Argentina's Ledesma corporate responsibility case stalls after 50 years

The criminal investigation into the Argentine agribusiness firm Ledesma for alleged participation in the 1976‑83 state terrorism remains without an oral trial, half a century after the infamous "Night of the Power Outage" in Jujuy. Lawyer Malka Manestar, representing the human‑rights association ANDHES and teaching at the National University of Jujuy, says the case highlights how powerful economic actors were integral to the repressive project of the military dictatorship and continue to wield influence over state institutions.

Manestar stresses that the dictatorship pursued not only political suppression but also a neoliberal economic restructuring that involved large firms like Ledesma. The pending trial is seen as a crucial step for Argentina's ongoing process of memory, truth and justice, aiming to hold corporations accountable for their role in past human‑rights violations.