30 Years Later, The Butchers of Chile Still Walk Free

On September 11, 1973, a military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet overthrew the democratically-elected government of Chile and assassinated its leader, Salvador Allende. For close to 20 years, Pinochet would rule Chile with an iron fist, killing, imprisoning and torturing thousands of men and women from different popular movements and political organizations. In Winnipeg alone, there are hundreds of Chilean families who were forced to flee the dictatorship. Pinochet had the full support of the Nixon administration and only launched the coup after discussions with administration representatives, including Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

Today, those criminals in both Chile and the U.S. who orchestrated the coup and are responsible for the crimes against humanity committed during the Pinochet regime walk freely. In the interests of justice and in memory of the thousands who were killed or brutalized, they should be tried for their crimes and sentenced accordingly.