Mario Amadeo
Encyclopedia
Mario Amadeo was an Argentine
conservative
nationalist
politician, diplomat and writer who served as a minister in the government of Eduardo Lonardi
. He belonged to the highly influential right-wing tendency prominent in Argentine politics either side of the Second World War.
tendency and took his inspiration from such Catholic
conservative
writers as Léon Bloy
, Charles Péguy
, Jacques Maritain
, G. K. Chesterton
, Hilaire Belloc
, Giovanni Papini
and Ramiro de Maeztu
. As such he belonged to the group of rightist authors and activists that included Carlos Ibarguren
, Manuel Gálvez
, Juan Carulla
, Ernesto Palacio
, Máximo Etchecopar
and Rodolfo
and Julio Irazusta. He was also the President of Ateneo de la República, an elitst semi-secret club active in the 1940s and accused of fascism
by its opponents, which included a number of cabinet ministers amongst its members.
During the Second World War Amadeo became associated with a strand within Argentine politics that came out in favour of the Axis Powers
. As a consequence the United States Department of State
's so-called 'Blue Book on Argentina' listed Amadeo as being 'a trusted collaborator' of the SD
'. Amadeo was close to Juan Carlos Goyeneche, a frequent visitor to Nazi Germany
during World War II
, and it was Amadeo who ensured communication between Goyeneche and Foreign Minister Enrique Ruiz Guiñazú
. In his later career as an ambassador to the United Nations
he would demonstrate further Nazi
sympathies when he attacked Israel
for kidnapping Adolf Eichmann
.
and argued that the Peronism
he came to serve was also part of the same tradition.
Amadeo initially remained loyal to Perón, and indeed saved his life when, following the latter's overthrow on September 19, 1955, the deposed leader slipped on the launch that was taking him to Paraguay
and would have drowned had Amadeo not rescued him. Despite this Amadeo would later come to criticise Perón for using the workers as a basis for his regime, rather than following the old nationalist blueprint of hierarchy
which he and his contemporaries endorsed. In response, author Ernesto Sabato
published an open letter
to Amadeo, The Other Face of Peronism, in which, without denying his own opposition to the populist leader, Sabato appealed for less hostility towards Perón's largely working class
supporters.
Following the coup against Perón
, on September 25, Amadeo was appointed Foreign Minister for President Eduardo Lonardi
; his spell in the post ended, however, when General Lonardi was replaced by General Pedro Aramburu on November 13.
For the 1957
and 1958 elections
Amadeo led his own party, the Unión Federal Democrática Crisitiana although the group failed to attract any support. He was also a founder member of the Argentine chapter of the Tradición, Familia y Propiedad movement initially founded in Brazil
in 1960 and now represented by the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property
.
, serving in a number of capacities such as being the inaugural vice-chairman of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space
. In May 1959 he also served as President
of the Security Council
. For a long time he served as the head of Argentina's delegation to the institution but he frequently proved a controversial choice.
Amadeo was involved in the disappearances during the Dirty War
and was personally responsible for law 22068 which allowed the government to declare anyone disappeared for 90 days as legally dead. At the same time however Amadeo was also a member of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities attached to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
which was investigating the disappearances. As a member of this group in 1979 he accepted that Argentine prisons were poor but argued that political disappearances had already ended and even argued that similar disappearances were a regular feature of life in New York
.
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
nationalist
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
politician, diplomat and writer who served as a minister in the government of Eduardo Lonardi
Eduardo Lonardi
Eduardo A. Lonardi Doucet served as de facto president of Argentina from September 23, 1955 until November 13, 1955.-Biography:He was born on September 15, 1896....
. He belonged to the highly influential right-wing tendency prominent in Argentine politics either side of the Second World War.
Rise to prominence
During the 1930s the youthful Amadeo was closely associated with the anti-liberalismLiberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
tendency and took his inspiration from such Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
writers as Léon Bloy
Léon Bloy
Léon Bloy , was a French novelist, essayist, pamphleteer and poet.-Biography:Bloy was born in Notre-Dame-de-Sanilhac, in the arondissement of Périgueux, Dordogne. He was the second of six sons of Voltairean freethinker and stern disciplinarian Jean Baptiste Bloy and his wife Anne-Marie Carreau,...
, Charles Péguy
Charles Péguy
Charles Péguy was a noted French poet, essayist, and editor. His two main philosophies were socialism and nationalism, but by 1908 at the latest, after years of uneasy agnosticism, he had become a devout but non-practicing Roman Catholic.From that time, Catholicism strongly influenced his...
, Jacques Maritain
Jacques Maritain
Jacques Maritain was a French Catholic philosopher. Raised as a Protestant, he converted to Catholicism in 1906. An author of more than 60 books, he helped to revive St. Thomas Aquinas for modern times and is a prominent drafter of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights...
, G. K. Chesterton
G. K. Chesterton
Gilbert Keith Chesterton, KC*SG was an English writer. His prolific and diverse output included philosophy, ontology, poetry, plays, journalism, public lectures and debates, literary and art criticism, biography, Christian apologetics, and fiction, including fantasy and detective fiction....
, Hilaire Belloc
Hilaire Belloc
Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc was an Anglo-French writer and historian who became a naturalised British subject in 1902. He was one of the most prolific writers in England during the early twentieth century. He was known as a writer, orator, poet, satirist, man of letters and political activist...
, Giovanni Papini
Giovanni Papini
Giovanni Papini was an Italian journalist, essayist, literary critic, poet, and novelist.-Early life:...
and Ramiro de Maeztu
Ramiro de Maeztu
Ramiro de Maeztu y Whitney was a Spanish political theorist, journalist, literary critic, occasional diplomat and member of the Generation of '98....
. As such he belonged to the group of rightist authors and activists that included Carlos Ibarguren
Carlos Ibarguren
Carlos Ibarguren Uriburu was an Argentine academic, historian and politician. As a writer he was noted as one of the foremost academics of the history of Argentina as well as a leading expert on constitutional law...
, Manuel Gálvez
Manuel Gálvez
Manuel Gálvez was an Argentine novelist, poet, essayist, historian and biographer....
, Juan Carulla
Juan Carulla
Juan Emiliano Carulla was an Argentine physician and nationalist politician.In his early years Carulla was a supporter of anarchism but this was to change after a trip to Europe during the First World War...
, Ernesto Palacio
Ernesto Palacio (writer)
Ernesto Palacio was an Argentine historian and part of a generation of right-wing nationalist intellectuals active from the 1920s.-Early years:...
, Máximo Etchecopar
Máximo Etchecopar
Máximo Etchecopar was an Argentine diplomat, writer and early adherent of the nationalist strain in the country's political and intellectual elite.-Political career:...
and Rodolfo
Rodolfo Irazusta
Rodolfo Irazusta was an Argentine writer and politician who was one of the leading lights of the nationalist movement of the 1920s and 1930s. He collaborated closely with his younger brother Julio Irazusta throughout his career....
and Julio Irazusta. He was also the President of Ateneo de la República, an elitst semi-secret club active in the 1940s and accused of fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
by its opponents, which included a number of cabinet ministers amongst its members.
During the Second World War Amadeo became associated with a strand within Argentine politics that came out in favour of the Axis Powers
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
. As a consequence the United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
's so-called 'Blue Book on Argentina' listed Amadeo as being 'a trusted collaborator' of the SD
Sicherheitsdienst
Sicherheitsdienst , full title Sicherheitsdienst des Reichsführers-SS, or SD, was the intelligence agency of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. The organization was the first Nazi Party intelligence organization to be established and was often considered a "sister organization" with the...
'. Amadeo was close to Juan Carlos Goyeneche, a frequent visitor to Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and it was Amadeo who ensured communication between Goyeneche and Foreign Minister Enrique Ruiz Guiñazú
Enrique Ruiz Guiñazú
Enrique Ruiz Guiñazú was an Argentinean politician who is best remembered for his spell as Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship in the 1940s.-Rise to prominence:...
. In his later career as an ambassador to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
he would demonstrate further Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
sympathies when he attacked Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
for kidnapping Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Otto Eichmann was a German Nazi and SS-Obersturmbannführer and one of the major organizers of the Holocaust...
.
Peronism
Within General Lonardi's cabinet, he was part of a Catholic nationalist strain that recalled the earlier ideas of the likes Carulla and the Irazustas and also included Labour Minister Luis Cerruti Costa and the President's brother in law Clemente Villada Achaval. Amadeo sought to place himself within the conservative traditions of Juan Manuel de RosasJuan Manuel de Rosas
Juan Manuel de Rosas , was an argentine militar and politician, who was elected governor of the province of Buenos Aires in 1829 to 1835, and then of the Argentine Confederation from 1835 until 1852...
and argued that the Peronism
Peronism
Peronism , or Justicialism , is an Argentine political movement based on the programmes associated with former President Juan Perón and his second wife, Eva Perón...
he came to serve was also part of the same tradition.
Amadeo initially remained loyal to Perón, and indeed saved his life when, following the latter's overthrow on September 19, 1955, the deposed leader slipped on the launch that was taking him to Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
and would have drowned had Amadeo not rescued him. Despite this Amadeo would later come to criticise Perón for using the workers as a basis for his regime, rather than following the old nationalist blueprint of hierarchy
Hierarchy
A hierarchy is an arrangement of items in which the items are represented as being "above," "below," or "at the same level as" one another...
which he and his contemporaries endorsed. In response, author Ernesto Sabato
Ernesto Sabato
Ernesto Sabato , was an Argentine writer, painter and physicist. According to the BBC he "won some of the most prestigious prizes in Hispanic literature" and "became very influential in the literary world throughout Latin America"...
published an open letter
Open letter
An open letter is a letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally....
to Amadeo, The Other Face of Peronism, in which, without denying his own opposition to the populist leader, Sabato appealed for less hostility towards Perón's largely working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
supporters.
Following the coup against Perón
Revolución Libertadora
The Revolución Libertadora was a military uprising that ended the second presidential term of Juan Perón in Argentina, on September 16, 1955.-History:...
, on September 25, Amadeo was appointed Foreign Minister for President Eduardo Lonardi
Eduardo Lonardi
Eduardo A. Lonardi Doucet served as de facto president of Argentina from September 23, 1955 until November 13, 1955.-Biography:He was born on September 15, 1896....
; his spell in the post ended, however, when General Lonardi was replaced by General Pedro Aramburu on November 13.
For the 1957
Argentine Constitutional Assembly election, 1957
The Argentine Constitutional Assembly election of 1957 was held on 28 July. Voters chose delegates to the assembly, and with a turnout of 90.1%, it produced the following results:-Constitutional assembly:-Background:...
and 1958 elections
Argentine general election, 1958
The Argentine general election of 1958 was held on 23 February. Voters chose both the President and their legislators and with a turnout of 90.9% , it produced the following results:-President:aAbstentions....
Amadeo led his own party, the Unión Federal Democrática Crisitiana although the group failed to attract any support. He was also a founder member of the Argentine chapter of the Tradición, Familia y Propiedad movement initially founded in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
in 1960 and now represented by the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property
American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property
The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property is a civic organization of traditional Roman Catholic inspiration...
.
United Nations
Following his failure to win support as a political leader in his own right Amadeo pursued a long career with the United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, serving in a number of capacities such as being the inaugural vice-chairman of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space
United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space
The United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space was established in 1958 as an ad hoc committee...
. In May 1959 he also served as President
President of the United Nations Security Council
The President of the United Nations Security Council is the presiding officer of that body. The president is the head of the delegation from the Security Council member state that holds the rotating presidency.-Selection:...
of the Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
. For a long time he served as the head of Argentina's delegation to the institution but he frequently proved a controversial choice.
Amadeo was involved in the disappearances during the Dirty War
Dirty War
The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...
and was personally responsible for law 22068 which allowed the government to declare anyone disappeared for 90 days as legally dead. At the same time however Amadeo was also a member of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities attached to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
United Nations Commission on Human Rights
The United Nations Commission on Human Rights was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006...
which was investigating the disappearances. As a member of this group in 1979 he accepted that Argentine prisons were poor but argued that political disappearances had already ended and even argued that similar disappearances were a regular feature of life in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.