The trial against former Neuquén governor Jorge Sobisch began today in the city of Neuquén. Sobisch is being accused of ordering the provincial police to not intervene during an incident in which protesting teachers were attacked in 2006 and faces charges of abuse of authority.
Upon entering the court this morning, Sobisch said he was feeling “very calm”, as “I did not give any orders and the plaintiffs cannot prove that I gave any orders against the Constitution.” He also said he has been the “victim” of aggressions in the last few years by unionists whom he compared to “football hooligans”.
The incidents for which Sobisch is being tried took place in Plaza Huincul on 30th March 2006, when a group of striking teachers cut off access to the town’s YPF oil refinery. They were then attacked by members of Sobisch’s party, the Frente Popular Neuquino (MPN), dressed as construction workers. Ex-police chiefs who were at the scene said the then-governor ordered the police not to intervene to stop the aggressors.
The incidents occurred a year before the murder of Carlos Fuentealba, a teacher who was killed by a tear gas canister during a protest near the town of Senillosa, also in Neuquén. A policeman, Darío Poblete, was found guilty of his murder and sentenced to life in prison in 2008.
The hearings will last until Friday, and 15 witnesses are expected to give testimony.
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