Miguel Etchecolatz, former number two with the Buenos Aires police during the "dirty war", was sentenced to life in prison on September 19. According to the FIDH, this was "a first" since the court found the defendant guilty of crimes against humanity "in direct application of international law", but especially since the court writes that the crimes were committed "in the context of a genocide that took place in Argentina between 1976 and 1983". This is the second major ruling to be handed down since the amnesty laws were lifted [IJT-28].