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The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, who began protesting the disappearance of their children in 1977 during Argentina's military dictatorship, concluded their last 24-hour march in Buenos Aires on Thursday.
The famous human rights group vowed to continue weekly vigils to demand information on their children, believed to be among the estimated 30,000 people abducted and "disappeared" during Argentina's 1976-1983 military dictatorship.
Some 25 members of the Mothers group, all between the ages of 74 and 93 and wearing their emblematic white head kerchiefs, marched around an obelisk at the plaza plastered with photographs of people missing during the junta rule.
Group president Hebe de Bonafini said the protests were ending because they have good relations with leftist President Nestor Kirchner, who has been pushing for the prosecution of former junta leaders and their accomplices.
"We hope that we do not have to repeat these marches, that the enemy does not return to the Government House," group member Mercedes de Merono told AFP.
The protests began in April 1977, when a group of mothers silently began marching around the plaza demanding to know the whereabouts of their children, abducted by the military government. Often they walked silently carrying framed pictures of their loved ones.
The first round-the-clock event was held in 1981. At that time 70 mothers showed up for the peaceful protest -- and were met by 300 police officers.
When democracy was restored the mothers continued protesting, as Argentina's democratic governments of the 1980s and 1990s did little to prosecute former military officials.
The mothers, joined by hundreds of sympathizers, ended their 24-hour march at 6 p.m. (2100 GMT) Thursday.
De Merono spent the whole night up, and admitted to being "a bit tired" as the event ended.
In the past the women have faced everything from aggressive police to bad weather. But the final march was held in a party atmosphere, with musicians holding live performances to encourage the women and the marchers. Some mothers danced as they took breaks.
Jose Gomez, a sympathizer who said he has joined the mothers in their overnight marches for the past 20 years, preferred the days when the marches "were more combative and less festive."
But he said he understood that the women were aging and tired easily. "In the end I always went along with Hebe, because I trust her," he said.
De Bonafini re-energized the protest early Thursday, leading a group of 30 mothers who clutched an enormous banner with the words "Wealth Distribution - Now" to the tune of the international song of the Marxist and non-Marxist socialist parties.
The aging group members recently held a vote and unanimously agreed to end the 24-hour marches, in part inspired by a political tilt left across Latin America.
"Evo (Morales) in Bolivia, Chile, Venezuela, Uruguay ... and we can go on," said de Merono, referring to leftist governments in those countries.
"We are content. The dictatorships in Latin America have ended and there is a beginning of socialism, even though it is not yet the one what we want," she said.
ls/ch/ksb
Argentina-rights
AFP 270008 GMT 01 06
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