Juan Maino
Encyclopedia
Juan Bosco Maino Canales (died 1976?) was a photographer, political activist, and opponent of Augusto Pinochet
's regime in Chile
. He was a leader in MAPU
(Movimiento de Acción Popular Unitaria or United Popular Action Movement). He was detained on May 26, 1976 by DINA agents and disappeared
.
Party (Movimiento de Acción Popular Unitaria), who was working on his Mechanical Engineering thesis together with his classmate Antonio Elizondo Ormachea.
Two days before his arrest, on May 24, 1976, around 3 p.m., Andrés Rekas Urra, brother of Elizabeth Rekas Urra who in turn was the wife of Elizondo, was arrested by DINA agents. He was driven to a clandestine detention and torture facility known as Villa Grimaldi
. There he was interrogated about the "activities" of his sister and brother-in-law as well as Juan Maino's. He was forced to recognize and identify his sister in a clandestine stake out and on May 26 he was able to hear his sister screaming at Villa Grimaldi.
Juan Maino was arrested by DINA agents on the night of May 26, 1976, at the Elizondo apartment, in Ñuñoa
, Santiago, together with Elizabeth Rekas Urra. Elizabeth Rekas was pregnant at the time and her husband Antonio Elizondo had been detained earlier that same day around 6:30 p.m. at the intersection of Alameda Avenue and Lord Cochrane street (Santiago's downtown). Both are also still listed as disappeared
According to witnesses, Maino and Rekas were detained by at least three agents in one car, who remained at Elizondo's house past 2.00 a.m. Days after his disappearance, Maino's mother presented a Habeas Corpus on the 8th Criminal Tribunal of Santiago. The court refused to investigate the case (in the Chilean criminal system of the time, the work of investigating, prosecuting and judging were concentrated into only one person, the Criminal Judge - see judge Juan Guzmán
's autobiography, released in 2005).
Andrés Rekas Urra was released that same day, and since that date, any trace of Antonio Elizondo, Elizabeth Rekas and Juan Maino has been lost.
, the former leader of Colonia Dignidad
, was charged with involvement in his "disappearance" after two cars owned by Maino were found inside the German enclave in Chile.
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
's regime in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. He was a leader in MAPU
Mapu
Mapu may refer to:*The Popular Unitary Action Movement or MAPU , a small leftist political party in Chile*The Horse stance, a martial arts position, is known as Mapu in the Chinese language...
(Movimiento de Acción Popular Unitaria or United Popular Action Movement). He was detained on May 26, 1976 by DINA agents and disappeared
Forced disappearance
In international human rights law, a forced disappearance occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the...
.
Arrest
Juan Maino was an engineering graduate from Universidad Técnica del Estado (State Technical University) and a militant and dirigent of the MAPUMapu
Mapu may refer to:*The Popular Unitary Action Movement or MAPU , a small leftist political party in Chile*The Horse stance, a martial arts position, is known as Mapu in the Chinese language...
Party (Movimiento de Acción Popular Unitaria), who was working on his Mechanical Engineering thesis together with his classmate Antonio Elizondo Ormachea.
Two days before his arrest, on May 24, 1976, around 3 p.m., Andrés Rekas Urra, brother of Elizabeth Rekas Urra who in turn was the wife of Elizondo, was arrested by DINA agents. He was driven to a clandestine detention and torture facility known as Villa Grimaldi
Villa Grimaldi
Villa Grimaldi was a complex of buildings used for the interrogation and torture of political prisoners by DINA, the Chilean secret police, during the government of Augusto Pinochet. The complex was located in Peñalolén, in the outskirts of Santiago, and was in operation from mid-1974 to mid-1978...
. There he was interrogated about the "activities" of his sister and brother-in-law as well as Juan Maino's. He was forced to recognize and identify his sister in a clandestine stake out and on May 26 he was able to hear his sister screaming at Villa Grimaldi.
Juan Maino was arrested by DINA agents on the night of May 26, 1976, at the Elizondo apartment, in Ñuñoa
Ñuñoa
Ñuñoa is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. Its inhabitants are primarily a middle and upper-middle class....
, Santiago, together with Elizabeth Rekas Urra. Elizabeth Rekas was pregnant at the time and her husband Antonio Elizondo had been detained earlier that same day around 6:30 p.m. at the intersection of Alameda Avenue and Lord Cochrane street (Santiago's downtown). Both are also still listed as disappeared
According to witnesses, Maino and Rekas were detained by at least three agents in one car, who remained at Elizondo's house past 2.00 a.m. Days after his disappearance, Maino's mother presented a Habeas Corpus on the 8th Criminal Tribunal of Santiago. The court refused to investigate the case (in the Chilean criminal system of the time, the work of investigating, prosecuting and judging were concentrated into only one person, the Criminal Judge - see judge Juan Guzmán
Juan Guzmán Tapia
Juan Salvador Guzmán Tapia is a retired Chilean judge who gained international recognition for being the first judge to prosecute former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet on human rights charges, after Pinochet's return to Chile following more than a year of house arrest in London, in...
's autobiography, released in 2005).
Andrés Rekas Urra was released that same day, and since that date, any trace of Antonio Elizondo, Elizabeth Rekas and Juan Maino has been lost.
Present investigation
In 2005, Paul SchäferPaul Schäfer
Paul Schäfer Schneider was the founder and former leader of a sect and agricultural commune of German immigrants called Colonia Dignidad —later renamed Villa Baviera—located in the south of Chile, about 340 km south of Santiago...
, the former leader of Colonia Dignidad
Colonia Dignidad
Villa Baviera , formerly known as Colonia Dignidad is a hamlet in Parral Commune, Linares Province, Maule Region, Chile. Located in an isolated area of central Chile, it lies 35 km southeast of the city of Parral, on the north bank of the Perquilauquén River. It was founded by a group of German...
, was charged with involvement in his "disappearance" after two cars owned by Maino were found inside the German enclave in Chile.
External links
- Truth Commissions Digital Collection: Reports: Chile PART THREE, Chapter Two (A.2.c) 1974 through August 1977