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Dear OPE comrades,
I have just received the following, from Carlos Vilas; many
of you will know him, or his work.
It is self-explanatory, but I'm sure he would be glad to answer
questions, or send the vita (I removed it, due to length).
Many thanks,
david
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From: "Vilas" <cvilas@ciudad.com.ar>
To: <scsjj@cunyvm.cuny.edu>
Subject: Moral harassment and political persecution against Carlos M. Vilas
Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:47:51 -0300
Dear Nacla friends,
I will very much appreciate calls and e-mails as asked in the main =
message.
Thanks!
Carlos M. Vilas
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Vilas=20
To: foran@sscf.ucsb.edu=20
Sent: Sunday, February 27, 2000 4:12 PM
Subject: Moral harassment and political persecution against Carlos M. =
Vilas
Dear Professor Foran:
My delay in responding to your letter of January 12 in reference to our =
projected book is due to a most unpleasant situation the new political =
authorities of INAP (The National Institute for Public Administration of =
Argentina) have created to me and three other colleagues at INAP.
May I call for your attention, and the attention of our collegues to =
whom I sending copy of this letter, in order to state the main facts, so =
I can ask for your, and their, professional solidarity. My professional =
and moral integrity has been put under scrutiny due to an abusive =
exercise of power, so I am asking for help to my colleagues and friends =
in the international academic community.
Since early 1998 I am the National Director for Labor Training at INAP. =
A National Direction is the highest non-political position in =
Argentina's civil service, a position only accesible through a long, =
open and very competitive contest. Once reached, the position enjoys a 5 =
year stability, which implies that no political officer is able to force =
a National Director to resign. There are two ways to get rid of a =
National Director during his or her term: 1) through a whole =
organizational restructuring (which in my case is extremely difficult =
and should take some time, since Labor Training is one of the two INAP's =
missions as established in its foundational Act in 1973) or 2) through a =
process of administrative impeachment, which implies that the person =
under prosecution has committed an ilegal act, has stolen public =
resources or in some similar way is moraly or legaly unfit to remain in =
office.=20
This second strategy is under way against me and three of my colleagues. =
In my case, my alleged mismanagement consists in my refusal to fire 17 =
low-level employees (average monthly payment 420 u$s per month) in the =
short period INAP was without top (political) conduction due to changes =
at the national government.
These persons work on an extremely "flexible" conditions: some of them =
since 1992, others from 1993-94 on, are linked to INAP through a system =
of 30 days long appointments, automatically renewed every 30 days, which =
imply an absolute absence of labor stability over seven or eight years. =
Nevertheless, this is a set of persons highly qualified (after state =
reform, salaries or labor conditions no longer reflect labor =
capabilities or responsibilities) which perform tasks which could not be =
interrupted without damage to the patrimony and basic services of the =
Direction: i.e. technical services to our server, inter-institutional =
communications, issuance of training certificates, and the like. So, =
there were technical reasons and not just "demagogic ones" that led me =
to keep this persons in their positions until the day the new =
authorities were finally appointed and they were formaly confirmed.=20
This is the case the new INAP=B4s political authorities have built =
against me. Ironically, in the same administrative decision where my =
impeachment is launched, the 17 persons have been confirmed in their =
positions (for another 30 days).
In addition to put my honorability under suspicion, INAP's decission =
prevents my participation in a number of international activities I was =
already commited to. This is for example the case of a graduate seminar =
I was scheduled to teach at the University of Alicante (Spain) the last =
week of March. And, of course, the entire issue puts myself and my =
family under very heavy stress.
Despite the fact that, according to my lawyers, there is no legal basis =
to my prosecution, the process involves a situation of moral harassment =
and forces me to divert time and emotional energies. I --and my =
lawyers--consider this a typical case of political or ideological =
persecution. The goal is to steal my position forcing me to resign, and =
in the meantime they will cast doubts on my honorability and =
professionality.=20
As you may know, I have devoted my entire professional life to teaching =
and researching; the products of which make part of the assigned =
literature in a number of front-line colleges and universities in Latin =
America, Europe, the United States or Asia. Over 20 of my books and =
pamphlets are integrated to the catalogue of the Library of Congress as =
well of libraries of hundreds of academic institutions. My shift from =
full-time academic life to civil service was due to my intention to put =
in practice some of the iseas I has been developing as teacher and =
researcher.
For these reasons, I am asking for "a little help from my friends" and =
colleagues. May I ask you to call to INAP's Presidente, Mr, PATRICIO =
FURLONG, letting him know your concern for this situation, or e-mail him =
messages in the same line or in the way it will be more effective to =
drive this situation, as soon as possible, to an end. This will be =
extremely usefull, in addition of my own mobilization at both the legal.
Calls and e-mails should be made to:
Mr. Patricio Furlong
President, INAP
Phone: (5411) 4343-9001
or live a message to his secretary Ms Piqu=E9.
e-mail: pfurlong@sfp.gov.ar
For those of you who do not know me well, my cv goes as an attachment =
(unfortunately I do not have an English version!).
For all of you,
Muchas gracias
Carlos M. Vilas
cvilas@ciudad.com.ar
cvilas@sfp.gov.ar
Fax: (5411) 4345-2588
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