SANTIAGO, Chile (CNS): A Chilean cardinal prayed that God would “not consider the wrongdoings” of Augusto Pinochet, the Chilean general and dictator who died on December 10 at age 91.
“May the Lord value everything good he did in life and (may he) rest in peace,” Santiago Cardinal Francisco Errazuriz Ossa said at a Mass on December 11 at the Santiago Military Academy, where Pinochet was to be cremated the next day.
The death of Pinochet, a Catholic who ruled Chile from 1973-90, brought mixed reactions in Chile, where for years he had been a controversial figure. While supporters cried, others toasted his death with champagne.
Chilean human rights organisations say that under Pinochet’s regime at least 2100 people were executed for political reasons, more than 1100 prisoners disappeared, and an estimated 10,000 prisoners were tortured in the country’s clandestine jails.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who was tortured and exiled under Pinochet and whose father died in a prison under Pinochet’s regime, ruled the former dictator would have a military funeral but would not receive honours as a former head of state.
After Pinochet’s death, president of the Chilean bishops’ conference, Bishop Alejandro Goic Karmelic of Rancagua, urged an attitude of respect for General Pinochet’s family.
