Uruguay's President Tabare Vazquez has signed a document repealing the so-called "secret of state" measure that granted military officials the right to withhold information, local media reported Tuesday.
A dozen police and military officers charged with human rights abuses during Uruguay's 1973-1985 dictatorship had resorted to the immunity measures under the "secret of state" mechanism, which allowed them to withhold information to superior officers and courts during cases in 2006 and in 2007.
Human rights organizations have long called for the repeal and have been demanding that soldiers should reveal how nearly 200 opposition figures disappeared during the dictatorship.
The document signed Monday also says that soldiers should not carry out orders that are "manifestly illegal," including torturing captives. Should they do so, they will be held equally responsible.
In the 1980s, Uruguay took part in Plan Condor, in which South American nations with military governments kidnapped and then swapped opposition figures who were often tortured and killed thousands of kilometers away from their home nations.
Vazquez, a Socialist who took power in March 2005, has pursued a policy of seeking the remains of those killed during the plan since his first days in office.
The new policy aims to heal wounds from the dictatorship era, according to the president.
Source: Xinhua
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