Romy Vargasmother of the conscript who died after a military training march in Putre, Franco Vargasmaintains that the report of the Legal Medical Service (SML) who ruled out the intervention of third parties in her death is not true, since she states that the body showed various injuries at the time she went to recognize it.
The woman said that she had to be removed from the SML room due to her emotional reaction, and pointed out that the statements issued by the Army changed the versions of the event as the days went by.
“They took me out; The one who stayed there was my dad, looking closely, and he was able to see more details and yes., “He said he had bruises.”says Romy Vargas.
“I found out that now the SML delivered a statement that there is no participation of third parties, but I don’t know if it will be the same paper that they gave me that day; I don’t know, because if it is a new one, it didn’t reach me.” , he explained, noting that his goal now is to meet with the President of Gabriel Boric.
It also requests that the Commander in Chief of the Army, Javier Iturriagaremove from the military ranks those who, according to her, are responsible for the death of her son and the alleged cover-up of its causes.
“I say it clearly: when I left the Legal Medical Service, the military entered the Legal Medical Service at that moment, when they began to do the autopsy, so I demand a second autopsy, without intervention from the Prosecutor’s Office Military. I only accepted my son this Wednesday, it hasn’t even been a week, but I need to clarify the truth“he emphasized.
SOLDIERS MAINTAIN VERSION CONTRARY TO THE ARMY
Several conscripts from the same regiment to which the deceased soldier belonged, the Motorized Brigade No. 24 “Huamachuco”have managed to get out of sick leave due to the insistence and management of their families.
They maintain their story that They were forced to march without shelter, that they received mistreatment and that there are poor conditions within the regiment.such as bed bugs in the mattresses and lack of implements.
“I experienced an attack from a lieutenant: we were forced to take off our positions for the extreme cold, We were forced to march with only t-shirts and shirts and our instructors didn’t set the example either, because they did wear shelter,” accuses the now ex-conscript Cristóbal Sanhuezawho accuses that was kicked in the head.
“As my own experience of that march, I had never felt so cold in my life, I really felt like I was going to lose my fingers.; I cried because of the cold and I opposed my instructors and I was not caught, and many did the same. And I want to make it clear, that about us marching with coats, the photos they are showing, I don’t know what instruction they are from, but they are not from that day of march,” said the former soldier, who insists that they received “aporreos” by the instructors.
NOT ALL AFFECTED CONSCRIPTS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO REMOVE
However, not everyone has had the same luck as Cristóbal to be able to retire from military service, since there are some soldiers who, despite the claims of their families, they have not been able to leave.
Heidy Henriquezmother of one of them, accuses that she is being pressured to have her son sign a document stating that the conscripts were never ill-treated and, if not, the drop will not occur.
“That’s all I wanted to say. He is very scared, now he doesn’t want anything, all he wants is to get out of here and go home. And when the Army called, he became more scared. He got more scared because the Army tells me that he still belongs to the Army and yesterday last night, when I took him out, I signed the last paper, my son signed everything,” Henríquez explained.
“The only paper that he did not sign was the statement where he says that they did not cause him any psychological harm or anything like that.”. He did not want to sign that paper, and the Army is not going to discharge him until they see him there, they do tests and the psychiatric (staff) discharges him. And I gave up all that. I I no longer want anything with the Army“, he stated.
PARLIAMENTARIES ASK TO CLARIFY THE SITUATION
From Congress, the deputy Ruben Oyarzo He requested a special session to provide more background information on this fact, like his counterpart from Renovación Nacional, Diego Schalperwho officiated with the Minister of Defense, Maya Fernandezand to the commander in chief of the Army, Javier Iturriaga.
Furthermore, the senator Gaston Saavedra (PS) He warned that, in the Defense and Human Rights Commission of the Upper House this Tuesday, he will ask Minister Fernández and the Army for explanations about the health of the soldiers.
