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Allende's Last Speech

September 11, 1973

Fascist coup in Chile. War planes attack La Moneda Palace in Santiago.

My friends, Surely this will be the last opportunity for me to address you. The Air Force has bombed the antennas of Radio Magallanes.

My words do not have bitterness but disappointment. May they be a moral punishment for those who have betrayed their oath: soldiers of Chile, titular commanders in chief, Admiral Merino, who has designated himself Commander of the Navy, and Mr. Mendoza, the despicable general who only yesterday pledged his fidelity and loyalty to the Government, and who also has appointed himself Chief of the Carabineros [paramilitary police].

Given these facts, the only thing left for me is to say to workers: I am not going to resign! Placed in a historic transition, I will pay for loyalty to the people with my life. And I say to them that I am certain that the seeds which we have planted in the good conscience of thousands and thousands of Chileans will not be shriveled forever.
 

Chile's Michelle Bachelet Poised for Presidency

Chile's Michelle Bachelet Poised for Presidency Run Date: 11/20/05 By Jonathan Franklin
WeNews correspondent

After surviving torture under Chile's Pinochet regime, Michelle Bachelet has been helping the country reconcile its troubled history. Now she is the frontrunner for the Dec. 11 presidential election.

SANTIAGO, Chile (WOMENSENEWS)--To many Chileans the idea of quotas for female cabinet members is just the latest in a stunning turn of political events in this usually staid, conservative nation of 15 million.

"Fifty percent of my cabinet will be women," Chilean presidential candidate Michelle Bachelet promised a crowd of supporters last week. "We are going to set a standard for Latin America."

My Song Is A Free Song: Remembering Víctor Jara

Gabriel San Román; ZNet; September 17, 2005

“Silence and screams are the end of my song,” lamented legendary Chilean folk singer, Víctor Jara, as he composed his final poem as a suffering prisoner in Estadio Chile. Thirty-two years ago today, he was brutally executed by the Chilean military after enduring days of torture. He was, like so many others, a victim of the September 11th, 1973 coup that toppled Salvador Allende’s democratically elected government and initiated the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. As a leading musician in Chile’s new song movement, Jara sang songs in favor of Allende’s presidency. In the years of Pinochet’s dictatorship, his albums were only available on the black market and his music was effectively censored. Despite those efforts by the dictatorship, Víctor’s music and memory lived on and continues to live in Chile’s democratic present.

Revealed: BAE's secret £1m to Pinochet

US banking records show links between arms firm and ex-dictator continued until last year.

David Leigh and Rob Evans; The Guardian; September 15, 2005

Britain's biggest arms firm, BAE Systems, has been identified on US banking records as secretly paying more than £1m to General Augusto Pinochet, the former Chilean dictator. A Guardian investigation has revealed some of the money was listed as being paid through a front company in the British Virgin Islands, which BAE has used to channel commission on arms deals.

Covert payments to Pinochet-linked groups are listed on documents compiled by the Chilean authorities and obtained by the Guardian. They record large payments from BAE as recently as last year.

Inequality - the Root Cause of Poverty in Latin America

Mario Osava; Inter Press Service; September 12, 2005

RIO DE JANEIRO, Sep 12 (IPS) - The unequal distribution of wealth remains the underlying cause of poverty throughout Latin America, although the region's countries have made widely varying degrees of progress towards meeting the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).