Argentina stops sending DNA kits to identify potential children of dictatorship victims in Europe

The Argentine government is no longer sending DNA kits to consulates to identify potential children of dictatorship victims who are currently residing in Europe. The Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo and the Argentine-European Network for the Right to Identity shared the news and their concern about the situation. The last time the administration led by President Javier Milei sent a DNA kit for a potential identification in Italy was over a year ago. Since then, the only tests that have been carried out there were as part of an ongoing trial. In a statement, the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo demanded authorities, “and especially the Argentine foreign ministry” that they “take the necessary steps to resolve this matter promptly.” Finding true origins For the past four decades, the Argentine-European Network for the Right to Identity has been operating in close relation to Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo in Spain, Italy and France to try to find those children — now adults — who still don’t know their true origins and may be scattered around Europe. Until recently, if a person had questions about their identity they could contact the network and request a test. Via a special investigations unit from the National Identity Commission (CONADI, by its Spanish initials), a public organization devoted since 1992 to searching the children stolen by the dictatorship, a DNA kit would be sent so that the person could have the extraction done at the Argentine consulate. This system had been in place for the past 20 years. In August 2024, Milei shut down CONADI’s investigation unit on the grounds that it had judicial attributions that were unconstitutional and overlapped with tasks that belonged to the public prosecutor. The justice ministry — which is in charge of Argentina’s human rights policies — told the Herald that it “has not discontinued” the program. “There have been delays,” they admitted, but “it is not suspended” and they “hope to resume the shipments [of the DNA test kits] as soon as possible.” They added that a new human rights undersecretary, Leonardo Szuchet, began working in that position two days ago, following the resignation of Joaquín Mogaburu last week. Szuchet’s designation has not been published in the Official Gazette yet. Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo said they expect Szuchet’s appointment to help “regularize this situation and lamented that “many other policies and mechanisms have been dismantled” in recent years. 🧬 Ante la información de que el Gobierno ha interrumpido el envío a los consulados de los kits de ADN para la toma de muestras a personas que dudan de su identidad, solicitamos a las autoridades que arbitren los medios para regularizar esta situación.👉https://t.co/98bexUlDwt pic.twitter.com/qP4QEd8vxf— Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo (@abuelasdifusion) April 8, 2026 Jorge Ithurburu, head of the Rome branch of the Argentine-European network, told the Herald they are no longer receiving kits from CONADI or from the consulates. “That is a decision from the Argentine state. We simply are not receiving the kits. We don’t even know who to ask about this,” the human rights activist said. Ithurburu explained that the contact systems they used to carry out the tests are gone, and the public officials in charge “were all fired.”  “The office that was in charge of this within the foreign office, the Human Rights General Directorate, no longer exists,” he said.  The foreign ministry did not reply to the Herald’s question about whether the directorate is operational at time of writing. Ithurburu emphasized that the network is independent from the Argentine state and government. He said that they are in touch with local universities and scientific institutions that can perform the tests there if a new case appears. The other option would be for the person who suspects is a child stolen by the dictatorship to travel to Argentina and be tested there. If a case shows “many indicators” that the person in question could be in fact a stolen child, the network may discuss it with Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo and pay for the trip to Buenos Aires, Ithurburu said. So far, around 10 children of dictatorship victims have been found living in foreign countries. “It is possible that there are many more out there,” Ithurburu said. “Many Argentines have a double citizenship,” he added, and could be living in Spain or Italy.“Our granddaughters and grandsons could be anywhere, as has been proven in many cases,” the Abuelas said in their statement. A total of 140 grandchildren have recovered their identities, but there are still looking for 300 more.