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C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 000051 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/02/18 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM PHUM PINR KJUS BL
SUBJECT: DEFENSE MINISTRY, MILITARY FACE OFF OVER ARCHIVES OF 
"DISAPPEARED" 
 
DERIVED FROM: DSCG 05-1 B, D 
 
¶1. (C) Summary: After a nine-month standoff, Bolivian military 
leadership on February 17 again refused to allow a civilian 
investigator access to archives said to contain information 
regarding approximately 150 persons "disappeared" during Bolivia's 
military dictatorship period.  Minister of Defense Ruben Saavedra 
had assured the public that the investigator would have free access 
to the archives, but at the last minute Armed Forces Commander in 
Chief General Ramiro de la Fuente denied access.  This case 
highlights a long-simmering conflict between the judiciary and the 
military over the judiciary's authority to review classified 
military data and indicates the limits of the Morales 
administration's ability to penetrate a closely-knit institution. 
End summary. 
 
Military Denies Investigator Access to Archives 
 
¶2. (U) In a public showdown following nine months of posturing 
between the Ministry of Defense, the judiciary, and the Bolivian 
military, Armed Forces Commander General Ramiro de la Fuente on 
February 17 defied a court order giving investigator Milton Mendoza 
full access to military archives said to contain information on up 
to 156 persons "disappeared" during the military dictatorships of 
Generals Hugo Banzer and Luis Garcia Meza.  Mendoza led a group, 
including the government's human rights ombudsman and relatives of 
the disappeared, to the doors of the military's headquarters to 
gain access to the archives.  However, after an hour-long 
discussion with De la Fuente, he was turned away. 
 
¶3. (U) De la Fuente later told the press that the archives were 
voluminous and "needed to be put in order," but that he would 
guarantee delivery (to a judge, not Mendoza) of pertinent 
information by February 26.  He said the information would include 
the roster of the military leadership in July and August of 1980, 
when Bolivian socialist leader Marcelo Quiroga Santa Cruz and 
others were killed. 
 
¶4. (U) In reply, Mendoza and others gave a stinging critique of the 
military's actions.  Mendoza called it a "complete non-starter, an 
evasion of a judicial order, an evasion of the public 
investigator's duties" and promised to get a court order within 24 
hours showing De la Fuente was in contempt of court and compelling 
him (and the military) to abide by the original terms of the 
judicial order.  The human rights ombudsman said the action was 
"very disturbing" adding, "we know the military has a historic debt 
and much to say [about the disappeared], and there is no reason 
whatsoever for them to deny the investigator access to the 
archives." 
 
¶5. (U) De la Fuente cited Article 98 of the Armed Forces Law, which 
states that information related to the personnel of the armed 
forces is considered "secret and inviolable," to be breached only 
by formal court order.  De la Fuente appeared to use the law as a 
pretext to deliver information only to a judge, not to Mendoza, 
even though he had a court order.  Mendoza labeled the stance as 
nothing more than a delay tactic.  He also clarified that he sought 
much more than just the roster of military personnel De la Fuente 
promised to deliver.  Mendoza said: "Any information the military 
releases will likely be biased and incomplete, based on their 
latest actions." 
 
Military Defies Defense Ministry 
 
¶6. (U) In denying access, General De la Fuente directly 
contradicted Defense Minister Ruben Saavedra, who had assured the 
press and the public only moments before Mendoza's arrival that the 
military would abide by the terms of the judicial order.  "In the 
spirit of democracy," he said, "the government has the complete 
desire to make access to such information transparent."  On May 19, 
2009, then-Defense Minister Walker San Miguel issued a ministerial 
directive to the military authorizing "the commander in chief of 
the armed forces to facilitate access to families and victims of 
the military dictatorships to the archives, public registries, and 
other relevant documentation."  However, the military leadership at 
 
 
that time stated that it would not release information without a 
court order, beginning the nine-month standoff. 
 
A History of Lack of Access 
 
¶7. (SBU) The Bolivian military has a history of cooperating slowly, 
if at all, with civilian investigators.  Military leadership is 
alleged to have slowed or denied access to records related to 
February and October 2003 cases in which up to nine military 
officers -- several reportedly in the high command -- allegedly 
murdered civilians during the period of unrest that led to 
then-President Sanchez de Lozada's resignation.  Several other 
cases regarding the potential use of excessive force by Bolivian 
security forces, including the 2006 and 2007 shootings of Santiago 
Orocondo, Rimbert Guzman, Celestino Ricaldis, Herman Ruiz, and 
Oscar Flores, have stalled in part for lack of civilian access to 
military records. 
Creamer