests, especially in situations of flagrancy and during police searches. It also expressed concern over reports denouncing mass detentions, followed by acts of harassment and arrests without judicial oversight in the context of alleged preventive operations.

It cited, on this matter, operations carried out in low-income neighborhoods—including against children-in Tucuman, and during so-called “order and cleanup” actions in Buenos Aires targeting homeless people, including those with mental health conditions or substance use issues.

The CAT sounded alarms that the recommendations issued in 2018 have only been partially implemented, noting that most of them are repeated in the final observations of the current report.

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