Alberto Cecilio Mechoso Méndez (November 1, 1936 – September 26, 1976) was an Uruguayan anarchist, who disappeared in Buenos Aires, Argentina during Operation Condor.[1]
Alberto Cecilio Mechoso Méndez | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | November 1, 1936 |
| Died | September 26, 1976 |
Biography
editEarly life and political activities
editMechoso was born in the department of Las Flores, later his family moved to La Teja, Montevideo where he became interested in politics. He joined the Uruguayan Anarchist Federation (FAU) and its armed wing the Popular Revolutionary Organization-33 (OPR 33).[1] He was also a union member in the Federation of Meat Industry Workers and the National Workers' Convention.[2] On August 6, 1972, Mechoso was arrested in a hotel and tortured in captivity. He escaped on November 21 and earned the nickname "grandpa" due to drastic weight loss and greying hair. He left Uruguay for Buenos Aires using a fake identity to evade the police. In Argentina, he helped found the People's Victory Party (PVP) in 1975.[1]
Disappearance
editMechoso was captured in a joint Argentine-Uruguayan operation in Buenos Aires after going out shopping in the morning with his son. He was tortured and his family threatened, while his house was raided for money funding the PVP.[1] Items in his homes were smashed with pickaxes and flower pots.[2] His family were deported back to Uruguay whilst he remained in Argentina. He was murdered, his body placed in a fuel drum with 7 other bodies, filled with concrete and thrown into a river. The drum was later found in the San Fernando Canal near the mouth of the Luján River and the bodies were buried in the San Fernando municipal cemetery.[1]
Recovery of body
editIn 1989, the bodies were exhumed by the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team and in 2012 it was determined that one of the body's was his.[1][3] His remains were quickly returned to Uruguay to his family. A funeral was held and attended by President of Uruguay José Mujica.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f "Alberto Cecilio Mechoso Méndez | Plan Condor". www.mpf.gob.ar. Retrieved 2024-09-09.
- ^ a b "Fueron identificados los restos del uruguayo Alberto Mechoso, "fundido" en cemento con Marcelo Gelman". LARED21 (in Spanish). 2012-05-24. Retrieved 2024-09-09.
- ^ "Fueron identificados los restos del uruguayo Alberto Mechoso, "fundido" en cemento con Marcelo Gelman". LARED21 (in Spanish). 2012-05-24. Retrieved 2024-09-09.
- ^ "Entregan a sus familiares los restos de Alberto Mechoso". www.laprensa.com.uy (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-09-09.