Auguosto Pinochet

As we are preparing for our trip to Chile early in next year, it was interesting to read the article in BBC about its former dictator.

Chile's top court has ruled that former military ruler Gen Augusto Pinochet is fit to stand trial over the 1975 disappearance of political opponents.

The case that is referred to here was codenamed 'Operation Colombo' which was undertaken by the Chilean secret police DINA.

General Pinochet came to power in a coup d'état on September 11, 1973, in which the rebelling Chilean Air Force bombed the Presidential Palace while it was being stormed by Army troops. The previous President Salvador Allende was a marxist and communist with close ties to Fidel Castro. He had nationalized a lot of foreign company assets especially US Copper mines - the main reason for the regime's unpopularity in the western world. Allende is supposed to have committed suicide with a machine gun which bore a golden plate engraved " To my good friend Salvador Allende from Fidel Castro"

Chile was infact the only latin-american country to have sided with the UK during the Falkland Island confrontration.

What I find interesting is that unlike most countries Chile had a long tradition of parliamentary democracy but still a dictator could come into power through a coup.