Leticia Neria PhD thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText ...

Although the act itself will not change social behaviour, by recognising the absurdity
and ridiculousness of it the habit is weaken. Part of the relevance of humour is that it
invites us to reflect on our society and environment, and perhaps to find a proper
manner to change it.
Speaking the Unspeakable. Torture inserted in an act of humour
As we saw in the previous chapter, during Luis Echeverría’s presidential term, there
were governmental groups responsible for torture, abuse of authority, and forced
disappearances. The issue of human rights was not openly discussed in the mass media
and was publicly denied by the authorities; however it was well known that this abuse
occurred and that the targets were considered to be enemies of the state. 185
Torture is a serious topic which affects not only those who suffered it but also
their friends and loved ones, who themselves feel human rights have been violated by
the authorities. 186 During this period, the army committed abuses in communities
around the country to get information about the social movements. There were
paramilitary groups as well as intelligence forces carrying out these acts. Torture was
known by the population but was discussed only sotto voce because of the fear of
suffering the same physical abuse.
Popular and commercial comic books kept a distance from topics related to the
army, and there was a taboo ‘que impedía representar al Ejército Mexicano como algo
más que una noble institución al servicio del bienestar público, particularmente en el
185 Examples of these abuses were described in chapter two.
186 Sergio Aguayo, La charola. Una historia de los servicios de inteligencia de México (México: Grijalbo,
Raya en el agua, 2001), p. 189.
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