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Case Study: THE PINOCHET CASE
- Thousands of people were imprisoned, tortured, murdered or disappeared
in Chile during the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
- Since his arrest in Britain two years ago, human rights lawyers
in several countries, including Chile, have been trying to bring
the former dictator to trial.
Analysis
Pinochet came to power in 1973 after toppling Salvador Allende's
socialist government in a military coup. During his 17-year rule,
thousands of people were imprisoned, tortured, murdered or disappeared
at the hands of the regime.
While in power Pinochet issued an amnesty decree
and instituted a new constitution, which ensured that after stepping
down he would remain Army Commander until 1998 and a Senator for
life, a status that gave him immunity from prosecution.
In the same year Pinochet was arrested in London
and held under house arrest for 17 months while Spain sought his
extradition for crimes against its citizens. In March 2000 the British
courts ruled that the 84-year-old should not be extradited because
he was not medically fit to stand trial and he returned to Chile.
Pinochet's supporters say that trying him would
endanger the transition to democracy both in Chile and elsewhere.
Dictators are unlikely to give up power voluntarily, the argument
goes, unless they can guarantee an amnesty for themselves and their
associates.
Others argue that democracy is impossible unless
the perpetrators of human rights abuses are brought to justice.
In August 2000, the Supreme Court lifted Pinochet's
immunity from prosecution. In November, he was arrested for his
alleged involvement in more than 70 abductions and murders carried
out by a military squad known as the "Caravan of Death" in 1973,
but this detention order was quickly overturned on appeal.
There are several legal battles still to be fought
and some doubt that the ageing general will outlive attempts to
bring him to trial. The Chilean armed forces have made it clear
they believe that the indictment of Pinochet would threaten the
country's stability.
Human Rights activists argue that Pinochet's arrest
in Britain has helped ferment a new climate whereby no one is considered
above international law, even when national laws protect them from
prosecution.
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