Edit filter log

''''Emilio Fermín Mignone''' (July 23, 1922 - December 21, 1998) Argentine lawyer and founder of the Centre for Legal and Social Studies (CELS), was a "central figure of the most transcendental social movement of the last quarter of the twentieth century in Argentina, the human rights movement"<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carril |first=Mario del |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/755909082 |title=La vida de Emilio Mignone : justicia, catolicismo y derechos humanos |date=2011 |isbn=978-950-04-3325-9 |edition=1a edición |location=C.A.B.A. [Buenos Aires] |pages=9 |oclc=755909082}}</ref> that strengthened and developed in the struggle against [[1976 Argentine coup d'état|Argentina's military dictatorship]] of 1976-1983 and its aftermath.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kaufman|first1=Michael|title=Emilio F. Mignone, 76, Dies; Argentine Rights Campaigner|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/25/world/emilio-f-mignone-76-dies-argentine-rights-campaigner.html|work=New York Times|date=December 25, 1998}}</ref><ref>[http://ncronline.org/books/2015/01/book-explores-pope-francis-argentine-origins "Book explores Pope Francis' Argentine origins"]. ''National Catholic Reporter'', Arthur Liebscher, Jan. 14, 2015</ref> He died of cancer in [[Buenos Aires]] at the age of 76.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/25/world/emilio-f-mignone-76-dies-argentine-rights-campaigner.html Emilio F. Mignone, 76, Dies; Argentine Rights Campaigner]</ref> ==Early life== Emilio F. Mignone was born in [[Luján, Buenos Aires]]. He was educated as a lawyer, as the inaugural President of the [[National University of Luján]].<ref>[https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-21794798 "Argentina 'Dirty War' accusations haunt Pope Francis"]. By Vladimir Hernandez ''BBC Mundo'', 15 March 2013.</ref><ref name="Neier2003">{{cite book|author=Aryeh Neier|title=Taking Liberties: Four Decades in the Struggle for Rights|url=https://archive.org/details/takingliberties00arye|url-access=registration|year=2003|publisher=PublicAffairs|isbn=978-1-891620-82-9|pages=[https://archive.org/details/takingliberties00arye/page/178 178]–}}</ref> ==Career== Mignone spent 6 years from 1963 to 1969 as Argentina's representative to the Organization of American States (OAS), in Washington DC. He returned to Argentina and was the under-secretary of Education in the Peronist government. In 1976, Mignone was a practising lawyer in Argentina. His daughter Monica was one of many Argentinians who disappeared after being kidnapped and taken to a government facility.<ref name="Guest1990">{{cite book|author=Iain Guest|title=Behind the Disappearances: Argentina's Dirty War Against Human Rights and the United Nations|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lq_i3wpmBWUC&pg=PA34|date=1 October 1990|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|isbn=0-8122-1313-0|pages=34–}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Argentina|year = 2001|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I7LVtagDYxcC&pg=PA17|publisher=Human Rights Watch|pages=17–|id=GGKEY:3ZE9C3BECFK}}</ref> Mignone was the founder and President of CELS Argentine human rights organization (1979) along with five other people who had evidence that their children were victims of [[state terrorism]] during the last Argentine military dictatorship.<ref name="Roht-Arriaza2010">{{cite book|author=Naomi Roht-Arriaza|title=The Pinochet Effect: Transnational Justice in the Age of Human Rights|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7xQKjLLxU1gC&pg=PA101|date=24 November 2010|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|isbn=978-0-8122-0307-3|pages=101–}}</ref> The CELS compiled detailed records on thousands of cases of disappearance, kidnapping, torture, and murder committed by the Argentine military. This pivotal information proved crucial to subsequent investigations concerning the era of the "Dirty War" against leftist guerrillas and those believed to support them. These investigations revealed that approximately 13,000 to 15,000 individuals had lost their lives, often enduring torture beforehand, and an additional 10,000 had been subjected to abductions and prolonged imprisonment. Additionally, the center extended legal support to victims and their families and actively pursued legal cases against the government, aiming to uncover evidence of severe human rights violations. In a series of class-action suits famously recognized as the Perez de Smith cases, Mignone successfully persuaded the Argentine Supreme Court to acknowledge the government's obligation to acknowledge the disappearances and account for the well-being of the disappeared individuals mentioned in the lawsuits. Mignone personally oversaw the center's campaigns to raise public awareness and maintain connections with foreign governments and international human rights organizations, including the United Nations Human Rights Commission. He served as CELS president from 1979 until his death in 1998.<ref name="Sikkink2011">{{cite book|author=Kathryn Sikkink|title=The Justice Cascade: How Human Rights Prosecutions Are Changing World Politics (The Norton Series in World Politics)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EmLkNTdh-PkC&pg=PA66|date=26 September 2011|publisher=W. W. Norton|isbn=978-0-393-08328-6|pages=66–}}</ref> The Emilio Mignone International [[Human Rights]] Prize has been created in his name.<ref>[http://www.ucanews.com/news/india-refuses-entry-to-philippines-activist/71762 "India refuses entry to Philippines activist"]. ''UCA News'', Joe Torres, Manila, Philippines, August 21, 2014</ref> in 2007, by the [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Argentina)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Argentina]].<ref>[http://eisra.cancilleria.gov.ar/en/content/emilio-f-mignone-international-human-rights-prize-0 "EMILIO F. MIGNONE" INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS PRIZE]</ref> ==References== {{Reflist}} * * * * {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Mignone, Emilio F.}} [[Category:Argentine human rights activists]] [[Category:1922 births]] [[Category:1998 deaths]]'