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Politics : About that Cuban boy, Elian -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: marcos who wrote (6209)	5/24/2000 11:53:00 AM
From: Lane3	Respond to of 9127

Two items from today's Herald, one on Chile and another on Elian. ----------------- Published Wednesday, May 24, 2000, in the Miami Herald Pinochet reportedly stripped of immunity, could face trial KEVIN G. HALL Herald World Staff In a surprise move, the Chilean Court of Appeals reportedly voted Tuesday to strip former President Augusto Pinochet of his senatorial immunity from prosecution and force him to face trial on charges of human rights violations during his 17-year military rule. The 22 judges met behind closed doors Tuesday, a day before the legal hearings had been scheduled to resume. Late Tuesday afternoon, Ruben Ballesteros, the president of the court of appeals, said the court had reached a decision, but that it would not be announced immediately. A decision was quickly reported on the Web site of the conservative Chilean daily El Mercurio, however, and on the Chilean Web page El Mostrador, which reports on legal cases involving Pinochet and his former military associates. Lawyers seeking to prosecute Pinochet said they believed the reports were accurate, although they had not seen the formal decision. ``We are extremely pleased,'' said Juan Bustos, one of the lawyers. ``In Chile, crimes against humanity will not go unrecognized.'' Unless it is overturned on further appeal, the decision means Pinochet is subject to prosecution, because he loses his immunity as a senator for life, a position he created as part of the compromise that returned Chile to civilian government in 1990. The retired general, 84, is reported to be in poor health. The decision is virtually certain to be appealed to Chile's Supreme Court, considered more sympathetic to Pinochet. Lawyers for the families of victims of Chile's 17-year military rule will try to show that Pinochet knew of murders and kidnappings but did nothing to stop them or punish anyone. A spokesman for President Ricardo Lagos, who was exiled during the early days of the Pinochet era, said the government would not comment until the official decision was released. Pinochet's lawyers are expected to appeal immediately after the court issues its written ruling. A spokesman for a pro-Pinochet group lamented the reported decision and said she hoped the Supreme Court would reverse the appellate action. ``It does enormous damage to the country,'' said Monica Wehrhahn, spokeswoman of Fundacion Pinochet, an organization that promotes his military ideals. She said the decision further polarizes Chileans, who are already deeply divided over the issue of trying Pinochet. Outside the appeals court earlier this month, and audible in the judge's chambers, pro-Pinochet forces chanted vulgarities and sang praise for the former strongman. On a parallel street on the other side of the courthouse, anti-Pinochet forces rallied to demand his punishment. An official government report says 3,170 people were killed during Pinochet's 17-year rule. Thousands more are still missing and presumed dead. --------------- Wednesday, May 24, 2000 Last update: 11:13 a.m. EDT Dade plans for Elian ruling From police to pastors to protesters, planning for the upcoming Elian Gonzalez appeals-court ruling is uniting disparate players around a common goal: avoiding violent street demonstrations should the news from Atlanta prove disappointing to the boy's Miami supporters. Anxious to be prepared, a coalition of local police chiefs has asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for 12 hours advance notice of the ruling. The U.S. marshal in Miami, James Tassone, said he will get a heads-up at least several hours before the decision is made public and will notify Miami Police immediately. ``To expect more than two or three hours from a Circuit Court is probably unrealistic,'' Tassone said.'

To: marcos who wrote (6209)	5/24/2000 12:11:00 PM
From: X Y Zebra	Respond to of 9127

Re: Pinochet. En Espan~ol: lanacion.com.ar Temas relacionados Una condena pol¡tica lanacion.com.ar Un largo camino que comenz¢ en Londres lanacion.com.ar La batalla legal del ex dictador Decidieron el desafuero de Pinochet Lo anunci¢ ayer la prensa chilena pero no hubo confirmaci¢n oficial; Lagos desminti¢ el peligro de un golpe de Estado. SANTIAGO, Chile.- El ex dictador chileno Augusto Pinochet habr¡a sido privado ayer de su fuero por la Corte de Apelaciones de Santiago, informaron ayer fuentes judiciales y las ediciones electr¢nicas de los diarios chilenos, aunque la versi¢n no fue confirmada oficialmente. Los 22 jueces de la Corte se reunieron sorpresivamente ayer, en un pleno extraordinario, y acordaron un veredicto en el juicio a Pinochet, que enfrenta 108 causas judiciales. Versiones period¡sticas, incluso de un medio local en Internet recogido por la televisi¢n estatal, indicaron que el desafuero fue acordado por una mayor¡a de 12 votos contra 10, pero la corte no confirm¢ la versi¢n y el gobierno dijo que no comentar¡a rumores. La resoluci¢n era esperada con nerviosismo tanto por los seguidores como por los detractores del anciano general, que ayer descansaba en su casa campestre de Los Boldos, unos 130 kil¢metros al noroeste de Santiago. La edici¢n electr¢nica del diario El Mercurio tambi‚n inform¢ que los jueces votaron 12 contra 10 para levantar la inmunidad de Pinochet, aunque no identific¢ sus fuentes. La misma versi¢n difundieron en Internet los diarios electr¢nicos El Mostrador y Areanoticias. "Hasta el momento hay trascendidos. No conocemos informaci¢n oficial", se¤al¢ en el palacio de La Moneda el secretario general de la Presidencia, Alvaro Garc¡a. Poco despu‚s, el presidente Ricardo Lagos ratific¢ esa decisi¢n al se¤alar a la cadena de televisi¢n CNN que no ten¡a nada que decir sobre el tema. El tribunal ten¡a previsto reanudar hoy el debate sobre el desafuero de Pinochet, pedido por ocho abogados querellantes que lo acusan de haber ordenado los 74 fusilamientos de presos pol¡ticos que ejecut¢ la "Caravana de la Muerte", una comitiva militar que recorri¢ varias ciudades del norte de Chile en octubre de 1973, un mes despu‚s del golpe que instal¢ en el poder a Pinochet. La corte ya escuch¢ a fines de abril los alegatos de una y otra parte y s¢lo quedaba decidir si despojaba o no a Pinochet de su inmunidad como senador vitalicio. El presidente de la Corte de Apelaciones, Rub‚n Ballesteros, explic¢ que como el £ltimo juez al que le faltaba examinar parte de las 3500 fojas de la causa concluy¢ su labor ayer, todos votaron y se logr¢ un acuerdo inmediato. Se da por descontado que no hubo empate ya que no habr nuevas reuniones para votar la causa. "La decisi¢n ser conocida tan pronto el £ltimo ministro de la Corte la haya firmado, lo que deber¡a ocurrir en un plazo de una a dos semanas", anunci¢ Ballesteros. Batalla de insultos En un primer rebrote de la tensi¢n, una veintena de seguidores de Pinochet se enfrent¢ en una batalla de insultos con medio centenar de familiares de desaparecidos, frente al Palacio de los Tribunales. "No estaban muertos, andaban en Europa", gritaron en coro los partidarios del ex dictador, en alusi¢n a los presos pol¡ticos desaparecidos durante el r‚gimen que encabez¢ entre 1973 y 1990. "Est culminando una de las etapas m s esperadas por nosotros", dijo en cambio la presidenta de la Agrupaci¢n de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos, Viviana D¡az, al conocer el anuncio del juez Ballesteros. "Si los jueces resolvieron en conciencia, de acuerdo con todo lo que escucharon durante los alegatos, su resoluci¢n tiene que ser el desafuero", agreg¢ la representante de las familias de 1198 desaparecidos. Si se confirma el desafuero, Pinochet quedar¡a expuesto a ser procesado por el juez especial Juan Guzm n Tapia, que investiga m s de un centenar de querellas presentadas en contra del general en retiro desde enero de 1998. Pero el ex dictador, de 84 a¤os, a£n puede apelar a la Corte Suprema, y ‚sta a su vez puede ratificar o rechazar el dictamen acordado ayer por la Corte de Apelaciones. En tanto, el presidente Ricardo Lagos descart¢ ayer tajantemente una sublevaci¢n militar si la Justicia despoja a Pinochet de su fuero legislativo. "No hay ning£n temor, en ning£n sentido. Eso se lo puedo asegurar como presidente de Chile", respondi¢ el mandatario en una entrevista radial. Tras disipar la tensi¢n que crisp¢ los nervios de militares y pol¡ticos de derecha, Lagos reiter¢ ayer que garantizar la independencia judicial. "Si hay un desafuero, un antejuicio, querr decir, entonces hay que dar parte a lo que sigue, que es el estudio mismo del proceso por el cual esta persona est acusada", precis¢ a la radio Cooperativa de Santiago. Agencias AP, AFP, Reuters y DPA Posibilidad SANTIAGO,Chile (ANSA).- Marco Antonio Pinochet, hijo del ex dictador chileno Augusto Pinochet, afirm¢ que de ser ciertas las versiones sobre el desafuero, su familia sufrir¡a un serio perjuicio. "Esto nos afecta, pero era algo que est bamos esperando, era una posibilidad cierta", se¤al¢ Marco Antonio. Copyright ¸ 2000 La Naci¢n \| Todos los derechos reservados

To: marcos who wrote (6209)	5/24/2000 12:45:00 PM
From: Master (Hijacked)	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9127

I am aware of the atrocities committed by that monster Pinochet. What disturbs me more however is that the same governments which criticize Castro come to the defence of this monster. It is time that learned people wake up and speak out against such hypocrisy.

To: marcos who wrote (6209)	5/24/2000 6:15:00 PM
From: Dayuhan	Respond to of 9127

I sympathize with the Chilean victims of Pinochet's "excellent record" (or was the word "stellar") I lived for a number of years under the rule of Reagan's good buddy Marcos (an irony there), and had a good look at the kind of "freedom" espoused by that sort. Still remember the day that George Bush, then VP, got off a plane and told Marcos that "we love your devotion to democracy and to democratic principles". I introduced myself as a Canadian for a good while after that. I wonder how many of the Americans who niggled over the distinction between "authoritarian" states (dictators we like) versus "totalitarian" states (dictators we don't like) would last more than a few days under one of those freedom-loving authoritarians.