Allegations During the Dirty War
In 1976, during Argentina’s Dirty War, Jorge Mario Bergoglio became the subject of controversy regarding the kidnapping of two Jesuit priests, Orlando Yorio and Franz Jalics, by the Argentine Navy. Both priests were seized and tortured in captivity before being found alive several months later outside Buenos Aires, drugged and partially unclothed.
Bergoglio, then provincial superior of the Society of Jesus in Argentina, has been widely reported to have failed to protect the two priests. Some reports allege he dismissed them from the Jesuit order shortly before their abduction, thereby leaving them vulnerable. However, other accounts—including a Jesuit blog post cited in the National Catholic Reporter—claim that Bergoglio did not expel the priests but reassigned them from their ministry due to concerns about their safety while working with the poor during a period of military repression.
In 2005, Argentine human rights lawyer Myriam Bregman filed a criminal complaint against Bergoglio, alleging his involvement in the kidnapping. Although the complaint was eventually dismissed, the episode remained controversial. Investigative reporting by Argentine journalists has revealed conflicting narratives, including documents and testimonies from both clergy and laypeople.
Orlando Yorio publicly accused Bergoglio in a 1999 interview, claiming that he “did nothing” to help secure their release and “in fact just the opposite”. In contrast, Franz Jalics initially confirmed the abduction and attributed it to a former lay collaborator-turned-guerrilla who had implicated them under interrogation.[6] Jalics later issued a clarifying statement, saying: “It is wrong to assert that our capture took place at the initiative of Father Bergoglio… Orlando Yorio and I were not denounced by Father Bergoglio.”
According to Bergoglio’s authorized biographer Sergio Rubin, Bergoglio stated that he had worked discreetly behind the scenes to free the priests and that his intervention with dictator Jorge Rafael Videla may have saved their lives. Bergoglio also claimed to have sheltered numerous people from the regime on church property and to have once provided his identity documents to a fugitive who resembled him.
Former Argentine judge Alicia Oliveira corroborated aspects of Bergoglio’s account, asserting that he had helped individuals flee the dictatorship. Since Bergoglio became Pope Francis, similar testimonies have emerged from Gonzalo Mosca and José Caravias, both of whom described being aided by Bergoglio in escaping persecution.
Oliveira described Bergoglio as “anguished” and deeply critical of the junta during the Dirty War, although she noted his reluctance to speak out publicly, which he attributed to the complex dangers of the time. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Adolfo Pérez Esquivel defended Bergoglio, stating: “Perhaps he didn’t have the courage of other priests, but he never collaborated with the dictatorship… Bergoglio was no accomplice of the dictatorship.”
Graciela Fernández Meijide, a human rights activist and member of the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, similarly noted that no credible evidence tied Bergoglio to the regime: “There is no information, and Justice couldn’t prove it. I was in the APDH during all the dictatorship years, and I received hundreds of testimonies. Bergoglio was never mentioned. It was the same in the CONADEP. Nobody mentioned him as an instigator or as anything.”
Ricardo Lorenzetti, president of the Argentine Supreme Court, also stated that Bergoglio was “completely innocent” of the accusations. Historian Uki Goñi has observed that during the early stages of the military regime in 1976, its full scale of repression was not yet widely known, and even Bergoglio may not have foreseen the potential fatal consequences of the priests’ detention.
References
-
Rubin, Sergio. El jesuita. Buenos Aires: Ediciones B, 2010.
-
Bregman, Myriam. “La causa contra Bergoglio.” Página/12, 2005.
-
Verbitsky, Horacio. “El silencio.” Sudamericana, 2005.
-
Jesuit Friar Blog. National Catholic Reporter, 2005.
-
Yorio, Orlando. Interview with La Nación, 1999.
-
Jalics, Franz. “Statement Regarding the 1976 Kidnapping.” March 2013.
-
Jalics, Franz. “Clarification Statement.” March 2013.
-
BBC News. “Jesuit Priest Clears Pope Francis of Dictatorship Allegations.” March 2013.
-
Oliveira, Alicia. Interview with Clarín, March 2013.
-
Mosca, Gonzalo. Interview with La Voz del Interior, 2013.
-
Caravias, José. “Bergoglio nos salvó.” Tiempo Argentino, March 2013.
-
Esquivel, Adolfo Pérez. “Francisco no fue cómplice.” Página/12, March 2013.
-
La Vanguardia. “El Nobel Pérez Esquivel defiende a Francisco.” March 2013.
-
Meijide, Graciela Fernández. Statement in Clarín, March 2013.
-
Lorenzetti, Ricardo. Press Conference, Supreme Court of Argentina, March 2013.
-
Goñi, Uki. “Understanding the Dirty War.” The Guardian, March 2013.
Explore this subject
Continue exploring related Open Chronicle Encyclopedia entries through the categories associated with this article.
Staff Writers at Open Chronicle produce trusted journalism, strategic analysis and authoritative reference content across global affairs, geopolitics, defense, science, history, technology, business, culture and sport. Their work combines accurate reporting with historical perspective and analytical depth, helping readers understand not only what is happening, but why it matters. Beyond daily news coverage, Staff Writers contribute to the Open Chronicle Encyclopedia, investigative features, original research projects and long-form reports, building a comprehensive knowledge platform designed to inform, educate and preserve reliable information for a global audience.
