Well, a lot of ordinary citizens supported the Pinochet regime (in fact, a lot still thinks very well about him). I am Chilean and the government of Pinochet (and the UP, the socialist government dethroned) is still a polemic issue, with large groups of people attacking/defending Pinochet. In fact, the mayor reason to not talk about the issue, is that nobody expects to convince anyone.
The reasons used to defend Pinochet? And, BTW, I do not believe any of them) 1. Lesser evil: 'Yes, a couple of thousands were killed, but the alternative was civil war (and the political crisis in the UP lead the country to civil war)' or 'Pinochet save the country of evil communists and marxists, and these people are worst than Pinochet' 2. The people killed were terrorists: 'Yes, a couple of thousands were killed, but they were terrorists and violent people and the country had to be defended against those people. And the fight against terrorism is never a clean bussiness' 3. Outcomes: 'Yes, a couple of thousands were killed, but the country recovered from a deep crisis and Pinochet build the foundations for a large economic growth '
This are the chief reasons argumented by chileans to defend Pinochet (I guess that I do not need to say the reasons to attack him).
Slashdot Mirror
Well, a lot of ordinary citizens supported the Pinochet regime (in fact, a lot still thinks very well about him). I am Chilean and the government of Pinochet (and the UP, the socialist government dethroned) is still a polemic issue, with large groups of people attacking/defending Pinochet. In fact, the mayor reason to not talk about the issue, is that nobody expects to convince anyone.
The reasons used to defend Pinochet? And, BTW, I do not believe any of them)
1. Lesser evil: 'Yes, a couple of thousands were killed, but the alternative was civil war (and the political crisis in the UP lead the country to civil war)' or 'Pinochet save the country of evil communists and marxists, and these people are worst than Pinochet'
2. The people killed were terrorists: 'Yes, a couple of thousands were killed, but they were terrorists and violent people and the country had to be defended against those people. And the fight against terrorism is never a clean bussiness'
3. Outcomes: 'Yes, a couple of thousands were killed, but the country recovered from a deep crisis and Pinochet build the foundations for a large economic growth '
This are the chief reasons argumented by chileans to defend Pinochet (I guess that I do not need to say the reasons to attack him).