Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Rosauro Martinez Labbe implicated in the murders of three MIR militants

The Court of Appeals in Valdivia welcomed the request of visiting judge Emma Diaz Yevenez to investigate human rights violations committed during the dictatorship, which implicate Rosauro Martinez Labbe in the murder of three MIR militants.

According to the ruling issued by the Valdivia Court of Appeals, preliminary investigations have yielded "justified suspicion of the involvement of Rosauro Martinez Labbe as the perpetrator of the crime of murder relating to Patricio Alejandro Calfuquir Henriquez, Prospero del Carmen Guzman Soto and Jose Eugenio Monsalve Sandoval, on September 20, 1981, in Remeco Alto."

In order to be processed by the Chilean courts for the murders of the MIR militants, Martinez needs to be ousted from his parliamentary role as deputy affiliated with Renovacion Nacional. Martinez has denied involvement with DINA, yet official documents signed by DINA Chief Manuel Contreras indicate his admission on January 31, 1977. Martinez has also been implicated, together with former torture instructor Cristian Labbe, in the murder of Spanish diplomat Carmel Soria.

A petition calling for judicial investigation into Martinez's role has been launched in the name of the victims' families.

The campaign to eliminate MIR militants, which Martinez commanded, is known as Operacion Machete. Testimony by three witnesses: Eduardo Alberto Inostroza Reyes, Sergio Aliro Cardenas Navarro and Alfonso Rosa, assert Martinez's role and direct participation, giving the order to fire upon the dwelling in which Calfuquir, Guzman and Monsalve were gathered. The MIR militants were betrayed by their hostess who, after providing them with food, reported to the police.

Guzman received 28 bullet wounds in the abdomen fired by long distance automatic weapons, deemed the cause of death by autopsy results, which also reported various fractures and perforated organs. Calfuquir was also murdered by long distance automatic heavy weapons, receiving five bullet wounds to the abdomen causing death, as well as fractures and ruptured organs.

Apart from Martinez, Conrado Vicente Garcia Gaier and Enrique Erasmo Sandoval Arancibia are also accused of participating in the murders.