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EX-DICTADOR DE CHILE, AUGUSTO PINOCHET, MUERE A LOS 91 Ha muerto Augusto Pinochet, general de las fuerzas armadas chilenas que el 11 de septiembre del 1973 encabezó un golpe de estado que acabó con la vida y el gobierno elegido del socialista Salvador Allende. Durante 17 años, mandó con mano dura, nacionalizó industrias claves y lideró una campaña de secuestro, tortura y asesinato de miles de disidentes. [Texto completo] EL PODER LEGÍTIMO NO PUEDE APOYARSE EN EL EJERCICIO DESNUDO DE LA FUERZA El gran fallo en el ejercicio desnudo del poder es la injusta e ilógica esperanza de que no puede haber reacción o de que no haya reacción inspirada en un sentido de la justicia. El hecho es que cualquier ser humano, en estado emocional e intelectual sano, tendrá que reaccionar ante cualquier violación de su ámbito social o familiar por una violencia ajena. [Texto completo]
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BESIEGED BY CRIMINAL PROSECUTIONS, LIVING IN IMPUNITY, DICTATOR DIES ON HUMAN RIGHTS DAY 11 December 2006 General Augusto Pinochet, head of the Chilean armed forces, leader of the coup of 11 September 1973, that toppled the government and ended the life of socialist president Salvador Allende, has died. For 17 years, he ruled Chile with an iron fist, nationalized key industries and directed a campaign of kidnap, torture and murder against thousands of dissidents. At the moment of his death, he was facing no less than 5 court cases on charges of torture, murder, crimes against humanity and financial abuses. In recent years, he was imprisoned for over 500 days in Britain while awaiting extradition to Spain for prosecution under Judge Balthasar Garzón, and a US Senate investigation revealed that he maintained 120 secret bank accounts worth more than $30 million, which he personally managed, using false names and complex financial maneuvers. The deceased former dictator will not receive a state funeral, and will be honored only by a military commemoration. The current president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, abducted and tortured by the Pinochet regime, like her predecessor, will not take part in any memorial. Official flags will fly at half mast only at the military commemoration. The ex-dictator's body will be cremated, according to his wishes, in order to prevent the profanation of his tomb and his mortal remains, according to various media reports. His death occured 8 days after he was admitted to hospital for a myocardial infarction, and after having received angioplasty treatment to relieve blockage in a coronary artery. Roughly 200 people were reported to have gathered outside the hospital where he died in order to express their grief and sympathy. Supporters lamented his death and proclaimed his heroism, saying his campaign against political freedom "saved" the nation from a fate similar to that of today's Cuba, isolated and suffering scarcity. His detractors and opponents celebrated in the streets, staging a demonstration in the Plaza Italia, in the center of the capital, in order to mark the tyrant's passing and show their opposition to any connection between the ex-dictator, his methods, and the state and the people of Chile. At least 3 thousand, and as many as 5 thousand people were killed and/or disappeared by his regime. An estimated 30 thousand people were systematically tortured during Pinochet's dictatorship, by the secret police, the DINA, under direct orders from the head of state. More than one million Chileans fled his rule, living in exile in other nations across Latin America, North America and Europe. He has been implicated in cases such as the assassination of Orlando Letelier in the streets of Washington, DC, and in the trafficking of weapons, even while he acted as post-dictatorial Defense Minister and Life-long Senator. Various foreign states have opened investigations into his alleged human rights and financial abuses, discovering more and more evidence of state terrorism and illegal transfer of funds to personal accounts. 14 separate times he has been stripped of official immunity, which he assigned to himself as former head of state, and more than 300 criminal complaints have been filed against him. Due to the uncertainty of the data and the lack of official information as to the ultimate fate of so many of the disappeared political prisoners, not all of these complaints have progressed to trial stage. He escaped having to face charges of murdering an American woman traveling with Letelier when he was killed and for murdering several Spanish citizens, in their respective countries, on grounds of mental incompetence due to age and ill-health, despite having the mental capacity to manage his many secret bank accounts, even with diverse false identities. American president George Bush, whose Republican party officially supported Pinochet's regime for 11 of its 17 years in power, expressed his sympathy for those who suffered under his regime, saying "our thoughts today are with the victims of his reign and their families". Spain's conservative daily ABC —linked to the Franco regime in its time— will publish writings of "leftist" journalists who ferociously opposed the military regime in Chile. All of this makes for a clear climate of rejection of the brutality through which Pinochet governed. As stated by the Americas director for Human Rights Watch, "Pinochet spent his last years fending off an ever-tightening web of prosecutions in Chile and died a profoundly discredited figure in the land he once ruled". This past 25 November, Pinochet turned 91, and made his last public appearance. His wife read an open letter from him to the public, accepting responsibility for "everything carried out" during his dictatorship. Amnesty International has expressed concern that current investigations may not be followed through, that the effort must be made to bring to light the information necessary to identify and punish the rest of those involved in the tens of thousands of violent crimes committed by his government. Lorena Pizarro, president of the Association of Relatives of Disappeared Detainees, lamented that he had not been sentenced by a court of justice during his lifetime, saying "That is an outstanding debt that history will judge, but I have no doubt that the Chilean people have judged Augusto Pinochet to be guilty of genocide." Two important quotes from the dictator himself appear to illustrate the philosophy by which he governed. On 13 October 1981, Pinochet said "Not one leaf on any tree moves in this country unless I move it, let's be clear". And in July of 1994, accused by official investigations of having been involved in the killing of at least 2,000 of his fellow citizens, he declared "Two thousand are nothing", comparing the figure to the entire population of Chile, which apparently faced the same peril if it were to stand up against his megalomaniacal reign. [s]
BACKGROUND: Cuando Augusto Pinochet lideró el golpe de estado del 11 de septiembre, 1973, que acabó con la vida del presidente Salvador Allende, instituyó un régimen militar que comenzó a detener, desaparecer y torturar a la oposición casi de inmediato. Miles de personas desaparecieron, y sólo ahora, que se le ha quitado el fuero judicial, contra la persecución por crímenes de estado, Pinochet se ve obligado a contestar las preguntas de la ciudadanía y las exigencias de la humanidad. [Texto completo] BACHELET TAKES OFFICE, CHILE'S FIRST WOMAN HEAD OF STATE Michelle Bachelet, winner of Chile's recent presidential election, has been sworn in and has taken power as the nation's first woman president. She inherits the economic legacy of fellow socialist, outgoing pres. Ricardo Lagos, who leaves surpluses in government revenue, a rapidly expanding economy and a well-functioning balance between free market policies and expansive social programs. [Full Story] |
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