Speaker: Dr Eleonora Natale, Lecturer in International History, Department of War Studies

Chairs:

Dr Rebekka Friedman, Senior Lecturer in International Relations, Department of War Studies

Maria Jellinek, PhD Candidate, Department of War Studies

In this event, hosted by the International Relations and Ethics Research Theme in co-sponsorship with the War Crimes Research Group, Eleonora will discuss her research into military identities and crimes against humanity in post-authoritarian Argentina.

 

Eleonora's paper explores the subjectivity of former military officers who are imprisoned, prosecuted and convicted for crimes against humanity in Argentina. During the last dictatorship (1976-83) the Argentine military had been involved in operations of counterinsurgency and mass political violence, making thousands of victims among civilians and revolutionary guerrillas. After decades of impunity, since 2005 hundreds of former officers have faced severe sentences for their implication in the crimes.

The paper is based on ethnographic fieldwork and interviews conducted in the prison where a conspicuous number of these officers are detained.

By questioning not only the content of their testimonies, but especially the context in which these testimonies are produced, the paper shows the continuity between the experience of political violence and that of condemnation, the proximity between the home front and the prison, and the skills that allowed professional soldiers to adapt to both environments.

The paper contributes to new understandings of the relationship among subordinates and superiors within the Army, providing tools to explore aspects of military life such as comradeship, combat and defeat. Besides, the paper explores the position of the military within democratic Argentina, and the relationship with an institution that does not always comply with the expectations of its members.

 

Bio:

Eleonora Natale is Lecturer in International History at the Department of War Studies. By applying the ethnographic method, her doctoral research addressed military families of the Argentine dictatorship and their experience of war, political violence and transitional justice. She is especially interested in the everyday dimension of military life, particularly the social and family spheres.

As a Postdoctoral Fellow at Universidad Nacional De San Martín in Buenos Aires, Eleonora extended her expertise to the Argentine military involvement in the 1982 Falklands/Malvinas War, interviewing veterans of the conflict who are serving time for the crimes of the regime. Before joining King’s College London, she has taught at Durham and Keele University, where she also obtained her PhD in 2019.

This event will be held on Zoom - details will be sent to registrants.