It is time to wonder how much Chile really owes to its dictator

Gabriela Perdomo - Critics of Latin America's most prominent dictator were quick to notice the irony: Augusto Pinochet, Chile's ruler from 1973 to 1990, died on Sunday, December 10, also International Human Rights Day. The "Captain General", as Pinochet called himself, headed a military regime in the South American country for 17 years that would leave a trail of death, torture and a deep division within Chilean society. At the time of his demise, Pinochet was under house arrest and subject to several investigations for massive human rights violations and embezzlement.

The end of the Pinochet era started only a few years ago, and not in 1990 when he lost a referendum in which Chileans voted in favour of a return to democratic rule. After all, Pinochet remained as commander in chief for eight more years, thanks to the laws he envisioned for himself. In 1998, the man who was once known as Chile's most powerful figure was apprehended by police officers in a London airport under the order of a Spanish judge who requested him for charges of crimes against humanity. Pinochet was forced to stay under house arrest in London for almost two years but was never extradited to Spain. A British judge claimed the old man was not fit to stand trial and Pinochet returned to Chile. His lawyers would use this argument once and again in his native country, and the former dictator never had to declare in court. Pinochet died at 91, without a single sentence.

Although the general managed to stay out of court, he did live long enough to understand that history's trial had already started. Pinochet is a top member of the list of 20th Century despots even in the United States, where Richard Nixon's administration eagerly helped the dictator's cause. His brutal rule is not news anymore. According to official documents, 3,197 people were killed for political reasons during Pinochet's regime. Another 30,000 were tortured in secret military facilities—including current president Michelle Bachelet and her mother—and hundreds of thousands were illegally imprisoned or forced to flee the country. Even today some dissidents have never been accounted for.

Pinochet's power went beyond Chile's borders. It extended to Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia and Argentina, where he collaborated with other dictatorships in a continent-wide campaign known as "Operación Cóndor" to wipe out the "communist threat". The general was not only a repressive dictator but, as was recently discovered, also a corrupt one. Pinochet was facing charges for allegedly embezzling $27 million U.S. and distributing them throughout different bank accounts in the U.S., as well as for keeping a substantial amount of gold bars in Hong Kong.

Pinochet's death holds historical meaning for all of Latin America. It happens right when another strongman, Fidel Castro, agonizes and with him his Cuban revolution. Pinochet, just like Castro, matters not only to Chile and Cuba but to every country in the Americas including the U.S., which has played a significant role in every nation in the region for the past few decades. His death leaves questions about the nature of his legacy.

Almost everyone, including Pinochet's opponents under the leadership of Bachelet, recognizes there was a positive outcome to Pinochet's political ability to turn Chile into the region's "economic miracle". It was him who, along with his economical team known as the "Chicago Boys", opened Chile to foreign markets, created the Central Bank and led the way to capitalism in South America. Chile's strong economy is a success story of globalization.

But some are wrong to believe that the Chile of our times is a direct result of Pinochet's "visionary" policies, or of his determination to wipe out the "communist menace" his predecessor—Salvador Allende, the elected president he toppled—represented. Most people look up to Chile today, certainly in Latin America, because Chileans have embraced with maturity their return to democratic rule. It has been difficult for the people in Chile to discover Pinochet remained in power only thanks to a reign of terror. It has been hard to understand the gruesome extremes to which the State forces resorted to maintain the general's grip on the country. However, little by little Chileans have managed to strengthen their judicial institutions and restore their faith in independent powers by witnessing and leading the many cases against the former dictator. These processes will continue even after Pinochet's death, as has been announced, in the name of truth seeking and reconciliation.

Pinochet's death showed last weekend how deep is the scar his rule left in Chilean society. People reacted passionately to the news. Some celebrated with champagne—and vandalism—and some others with tears and nostalgic military anthems. Bachelet's government decided the former ruler would not be honoured with a State funeral, but only a military one among fierce criticism form the opposition. Overall, the general's death evidenced that his strongest legacy is the wound.

Archive Search

Search the Angus Reid Global Monitor Politics In Depth archive.