workingclasshistory:

On this day, 3 March 2000, former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet returned to Chile a free man after being released by Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw.
16 months earlier he had been in the UK, he claimed for medical treatment, although it was alleged he was there to negotiate arms contracts – a possibility which is extremely likely, given that it later emerged that he was being paid bribes by British arms manufacturer BAE Systems.
Spain issued an international warrant for his arrest for breaching human rights laws for being responsible for the torture of dozens of Spanish citizens as well as a Spanish diplomat. Pinochet was also responsible for the murders of over 3000 and the torture and illegal imprisonment of tens of thousands of Chileans. Pinochet was placed under house arrest by British authorities, while international right-wing figures like George HW Bush and Margaret Thatcher called for his release. Straw claimed that he ordered the mass murderer to be freed on health grounds, although this was disputed by many people, including the governments of France, Switzerland and Belgium.
Pinochet was then flown back to Chile, where he had immunity, and was given a hero’s welcome. Small groups of people, mostly relatives of his victims, protested against his arrival, but they were violently attacked by police.
His immunity in Chile was later partially stripped, and he was charged with various offenses having been deemed medically fit to stand trial. However, he died in 2006 before being convicted of any of his crimes.
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