Rights commission urges Argentina to find missing activist

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is urging Argentina to find a missing activist last seen when police evicted a group of Mapuche Indians from lands owned by Italian clothing company Benetton.

The commission’s president said Thursday that Argentina should investigate the Aug. 1 disappearance of 28-year-old Santiago Maldonado and make its findings public.

Maldonado’s family says border police detained him when he and others were blocking a road in Chubut province, in the southern region of Patagonia.

The protesters were demanding the release of a jailed Mapuche leader wanted by Chile. Authorities deny any wrongdoing.

Maldonado’s case has sparked protests in Argentina, where an estimated 30,000 people died or disappeared during the 1976-1983 military dictatorship.

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This story has been corrected to reflect that the commission president spoke Thursday.

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