Death without trial

“He took his crimes to the grave”, headlined The Independent. “Mort mais pas jugé” (dead but not judged) wrote France's Libération.

Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet (1951~2006) started his murderous reign on another September 11, not in 2001, but in 1973. As a consequence of this September 11, 1973 more innocent people were murdered than in the later, now most famous September 11, 2001.

He overthrew the democratically elected government of Salvador Allende because it was 'Marxist' and received applause from the U.S., this champion of 'democracy'. The U.S. doesn't like democracy if it doesn't like the outcome. That's why it is boycotting the democratically elected Hamas-government in Palestine. The U.S. doesn't care about human rights if it doesn't like the victims.

The 'Angel of Death' is finally death, escaping trial. Chile never went further than putting him under a soft house arrest even though he had tortured the current Chilean President Michelle Bachelet and murdered her air force general father.

Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon charged him with genocide, terrorism and torture. Pinochet didn't confine himself to ordering the torture and murder of his own people but also let his Gestapo loose on foreigners living in Chile. He was apprehended in London for 16 months, but finally released without being put on trial.

He was not well enough to stand trial, but finally sick enough to die. He called human rights “an invention of the Marxists”. Try to tell that to the Chinese who are accused daily of violating human rights by the U.S. and its allies. They would certainly not invent a stick to be beaten with.

Family and friends of Pinochet's victims are rejoicing all over the world that the torturer is finally dead, but sad that it took so long. Finally he did not die convicted, but he died in disgrace.

And in London an Iron Lady is crying crocodile tears. Baroness Margaret Thatcher is said to be “greatly saddened” by the death of her buddy, who offered vital support in Britain's colonial Falklands War in 1982.