The Argentine human rights activist Rosa Roisinblit has died at the age of 106, her organization announced.
She was the honorary president and a founding member of the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, a group dedicated to finding children who were abducted during Argentina's military dictatorship between 1976 and 1983.
We only have words of gratitude for her dedication and the love with which she searched for the grandsons and granddaughters until the very end, the campaign group stated.
Approximately 30,000 people were killed or forcibly disappeared during Argentina's 'Dirty War', with children of detained opposition activists kidnapped and adopted out.
Rosa Roisinblit was born in 1919 in Moises Ville, a town populated by Jewish immigrants in central Argentina. She practiced as an obstetrician and later moved to Buenos Aires in 1949, marrying in 1951.
Following the military coup in March 1976, the junta sought to eliminate opposition, resulting in the abduction of tens of thousands of activists. In 1978, Rosa's pregnant daughter Patricia, her son-in-law José Pérez Rojo, and her 15-month-old granddaughter Mariana were kidnapped.
Patricia was held long enough to give birth in captivity, but she and José Pérez Rojo remain missing, while Mariana was returned to her grandmother, Rosa, who raised her.
Roisinblit took on an active role in the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, serving as treasurer for six years and then as vice-president from 1989 to 2022.
In 2000, thanks to the initiative of her granddaughter Mariana, Rosa was reunited with another grandson, Guillermo Francisco Gómez, through DNA testing. Guillermo is now a human rights lawyer continuing his grandmother's legacy.
On her enduring fight for justice, Rosa often remarked, This wound never heals... But to say I'm stopping? No, I'll never stop. Her unwavering commitment to human rights and the pursuit of truth continues to inspire many in Argentina and beyond.
