March 24, 2022
Remembrance, truth and justice to defend and ensure human rights
Every 24 March marks the International Day for the Right to the Truth Regarding Serious Human Rights Violations and the Dignity of Victims, proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2010 to commemorate the victims and to promote the commemoration and right to guarantee truth and justice.
The right to know the truth about serious human rights violations and serious crimes is part of international human rights law and international humanitarian law. It is an inalienable right to full and complete knowledge of the crimes committed, the people involved and the specific circumstances, in particular the crimes committed and their motives. The right to truth is linked to the obligation and duty of the state to protect and guarantee human rights, conduct effective investigations and make reparations.
The right to know about the serious violations of human rights in the recent past is a priority on the agenda of the MERCOSUR states. The countries of the region share a common history of human rights abuses that is responsible for the functioning of a repressive coordination between the Southern Cone’s civil-military dictatorships, embodied in the plan dubbed Operation Condor.
In this sense, within the framework of the Meeting of the High Authorities for Human Rights of MERCOSUR (RAADH), the countries meet regularly in the Permanent Commission for Remembrance, Truth and Justice in order to achieve an exchange and mutual cooperation on this matter. Likewise, this date, March 24, coincides with the anniversary of the coup that established a civil-military dictatorship in Argentina between 1976 and 1983, and since 2002 with the commemoration of the National Truth and Justice Commemoration Day.
The MERCOSUR Institute for Public Policies on Human Rights (IPPDH) provides ongoing technical support to strengthen public policies related to memory, truth and justice. In this regard, the Guide to Archives and Documentary Funds refers to the gross human rights abuses that have occurred within the framework of the repressive coordination of the Southern Cone’s “Cóndor Documentary Collection”, developed by the IPPDH, which collects information on more than 280 documentary collections from Argentina , Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.
This March 24th, the IPPDH pays tribute to the victims of gross human rights abuses and sheds light on and accompanies the struggle of family members and human rights defenders for memory, truth and justice. On this day, remember the need to end impunity and guarantee redress, to promote and protect human rights and the never-again culture.