Interviews From The Short Century. Marco Lupis

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СКАЧАТЬ Bucalemu, El Melocotón or Iquique?

       Look, I honestly don’t know why people over here are getting so worked up about it. The last thing my father wants is to cause problems. To harm or create division in Chilean society. All he wants is for Chile to finally be able to move towards lasting peace and national reconciliation, so it can continue along the difficult path to economic growth. That’s why he may not make an immediate return to the Senate if he thinks it will help.

      

      

       Have you spoken to him about it?

       No, it's just what I think. What he has said to me though, time and again, is that he desperately wants to come back without causing any problems. My father wants to be a force for unity, not division.

      

      

       Do you think your father is ready to hand himself over to the Chilean authorities?

       I’m utterly convinced that he's happy to answer any questions they may have for him. That doesn’t mean he feels guilty; he knows he's not guilty. But, as I said, he has always had, and continues to have, great respect for the Chilean justice system.

      

      

      

      

       Do you agree with your brother Marco Antonio’s assertion that there were abuses of power during your father’s period of rule?

       My brother and I sometimes phrase things differently, but I’ve always maintained that there were occasional abuses. Remember, though, that this was a terribly difficult period in Chile’s tumultuous history - out-and-out war, an underground struggle between two sides. That’s why both sides occasionally overstepped the mark.

      

      

       Do you think your father should ask for forgiveness?

       My father does not feel guilty. If you think you're innocent, what are you asking for forgiveness for?

      

      

       Do you agree with the recent comments of General Fernando Rojas Vender, who said that the climate in Chile was becoming similar to the period of office of the Popular Unity alliance?

       General Rojas was only telling it how it is. The country is being torn apart and risks falling headlong into an uncertain and tragic future.

      

      

       What do you make of the armed forces’ attitude to your father’s detention? There's talk of itchy trigger fingers.

       If I were a military person, and a former commander-in-chief of my country had been arrested abroad, I would be outraged. I would see it as an attack on my country's sovereignty and a lack of respect towards the army. In fact, I think the military has shown remarkable restraint so far. I’m not sure I would have done in their position.

      

      

       What do you expect from the army then?

       I don’t expect anything. Just that they listen to their conscience.

      

      

      

      

       8

      Mireya García

      

      

       To forgive is impossible

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

       During an emergency meeting of the National Security Council convened by President Frei at the Palacio de La Moneda, tensions in Chile, which were already running high from the Pinochet ruling in London, were further fuelled by some breaking news: another illegal detention centre dating from the military dictatorship had been discovered following revelations from Monsignor González, the bishop of Punta Arenas, where the remains of hundreds of desaparecidos had already been identified.

       The detention centre was located in the extreme north of Chile, about seventy miles from Arica, in a desert region where its existence had long been suspected. It had come to light that the local judiciary had been secretly investigating the centre for several weeks. Despite the shroud of secrecy put around the case by local judge Juan Cristóbal Mera, comments by the local governor, Fernando Nuñez, revealed that the mass graves were located by the coast in the Camarones area. Very near to the city's old burial ground.

      â€œ It must be stressed,” Governor Nuñez had told reporters, “that the geographical coordinates are not exact, but we know that the judge has already verified the existence of at least two graves. However, we will ask for the judge Juan Guzmán Tapia to be present if and when the remains of the desaparecidos are exhumed.”

       The clues that led to this detention centre were provided by Bishop González, who said he had received the information “under the Seal of Confession”. It was not yet clear how many detention centres were concerned.

       Against this background, and in order to discover more about what happened to the Chilean desaparecidos , I decided to interview the leader of the relatives’ association, the AFDD.

      

      

       *****

       Imprisoned, tortured, exiled. Mireya Garcia didn’t just lose her adolescence with Pinochet’s coup d’état. Her brother has been missing for more than a quarter of a century. Today, Mireya is vice-chair of the Association of Families of the Disappeared and Detained (AFDD), and she has fought continuously for the truth.

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