Pinochet stripped of immunity
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) – Former dictator Augusto Pinochet was yesterday stripped of his immunity for prosecution by the Supreme Court, reviving the hopes of his foes who want him to stand trial for atrocities under his 1973-1990 regime.
The 9-8 vote by the high court opened a new legal front against the 88 year-old general, who is also facing increased scrutiny after recent revelations he holds multimillion dollar accounts in the United States.
The decision upholds a May 28 ruling by the Santiago Appeals Court to lift Pinochet’s immunity in a human rights case involving “Operation Condor” – a crackdown on opponents by military dictatorships that ruled several South American nations in the 1970s and ’80s.
Although Pinochet has never been indicted in connection with Operation Condor, government spokesman Francisco Vidal signalled the ruling clears the way for a possible investigation.
The ruling was the latest of dozens of human rights abuses cases working their way through the courts accusing Pinochet of using his secret police and military to kidnap, torture and kill leftist opponents.
It is the second time in recent years that the Supreme Court has stripped Pinochet of his immunity. But his legal team has repeatedly argued that he is physically and mentally unfit to stand trial. Supreme Court spokesman Juan Cristobal Mera did not immediately release details of the court’s opinion.
Lawyers had presented new evidence suggesting Pinochet was fit to stand trial. The evidence included a 2003 televised interview in which he appeared lucid, holding a cane and calmly answering questions about his regime.
He told the interviewer from a Miami-based Spanish language television station he was not repentant for his rule, calling himself a “good angel” and blaming subordinates for any excesses of his iron- fisted rule.
Pinochet was president from 1973 to 1990. He took power in a bloody September 1973 coup that toppled elected leftist president Salvador Allende. Family and followers of Allende said he committed suicide in his presidential palace in flames, after it had come under bombardment.
