Journalist, educator and activist Martin Almada, winner of the Alternative Nobel Prize for the discovery of the so-called “Archives of Terror” of the dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner (1954-1989) in Paraguay, He died this Saturday at the age of 87. Relatives and friends told local media.

Born on January 30, 1937 in the town of Puerto Sastre, in the department of Alto Paraguay (northwest). In 2002 he was awarded the Alternative Nobel Prize. – awarded by the Foundation for Good Living – for “his enormous courage and persistent efforts to draw attention to torture in his country and lead Paraguay towards democracy, human rights and sustainable development.”

This activist was one of the most persecuted by the Stroessner dictatorship South America’s longest-serving prisoner, he was imprisoned from 1974 to 1977 before being released under pressure from several humanitarian organizations, including the Swiss branch of Amnesty International.

After working for UNESCO in Paris for several years and overthrowing Stroessner, he returned to his country to condemn human rights violations committed by the security forces of the dictatorship.

Almada urged several charges of crimes against humanity against Stroessner and his former employees, including one due to the death of his wife after psychological torture while he was in prison.

With the detection of “Terrorist files” Police repression was evident in the country, especially the dictatorship of Stroessner and his connection with the so-called Operation Condor, supported by Washington and allowed the persecution of opponents of the dictatorships of America’s Southern Cone between 1970 and 1980.

A file consisting of some three tons of documents declared a UNESCO World Documentary Heritage Site, was discovered in a police station in the town of Lambar (near Asuncion) on December 22, 1992, after a search operation ordered by Judge José Agustín Fernández in response to a habeas petition presented by Almada.

Was for the first time this resource was used in the country since its inclusion in 1992 in the Magna Carta of Paraguay.

In June 2023, the Paraguayan Senate declared these archives “national interest for historical memory” and recognized them “invaluable” contributions from Almada and Fernandez.

Almada’s second wife, Maria Stella Caceres, She is the current director of the Museum of Memories.

In a social media post, leftist Senator Esperanza Martinez thanked Almada for his life is “dedicated to building a more humane and just society.”

“Today we sadly have to say goodbye to the hero of our democracy,” added the former minister during the reign of former Bishop Fernando Lugo (2008-2012) and noted that Almada leaves a “fundamental legacy” for the restoration of the country’s historical memory.

For his part, the Human Rights Coordinator of Paraguay (Codehupy) recalled in his report in X not only Almada’s “monumental achievements”, “but also his humanity, his warmth and his generosity.”

“Let his memory inspire us to continue the fight for a more just and equal world, where human rights are respected and protected,” the publication added.

(EFE)