Dan Mitrione was an American police officer, FBI agent and alleged torture expert who cooperated with the police in various Latin American countries. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... The word torture is commonly used to mean the infliction of pain to break the will of the victim(s). ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ...

Career

Dan Mitrione Sr. was a police officer in Richmond, Indiana from 1945 to 1947 and joined the FBI in 1959. In 1960 he was assigned to State Department's International Cooperation Administration, going to South American countries to teach "advanced counterinsurgency techniques." There he started his unofficial career of torture expert. A.J. Langguth, a former New York Times bureau chief in Saigon, related that Mitrione was among the US advisers teaching Brazilian police how much electric shock to apply to prisoners without killing them ^[1]. A. J. Langguth also tells how older police officers were replaced "when the CIA and the U.S. police advisers had turned to harsher measures and sterner men." ^[2] He also describes that under the new head of the U.S. Public Safety program in Uruguay, Dan Mitrione, the United States "introduced a system of nationwide identification cards, like those in Brazil… [and] torture had become routine at the Montevideo [police] jefatura." ^[3] Richmond (IPA: ) is a city in east central Indiana, which borders Ohio. ... 1945 (MCMVL) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... Year 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... The United States Department of State, often referred to as the State Department, is the Cabinet-level foreign affairs agency of the United States government, equivalent to foreign ministries in other countries. ... The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ...

From 1960 to 1967 he worked with the Brazilian police, during a time in which political opponents were systematically tortured, imprisoned without trial and killed. He returned to the US in 1967 to share his experiences and expertise on "counterguerilla warfare" at the Agency for International Development, in Washington D.C.. In 1969, Mitrione moved to Uruguay, again under the AID, to oversee the Office of Public Safety. 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... The United States Agency for International Development (or USAID) is the US government organization responsible for most non-military foreign aid. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ...

In this period the Uruguayan government, lead by the conservative Colorado Party, had its hands full with a collapsing economy, labor and student strikes, and the Tupamaros, a left-wing urban guerilla group. On the other hand, Washington feared a possible victory during the elections of the Frente Amplio, a left-wing coalition, on the model of the victory of the Unidad Popular government in Chile, led by Salvador Allende, in 1970 ^[4]. The OPS had been helping the local police since 1965, providing them with weapons and training. It is assessed that torture was already practiced since the 60s, but Dan Mitrione is reportedly the man who made it routine ^[5]. He is quoted as having said once: "The precise pain, in the precise place, in the precise amount, for the desired effect." ^[6]. He also helped train foreign police agents in the United States in the context of the Cold War. In his torture teaching experiments he used homeless wanderers ^[7] The Colorado Party (Spanish: Partido Colorado) is a political party in Uruguay. ... Tupamaros, also known as the MLN (Movimiento de Liberación Nacional or National Liberation Army), was an urban guerrilla organization in Uruguay in the 1960s and 1970s. ... The Broad Front (Frente Amplio in Spanish, also known as Encuentro Progresista) is a Uruguayan political party. ... Popular Unity (Spanish: Unidad Popular or UP) was the coalition of Chilean political parties that coalesced behind the successful candidacy of Salvador Allende for the 1970 Chilean presidential election. ... Salvador Isabelino del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Allende Gossens[1] (July 26, 1908 – September 11, 1973) was President of Chile from November 1970 until his removal from power and death on September 11, 1973. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... The Cold War was the period of protracted conflict and competition between the United States and the Soviet Union and their allies from the late 1940s until the late 1980s. ...

As the use of torture grew and the tensions in Uruguay escalated, the Tupamaros kidnapped Mitrione on July 31, 1970. They proceeded to interrogate him about his past and the illegal intervention of U.S. government in Latin American affairs. Besides, they demanded the release of 150 political prisoners. The Uruguayan government, with US backing, refused, and Mitrione was later found dead in a car, with two shots in the head and no signs of any maltreatment (in fact, during the kidnapping, Mitrione had been shot in one shoulder and healed afterwards in the "Cárcel del Pueblo", "People's Prison"). Tupamaros, also known as the MLN (Movimiento de Liberación Nacional or National Liberation Army), was an urban guerrilla organization in Uruguay in the 1960s and 1970s. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ...

Personal life

Mitrione was married and he had 9 children. His funeral was largely publicised by the US media, and it was attended by, amongst others, David Eisenhower and Richard Nixon's secretary of state William Rogers. Frank Sinatra and Jerry Lewis held a benefit concert for his family in Richmond, Indiana. Though he was characterized at his death as a man whose "devoted service to the cause of peaceful progress in an orderly world will remain as an example for free men everywhere" by White House spokesperson Ron Ziegler, and as a "a great humanitarian" by his daughter Linda, evidence of his secret activities would later emerge, mostly through Cuban double agent Manuel Hevia Cosculluela. One of his sons, Dan Mitrione Jr., also joined the FBI and later got involved in a scandal involving bribes in a FBI drug investigation. Today, although recalled by few Americans, Dan Mitrione Sr. is still a controversial Cold War character. Dwight David Eisenhower II (born 1948) is the grandson of the supreme commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II and the 34th President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower. ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... There are several men named William Rogers (and similar spellings), among them: William P. Rogers, U.S. Attorney General under Dwight Eisenhower and Secretary of State under Richard Nixon. ... Francis Albert Sinatra (December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and Academy Award-winning actor who many consider to be one of the finest male popular song vocalists of all time. ... Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch on March 16, 1926), is an American comedian, actor, film producer, writer and director known for his slapstick humor and his charity fund-raising telethons for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. ... A benefit concert is a concert featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate humanitarian crisis. ... Richmond (IPA: ) is a city in east central Indiana, which borders Ohio. ... North façade of the White House, seen from Pennsylvania Avenue. ... Richard Nixons White House Press Secretary Ron Ziegler. ... A double agent pretends to spy on a target organization on behalf of a controlling organization, but in fact is loyal to the target organization. ... The Cold War was the period of protracted conflict and competition between the United States and the Soviet Union and their allies from the late 1940s until the late 1980s. ...

References

1. ^ A.J. Langguth, Hidden Terrors, Pantheon Books, 1978.
2. ^ Langutth, p. 286
3. ^ NIXON: "BRAZIL HELPED RIG THE URUGUAYAN ELECTIONS," 1971, National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 71, June 20, 2002
4. ^ documents presented by the National Security Archive NGO.
5. ^ (Langguth, Hidden Terrors, pp. 285-7; New York Times, 15 August 1970)
6. ^ (in Manuel Hevia Cosculluela, Pasaporte 11333: Ocho Años con la CIA. Havana, 1978, p. 286) See also Dan Mitrione, un maestro de la tortura, Clarín, September 2, 2001 (Spanish)
7. ^ Dan Mitrione, un maestro de la tortura, Clarín, September 2, 2001 (Spanish)

Pantheon Books was an American publishing company that was acquired by Random House in 1961. ... The National Security Archive is an independent organization located within the George Washington University. ... The National Security Archive is an independent organization located within the George Washington University. ... Clarín is a major newspaper in Argentina, founded by Roberto Noble on August 28, 1945. ... Clarín is a major newspaper in Argentina, founded by Roberto Noble on August 28, 1945. ...

See also

• History of Uruguay
• Brazil under the military regime
• Tupamaros
• Raúl Sendic

This is the History of Uruguay. ... The military maintained power in Brazil from 1964 until March 1985 because of political struggles within the regime and Brazilian elite. ... Tupamaros, also known as the MLN (Movimiento de Liberación Nacional or National Liberation Army), was an urban guerrilla organization in Uruguay in the 1960s and 1970s. ... Raul Sendic Antonaccio (1926-1989) was a prominent Uruguayan Marxist and founder of the Tupamaros, an urban guerilla movement that was active in 1960s and 1970s. ...

Bibliography and movie

• William Blum, Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions since World War II (ISBN 1-56751-252-6) (see chapter 33 on Uruguay, on-line here)
• The 1973 movie State of Siege by Costa-Gavras is based on this story, with Mitrione being played by Yves Montand, though with a different name.

William Blum (born 1933) is an American author, and critic of United States foreign policy. ... Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions since World War II is a history book on covert CIA operations and U.S. military interventions during the second half of the 20th century, written by former State Department employee William Blum. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... Constantinos Gavras (born February 12, 1933, Loutra-Iraias, Greece), better known as Costa-Gavras, is a Greek-French filmmaker best known for films with overt political themes. ... Yves Montand Yves Montand (October 13, 1921 – November 9, 1991) was a French/Italian actor, born Ivo Livi in Monsummano Alto, Italy. ...

External links

• Killing Hope, a book by William Blum on US foreign interventions, including in Uruguay
• River of Painted Birds
• Hidden Terrors by A.J. Langguth, Pantheon Books, 1978
• National Archives - National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 71 (National Security Archive)
• Documents on American Participation on the 1964 Brazilian Coup D'etat, National Security Archive
• On Dan Mitrione Jr. - Article on New Times, many references and sources to Mitrione Sr. activities in Latin America.
• Finding Gary, Part 2, New Times, August 11, 2005
• Torture's Teachers
• Article on Clarin journal (in Spanish)