Soldiers of the Córdoba Army they suffered Burns in the middle of a initiation ritual, which took place after they completed their training as paratroopers in the capital city. In the images that illustrate this note, we can see the exact moment in which the young people, placed in line, They throw lime in their faces. The event occurred on May 17.
After the savage baptism, the victims They suffered burns to the esophagus, lungs, stomach, eyes and respiratory tract.
The case shocked the province. Everything happened while the members of the 14th Parachute Regiment of the Third Army Corps Córdoba They celebrated the progress in their training. “Have between 20 and 25 years. There were 35 people. ‘Parachutist’, they were shouting at them. And they had to respond ‘always’,” said the complainants’ lawyer. Jerónimo Argañaraz to Infobae.
“While they kept their mouths open, they were given this talcum powder that, in principle, should have been flour and ended up being lime. In contact with moisture from the eyes, mucus from the nose and so on, lime is activated and this produces extreme burning that can cause very serious consequences,” the lawyer described.
Furthermore, he pointed out that this is not about “injuries” but rather “suffering.” “Many tell me: ‘Before I could stand running 25 kilometers and today, at kilometer 5, I can’t go any further. Before I had no problem, no condition and now I don’t give any more‘”, he revealed about the consequences that the burns caused on the health of the young people.
According to Argañaraz, at first, many of those affected refused to file a complaint for fear of reprisals and the actions of senior army officers. “The victims have not wanted to take an active participation in the beginning of the investigation so as not to be left behind,” he remarked.
“They try to cover up,” he said of those responsible for the incident. “In some way, they try to punish the participants and prevent justice from intervening,” he added.
As specified The Twelve TVafter the controversial sequence, the The Argentine Army released a statement in which it argued that it was a confusion. “As a celebration for the completion of the course, flour and cider were thrown on the 221 recently graduated paratroopers,” the text begins. “To a group of 35 troops, for a mistake of those who had to carry the material, lime was thrown at them instead of flour“, they maintained.
And they added: “Those personnel were affected and immediately evacuated to the Córdoba Military Hospital, where they received medical attention and studies were carried out on them. A small group remained under observation and was later discharged.”
“What would have been appropriate is for them to make, as public officials, the corresponding complaint to the agencies. They should have reported it and have Justice begin an investigation to determine whether or not it constituted a crime. But the way in which they acted, in short, was in a cover-up manner and in abuse of authority by carrying out coercion,” the lawyer said.
And he sentenced: “Supplying 35 people, one next to the other, with this lime powder… It is very difficult for me to believe that this was culpable. There is one of the boys who stops and starts vomiting, others coughing, complaining and nauseous, and you keep throwing flour at them? And yet, they maintain the behavior of throwing lime in each of their faces. “It seems crazy to me.”
This case refers to that of Matias Chirinothe 22-year-old Army second lieutenant who died on June 19, 2022 after a “initiation ritual”. The tragic event occurred in the military garrison of Artillery Group 3 in the Corrientes town of Paso de los Libres.
As detailed in the case, the young man lost his life after a night of abuse in which he was forced to eat and drink excessively, in a “baptism dinner” context. This ritual caused him a bronchoaspiration which led to his death.
