Complicity

We went to a great tango show in Buenos Aires tonight. We have been avoiding the touristy servings but were persuaded to go along to this by our language exchange partner not only because of the venue (it was in the Palace of Culture) but also because we figured it would not be tourist fare. We were right. This was not a dance show but a ninety minute concert, passionately delivered and professionally executed.

However, as the evening progressed and my mind wandered a little (I can`t sit still easily for an hour and a half), I got to thinking about all the grey-haired Argentines we were sharing this with. It was no working-class affair. The audience were middle-class to well-off and living in the nation`s capital.

We watched "The official story" last week. It may not have been the best acted film but it was powerful nevertheless. I recommend it if you have the chance: it dealt with the dirty war (see my first May entry) and the search for truth. One powerful scene involved a family argument. The aging father, on the verge of tears, declared to his middle-aged son: "Under this government only sons-of-bitches prosper, and you have succeeded more than anyone".

Walking around this city, you see the memorials for the disappeared. Thousands died under successive military governments between 1976-1983 but especially under Videla in the early years. Children were stolen and the most powerful symbol of resistance was the "Plaza de Mayo mothers", those who had lost their children to death squads.

The "respectable" prospered. The activists were tortured and murdered. Tonight I sat in a "palace" with grey-haired middle-class porteños, and I couldn`t help but wonder about their stories.