The Provincial Commission for Memory, in its role as a local mechanism for preventing torture, has presented itself together with the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights Regional Mar del Plata before the judiciary, requesting a thorough investigation into the actions of Mayor Guillermo Montenegro and his officials from the Security Secretariat of the Municipality of General Pueyrredón. They seek to clarify situations in which municipal agents have conducted searches and detentions of homeless individuals, which implies an unlawful restriction of their physical freedom.
In relation to this, two preventive habeas corpus petitions have been submitted, one by lawyer Julio Hikkilo and another by the head of the Public Defender's Office No. 10 of Mar del Plata, Mauro Giacomaso. The Provincial Commission for Memory states that the actions of municipal agents, backed by the mayor, constitute crimes and offenses against the duties of public officials, in addition to representing a provocation based on hatred towards vulnerable individuals in Mar del Plata, a city facing high unemployment rates.
The situation of violence exerted by municipal officials against homeless individuals or those engaged in informal work in public spaces has been recorded in videos shared on social media by Montenegro himself. The Provincial Commission for Memory has denounced this situation as a way to criminalize informal work and has requested an investigation into possible crimes, apologia of racism, and violations of human rights.
Municipal authorities appear to assume powers that belong to provincial security forces, claiming compliance with the municipal code of offenses. This situation is exacerbated by being endorsed and disseminated by the authorities, including the mayor, who has made discriminatory statements and has promoted the commission of crimes. The Provincial Commission for Memory has classified these events as a serious violation of rights and state violence in Mar del Plata.
