Democracy, Authoritarianism, and Human Rights in Southern Latin America

CONFERENCE
Start date: Thursday 19 March 2026
Time: 16:00
End date: Friday 20 March 2026
Time: 18:30
Location: NILAS Library, Universitetsvägen 10 B (house B, 5th floor)

This conference provides a forum for reflection on the challenges facing democracy, authoritarian regimes, and human rights in southern Latin America, in connection with the fiftieth anniversary of the 1976 military coup in Argentina and within a broader regional context marked by cooperation between military dictatorships under the framework of the so-called Operation Condor.

Drawing on historical, political, and cultural perspectives, the conference aims to approach the recent past not only as an object of remembrance but also as a starting point for reflection on the present: the role of memory in the public sphere, contemporary discourses on state violence, and the ways in which literature and film contribute to shaping shared interpretations.

 
16:00-16:55Welcome and Opening Remarks
16:00-16:10Greeting by H.E. Carlos Gitto, Ambassador of Uruguay to Sweden
16:10-16:55Víctor Hugo García (PhD Candidate in Economy and Government, Instituto Universitario de Investigación Ortega y Gasset), “The Swedish victims of Plan Condor: the cases of Svante Grände and Dagmar Hagelin”
Chair: Andrés Rivarola (Professor in Latin American studies and Associate Professor in Economic history)
17:00-17:30Belén Ciancio (CONICET, Argentina; PhD in Latin American Studies, researcher, essayist, film maker), “Después de la posmemoria: imágenes y variaciones críticas”
17:30-19:00Película Tus Padres Volverán (Your Parents Will Come Back) by Pablo Martínez Pessi.
Pablo Martínez Pessi (b. 1980, Uruguay) holds a degree in Audiovisual Communication and works as a film producer, director, editor, and educator. Through Gabinete Films, he has produced and directed the documentaries: From the Waters (2009), Your Parents Will Come Back (2015), The Wind Will Leave Us (2021), The Snow Between Us (2024), and Into The River (2025). His films have been screened and awarded at numerous festivals around the world, with four of them recognized as Best Uruguayan Documentary.
19:00-19:30Film discussion and closing remarks


 

16:00-17:00

Memoria, deseo y reconocimiento: narrativas de la dictadura


Sofia Iaffa Nylén (Doktorand, Departamento de Cultura y Estética, Universidad de Estocolmo), “Erotismo como desafío a la dictadura: el caso de Luisa Valenzuela”
Carla Alanis (Doctoranda, Departamento de Estudios Románicos y Clásicos, Universidad de Estocolmo) “Lo decible y lo visible: relatos del golpe y sus ecos”
Juan Carlos Cruz Suárez (Profesor titular, Departamento de Estudios Románicos y Clásicos, Universidad de Estocolmo), “Ética del reconocimiento. ¿Perdonar, doler, conmemorar?”
Moderadora: Marta Mundo (Doctoranda, Departamento de Estudios Románicos y Clásicos, Universidad de Estocolmo)

17:15-18:00

Conferencia de cierre a cargo de Adriana Minardi. “Memorias retórico discursivas del golpismo en Argentina: ecos, distancias, ethos. ¿Puede existir la reconciliación más allá del principio del deber?"
Moderator: Tamara Strugo (Profesora adjunta, Departamento de Estudios Románicos y Clásicos, Universidad de Estocolmo)

Language: Spanish & english

Contact:
carla.alanis@su.se

Democracia, autoritarismo y derechos humanos en el Cono sur

Esta conferencia propone un espacio de reflexión sobre los desafíos de la democracia, los autoritarismos y los derechos humanos en el sur de América Latina, en el marco del quincuagésimo aniversario del golpe de Estado de 1976 en Argentina y en un contexto regional marcado por la cooperación entre las dictaduras militares a través del denominado Plan Cóndor.

Desde perspectivas históricas, políticas y culturales, la conferencia busca pensar el pasado reciente no solo como objeto de conmemoración, sino también como punto de partida para una reflexión sobre el presente: el lugar de la memoria en el espacio público, los discursos contemporáneos sobre la violencia estatal y las maneras en que la literatura y el cine contribuyen a la construcción de interpretaciones compartidas.

Esta conferencia está organizada por el Instituto Nórdico de Estudios Latinoamericanos (NILAS), el Departamento de Estudios Románicos y Clásicos (ROMKLASS) de la Universidad de Estocolmo con el apoyo de la Embajada de Uruguay.


Contacto:
carla.alanis@su.se

Black and white photograph of a dilapidated room with peeling walls, sunlight streaming through a barred window, casting shadows on the worn floor. A doorway leads to a tiled corridor.

The torture room om “Olimpo” a former clandestine detention and torture center. Buenos Aires, Argentina, November 2007 Image: Coutesy of João Pina

This conference is organized by the Nordic Institute of Latin American Studies (NILAS) , the Department of Romance Studies and Classics (ROMKLASS) and the support of the Embassy of Uruguay, which has made the screening of the film Nuestros Padres Volverán possible and will present archival material that helps contextualize and commemorate this historical period.

Last updated: 2026-03-13

Source: Department of Romance Studies and Classics

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