Redress
CHILE: Chile's judges apologise for their actions after coup
The body representing judges in Chile has made an unprecedented apology for the actions of its members under military rule in the 1970s and 1980s. It a statement, it said that the judiciary at the time had abandoned its role as protector of basic rights. "The time has come to ask for the forgiveness of victims... and of Chilean society," said the judges. The statement by the National Association of Magistrates of the Judiciary comes a week before the 40th anniversary of the coup that brought General Pinochet to power. It said its members, and in particular the Supreme Court, had failed in its duty to protect victims of state abuse. Four opposition MP, and also Amnesty International asked for the abrogation of the Amnesty Law, which covers up Human Rights violations committed between 1973 and 1978. Similarly, the Chilean National Institute for Human Rights (INDH) has asked the Government more truth, access to justice and reparation for the victims of the dictatorship. According to this organization, memory about the human rights violations should be included in the school system, as well as in the Armed and Security Forces. Between 1973 and 1990, under the military regime of General Augusto Pinochet, about 3,200 people were killed (1,200 are still disappeared), and 38,000 were jailed and tortured for political reasons. (Europa Press, 05/09/13, BBC, 04/09/13, INDH, 11/09/13, Diario UChile, 12/09/13)