Confessions of an Argentine dirty warrior : a firsthand account of atrocity

Francisco Silingo was a junior naval officer in the Argentinean military dictatorship of the 1970s. Convinced by his superiors that extreme measures were essential in defending Argentina from subversives, he pushed drugged political prisoners out of airplanes into the Atlantic Ocean. Silingo related his experiences to author Horacio Verbitsky because his former commanders began denying such practices ever occurred--though they had gone to great lengths to justify them to their men. This book caused outrage in Argentina in 1995, when nearly 9,000 of the "disappeared" remain unaccounted for. Retired Navy Officer Francisco Scilingo is the first man ever to break the Argentine military's pact of silence. Incensed by what he perceived as unjust treatment of former Argentine military officials, Scilingo stunned his compatriots and the world by openly confessing his participation in the hideous practice of pushing live political dissidents out of airplanes over the South Atlantic during Argentina's dirty war. The Flight makes available to English-language readers for the first time the complete text of Scilingo's confession, offered as interviews with Argentina's best-known investigative journalist, Horacio Verbitsky. In these interviews, Scilingo confirms what was rumored for years, but always denied by the Argentine military. He recounts his inside knowledge of and participation in the monstrous campaign of systematic torture and death waged by the military from 1976 to 1983; he details the military's practice of rotating personnel so that everyone, including ranking officers, would be complicit; and he talks about the Church's awareness and seeming endorsement of many atrocities. Scilingo's candid admissions offer unique insights into the psychology of guilt and present a riveting study of human behavior at its worst.

"Best-selling account of retired naval officer Francisco Scilingo regarding torture and murder of political prisoners during the Argentine military dictatorship. Excellent and gripping translation includes a new epilogue; afterword places these human rights violations in a worldwide context. Useful identifying list of historical figures and persons mentioned in the text"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 58.

"Retired navy officer Adolfo Scilingo is the first man ever to break the Argentine military's pact of silence, stunning his compatriots and the world by openly confessing to his participation in the hideous practice of pushing live political dissidents out of airplanes during Argentina's Dirty War." "Available for the first time in paperback, with a new preface by Judge Gabriel R. Cavallo on the upcoming military trials and a new afterword by the author, Confessions of an Argentine Dirty Warrior (originally published as The Flight) includes the complete text of Scilingo's confession in the form of interviews given to Argentina's best-known investigative journalist, Horacio Verbitsky. An afterword by Juan Mendez, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide and former General Counsel for Human Rights Watch, places these events in their historical context."--BOOK JACKET Contents Preface to the 2005 Edition 1 Let’s Tell the Truth 2 In Praise of Torture 3 A Christian Death 4 Shadowlands 5 Just Like Reality 6 The Institutional Lie 7 Boomerang 8 Disinfection 9 A Humanist in Uniform 10 The Judgment of Mankind 11 All or None 12 Modus Operandi 13 Whiskey and Pills 14 A Subject of No Importance 15 A Surface Smoothed Down by Death 16 Breaking the Shell Epilogue Afterword Afterword to the 2005 Edition Sources and Notes Chronology Key Figures