Argentine poet, junta critic Juan Gelman dies in Mexico

[Judi Lynn]

Argentine poet, junta critic Juan Gelman dies in Mexico
MEXICO CITY - Reuters
Wednesday,January 15 2014, Your time is ‎1‎:‎26‎:‎43‎ ‎AM

Juan Gelman, the celebrated Argentine poet and fierce critic of the South American nation's "dirty war" against leftists, died Jan. 15 in Mexico City, Mexico's national art council said.

Gelman, who was born in Buenos Aires but lived in the Mexican capital for more than 20 years, died after being hospitalized, the council said in a statement.

Local media reported that he suffered from myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), a group of bone marrow and blood diseases.

The poet and political analyst's writings won some of the highest awards given to Spanish writers, including the lifetime achievement Miguel de Cervantes Prize.

Gelman fought against impunity and injustices under Argentina's military junta, which "disappeared" thousands of suspected leftists from 1976 to 1983. One of Gelman's own sons was kidnapped and murdered during the so-called "dirty war."
January/15/2014

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[Judi Lynn]

1. Argentine poet Juan Gelman dies in Mexico

Argentine poet Juan Gelman dies in Mexico
By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO and ALMUDENA CALATRAVA
— Jan. 15, 2014 1:25 PM EST

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Juan Gelman, a renowned Argentine poet and left-wing activist who was awarded the prestigious Cervantes Prize, has died in Mexico. He was 83.

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez on Wednesday announced three days of mourning in his native country, where writers paid homage to him as one of the most brilliant writers in Spanish of the 20th century.

"Gelman worked with words like they were plastic, he modeled them," writer Vicente Muleiro told reporters.

He was widely mourned as well in Mexico, where he lived for more than 20 years before his death Tuesday of undisclosed causes.

"Juan Gelman, poet of the Mexican soul, major poet, has died. My condolences to his loved ones," Mexico's National Culture and Arts Council President Rafael Tovar y de Teresa said via Twitter.

Gelman's life and work were deeply affected by personal loss suffered during Argentina's 1976-1983 military dictatorship. Government forces kidnapped and killed his son and daughter-in-law Maria, among tens of thousands of suspected leftists who were "disappeared" across Latin America in that era.

More:
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/argentine-poet-juan-gelman-dies-mexico