Human Rights and
International Democratic Solidarity

Articles

Defense and promotion of democratic institutions in Argentina

12-12-2023

Maud Daverio Cox: Farewell to a heroine

She leaves a tremendous legacy of civic courage, solidarity and genuine commitment to the defense of human rights. Never will be forgotten the time she confronted Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet at the assembly of the Inter-American Press Association in Santiago, Chile, and, looking him straight to the face, called him «murderer».
By Gabriel C. Salvia
Foto: Clarín

While others looked the other way, indifferent to the suffering of others and to a context of political repression that qualified Argentina in 1977 as Not Free, like Cuba, there were people during the Argentine military dictatorship who made a difference. It is true that most people could not know what was really going on, the State terrorism, but it is hard to believe that journalists and lawyers, for example, did not know. Many did not want to see it in a morally reprehensible attitude.

One of the people who understood what was happening, committing herself to denouncing human rights violations and showing solidarity with the victims and their families, was Maud Daverio Cox.

Maud always accompanied the heroic journalistic and humanitarian work of her husband, Robert John Cox (Bob Cox), then editor of the Buenos Aires Herald, while raising and caring for their children, and also played an active role in interceding with the military about human rights abuses. She also exposed many who deliberately turned a deaf ear to the atrocities taking place in Argentina, including influential journalists.

In addition to the detention of her husband Bob, for whose release the then President of the United States Jimmy Carter interceded, Maud and her family received the threat to one of their sons, which ended up forcing their exile, being accompanied to Ezeiza Airport by the Swedish ambassador to provide them protection.

In her book "Salvados: a 45 años de la dictadura" (Voria Stefanovcky Editores), Maud narrates in great detail the experience lived during the years of lead, a fundamental reading to understand what happened during the military dictatorship and the behavior of the most affluent society.

Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of South Carolina and professor of French literature at the University of Charleston, Maud continued to follow Argentine politics with passion, and participated with her life partner in activities on the Memory of the last military dictatorship.

Maud was born on July 3, 1931 and passed away last December 1. In addition to "Salvados", she published "Sueños, misterios y fantasmas de Buenos Aires" (2006), "El exilio y el otro" (2009), "Memorias desde el puente Oberbaum" (2013) and "Testimonio del antiguo pueblo de San Martín" (2017).

She leaves a tremendous legacy of civic courage, solidarity and genuine commitment to the defense of human rights. Never will be forgotten the time she confronted Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet at the assembly of the Inter-American Press Association in Santiago, Chile, and, looking him straight to the face, called him "murderer".

She was a heroine, the kind of person who, instead of looking the other way, took a risk with her husband and made a difference. The kind of person that are badly needed in this world and whose legacy is inspiring for the defense of human rights.

Gabriel C. Salvia
Gabriel C. Salvia
General Director of CADAL
International human rights activist. Since 1992 he has served as director of Civil Society Organizations and is a founding member of CADAL. As a journalist he worked in graphics, radio and TV. Compiled several books, among them "Diplomacy and Human Rights in Cuba" (2011), "Human rights in international relations and foreign policy" (2021) and "75 years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Views from Cuba" (2023), and he is the author of "Dancing for a mirage: notes on politics, economics and diplomacy in the governments of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner" (2017). He is also the author of several reports, including " The chairs of the Council: authoritarianism and democracies in the evolution of the integration of the UN Human Rights body" and "Memory closed: The complicity of the Cuban revolution with the Argentine military dictatorship".
 
 
 

 
More by Gabriel C. Salvia
 
More about the project Defense and promotion of democratic institutions in Argentina
 
Latest videos