| abstract | - Lieutenant Colonel Domingo Monterrosa Barrios was a military commander of the Armed Forces of El Salvador during the Salvadoran Civil War. Monterrosa distinguished himself preceding his 1963 graduation from the Escuela Militar Capitán General Gerardo Barrios military academy. Monterrosa went on to take military classes from American soldiers in Panama, and later on went to Taiwan to study anti-communist insurgency tactics. Soon after his return to El Salvador, Monterrosa was assigned to become the leader of the elite and controversial Atlacatl Battalion. The Atlacatl Battalion was held responsible for the El Mozote Massacre. Monterrosa was seen by local guide (most likely someone that had never seen Monterrosa) landing from his helicopter prior to the start of the massacre, as told by reporter Mark Danner; however, Danner also reported that Monterrosa had been contacted by a U.S. military advisor (a more legitimate source) to share the outcome of the battle that had taken place in the Mozote. At that point, Monterrosa was in the Atlacatl's headquarters. According to Danner's story, after the conversation with the U.S. advisor, Monterrosa boarded a helicopter and headed to Morazan. The Washington Post reported in 2007 that Monterrosa had ordered the massacre. The Mozote was a tiny village located North of Morazan. Francisco Mena Sandoval indicated in his book "Del Ejercito Nacional al Ejercito Guerrillero" that in April 1982, he and other leaders of the ERP created a training camp for guerrillas in the Mozote. Monterrosa was known to be obsessed with destroying the pro-rebel Radio Venceremos, which "specialized in ideological propaganda, acerbic commentary, and pointed ridicule of the government". Monterrosa was a supporter of President José Napoleón Duarte's efforts to hold peace talks in 1984, and his death seriously weakened them. There are several versions on how Monterrosa was killed. One is that a malfunctioning helicopter crashed and killed its occupants including Col. Monterrosa. Another version is that envious military leaders knowing the capacity and military ability of this leader sought to end his reputation and life because they feared that this man would end the war, and so curtail their roles as saviors of El Salvador which at the time was receiving substantial economic aid that most of the time, ended in their pockets. Another version states that an FMLN booby trap was set under a fake rebel radio transmitter that Monterrosa took with him as a victory trophy, in 1984. The bomb went off while he was in flight. Remnants of his helicopter can be found in the Museum of the Revolution in Perquin, Morazan department. The museum of El Salvador's Armed Forces has designated a special section for Monterrosa. After his death in October 1984, the Salvadoran congress honored Monterrosa with the title of "Heroe de Joateca" and declared him a national hero for his service to the country.
|
