Chile activists protest religious service to pardon Pinochet-era convicts
Activists and relatives of executed Chilean political prisoners during the rule of late dictator Augusto Pinochet have chained themselves inside a Santiago cathedral in a show of protest at the requests for forgiveness by nine of the convicts.
During a religious event on Friday, former members of the military under the US-backed Pinochet regime, who have been convicted of crimes against humanity, asked for forgiveness amid campaigns by a right-wing Chilean movement calling for the release of the elderly inmates.
Family members of the victims, however, rejected as a ploy the religious ceremony for forgiveness of nine former agents of the notorious Chilean dictator -- including a high-ranking official of his political police, Raul Iturriaga.
The apology came in the form of a private religious event at Chile’s Punta Peuco prison, where nearly 100 former regime agents are serving sentences for kidnappings, killings and torture of suspected opposition activists during Pinochet's rule from 1973 to 1990.
The development came as dozens of the victims’ family members staged a protest rally outside the prison, rejecting the private event as a hollow attempt to obtain a pardon or early release for the convicts.
“We have the right and the moral duty to be here to prevent this media show,” said Alicia Lira, head of a rights group for the families of the victims.
Family members further underlined that none of the convicts have provided information on the fate of nearly 1,000 people missing and presumed killed by the US-backed regime.
The protesters also demand the closure of the Punta Peuco prison, which they censure as a luxury detention center with tennis courts, terraces and barbecues.
More than 3,000 opponents of the Pinochet regime as well as their alleged collaborators were killed or disappeared during his rule. Nearly 38,000 others were also brutally tortured.
Pinochet, who came to power in a Washington-sponsored military coup, died in 2006, without being brought to justice.
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