History UsefulNotes / AugustoPinochet

Born in 1915, Pinochet rose through the ranks of the Chilean Army, reaching the position of Commander-in-Chief in 1973, following the resignation of his predecessor and mentor, Carlos Prats, after he was unwilling to join a coup and following [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alejandrina_Cox_incident a bizarre traffic incident]] that made Prats lose support in the Army (he was later assassinated in Buenos Aires). Pinochet ascended to the post in the midst of considerable national turmoil. Allende's Marxist-Social Democratic coalition government had narrowly won office in a three-way election promising a sweeping platform of land reform and nationalization. In addition to the mounting economic and constitutional crisis, he faced a quiet undercurrent of discontent within large parts of the military, which believed Allende was going to lead Chile down the path of a Marxist Revolution. His actions, which culminated in a month-long visit by UsefulNotes/FidelCastro in 1971, had also alarmed the UsefulNotes/RichardNixon Administration, and in particular UsefulNotes/HenryKissinger, who saw Allende as a personal enemy. With this in mind, the USA imposed sanctions to asphyxiate Chile's economy ("Make it scream" - in Nixon's words) and lent its support to Admiral José Toribio Merino and Air Force General Gustavo Leigh's plot to remove Allende, a plan which was altered at the last minute to include Pinochet; until then, they did not know which side he would be on since he had been vital in defending the government in the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanquetazo "Tanquetazo"]] (attempted coup) on June 29 of the same year, as were others loyal to General Carlos Prats. On September 11th the military surrounded and bombarded the Presidential Palace. Allende [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed himself]] and the junta assumed control of Chile, establishing the precedent that 9/11 is a bad day for democracy the world over long before the events of 2001.

Much of what went on in Pinochet's prisons was utterly ''sickening'', with stories of dogs being trained to rape prisoners, and rats being inserted into the vaginas and anuses of detainees not being the worst of them. The "parrilla" ("electric grill"), which involved prisoners being strapped to tables and [[ElectricTorture tortured with electric shocks]], was so ubiquitous that President Michelle Bachelet admitted she was treated better than other detainees because she was not subject to them. Other inhuman acts included dragging half-dead victims into parking lots and running them over with trucks repeatedly, throwing people into vats of human sewage, flogging people to death with chains, [[DeathFlight throwing people off helicopters]] into the ocean or the Andes and the technique known as the "telephone", which involved slamming hands on the victim's ears until they were deaf.

Many of the victims simply disappeared into the ether, never to be seen again, enduring their prolonged confinement, torture, and executions out of the public eye. Not content with savaging his own population, Pinochet lent the services of his secret police force, the DINA, to the Pan-South American ''Operation: Condor'', a joint operation launched by Pinochet himself between the [[UsefulNotes/NationalReorganizationProcess Argentine]], Paraguayan, Uruguayan, [[UsefulNotes/BrazilianMilitaryRegime Brazilian]], Bolivian, Peruvian, and Chilean juntas that aimed to stamp out Communist activity (violent and peaceful alike) all across the continent. Estimates as to the number of deaths caused by this politicide vary, with some reaching 60,000.

The Pinochet regime's authoritarian governance and human rights abuses drew criticism and condemnation, both from the international community and from within Chile. This was compounded by the fact that South America's other military dictatorships fell over the course of the 1980s, leaving Chile increasingly isolated on the continent. Bowing to the inevitable, Pinochet eventually agreed to give the Chilean people a chance to return to civilian rule, claiming that this was his intention all along. [[CommonKnowledge Contrary to popular belief]], the return to democracy was not debated in the 1988 plebiscite; that had already been decided by Pinochet himself. There would be elections for parliamentarians no matter the outcome. What ''was'' defined was whether he would continue to be president for another eight years or a new one would be elected. In any case, the winning choice was the "No" option that implied presidential elections. Pinochet attempted a self-coup to retain power, but the other members of the junta refused to go along with the idea, and he was forced to concede defeat. While he was removed from the presidency and succeeded by Patricio Aylwin following the 1989 elections, he continued on as Commander-in-Chief of the Army until 1998, when he retired to become a Senator-for-Life. Having pardoned himself of all charges, Pinochet was immune from prosecution on all human rights violations. The subsequent centrist governments would maintain and even expand his economic policies, including regimes led by Allende's own Socialist Party. While he was put under house arrest on a trip to Britain in 1998, he made it home in 2000...only to be arrested on seventy-five charges of kidnapping from which he had not pardoned himself. The new government believed Pinochet's return had damaged the country's reputation, and pressed on with the case. Pinochet's lawyers put up a strong defense, claiming the general was senile and could no longer remember the crimes he had committed. Before the case could actually reach trial, Pinochet died on the 10th of December, 2006, at the age of 91. He remains a controversial figure to this day; while most people across the political spectrum revile him, he has defenders both within Chile and without, who argue that his regime was a necessary evil or even a positive good.

[[CommonKnowledge Contrary to the popular imagination in the 1988 plebiscite, the return to democracy was not debated]]; that had already been decided by Pinochet himself. There would be elections for parliamentarians no matter the outcome. What ''was'' defined was whether he would continue to be president for another eight years or a new one would be elected. In any case, the winning choice was the "No" option that implied presidential elections. Pinochet attempted a self-coup to retain power, but the other members of the junta refused to go along with the idea, and he was forced to concede defeat. While he was removed from the presidency and succeeded by Patricio Aylwin following the 1989 elections, he continued on as Commander-in-Chief of the Army until 1998, when he retired to become a Senator-for-Life. Having pardoned himself of all charges, Pinochet was immune from prosecution on all human rights violations. The subsequent centrist governments would maintain and even expand his economic policies, including regimes led by Allende's own Socialist Party. While he was put under house arrest on a trip to Britain in 1998, he made it home in 2000…only to be arrested on seventy-five charges of kidnapping from which he had not pardoned himself. The new government believed Pinochet’s return had damaged the country’s reputation, and pressed on with the case. Pinochet’s lawyers put up a strong defense, claiming the general was senile and could no longer remember the crimes he had committed. Before the case could actually reach trial, Pinochet died on the 10th of December, 2006, at the age of 91. He remains a controversial figure to this day; while most people across the political spectrum revile him, he has defenders both within Chile and without, who argue that his regime was a necessary evil or even a positive good.

* In ''Zombies en la Moneda'', the zombie apocalypse that the country suffers is the responsibility [[spoiler: of an augusto pinochet resurrected by an AncientConspiracy]]... possibly.

Much of what went on in Pinochet's prisons was utterly ''sickening'', with stories of dogs being trained to rape prisoners, and rats being inserted into the vaginas and anuses of detainees not being the worst of them. The "parrilla" ("electric grill"), which involved prisoners being strapped to tables and [[ElectricTorture tortured with electric shocks]], was so ubiquitous that President Michelle Bachelet admitted she was treated better than other detainees because she was not subject to them. Other inhuman acts included dragging half-dead victims into parking lots and running them over with trucks repeatedly, throwing people into vats of human sewage, flogging people to death with chains, throwing people off helicopters into the ocean or the Andes and the technique known as the "telephone", which involved slamming hands on the victim's ears until they were deaf.

[[CommonKnowledge Contrary to the popular imagination in the 1988 plebiscite, the return to democracy was not debated]]; that had already been decided by Pinochet himself. There would be elections for parliamentarians no matter the outcome. What ''was'' defined was whether he would continue to be president for another eight years or a new one would be elected. In any case, the winning choice was the "No" option that implied presidential elections. While he was removed from the presidency and succeeded by Patricio Aylwin following the 1989 elections, he continued on as Commander-in-Chief of the Army until 1998, when he retired to become a Senator-for-Life. Having pardoned himself of all charges, Pinochet was immune from prosecution on all human rights violations. The subsequent centrist governments would maintain and even expand his economic policies, including regimes led by Allende's own Socialist Party. While he was put under house arrest on a trip to Britain in 1998, he made it home in 2000…only to be arrested on seventy-five charges of kidnapping from which he had not pardoned himself. The new government believed Pinochet’s return had damaged the country’s reputation, and pressed on with the case. Pinochet’s lawyers put up a strong defense, claiming the general was senile and could no longer remember the crimes he had committed. Before the case could actually reach trial, Pinochet died on the 10th of December, 2006, at the age of 91. He remains a controversial figure to this day; while most people across the political spectrum revile him, he has defenders both within Chile and without, who argue that his regime was a necessary evil or even a positive good.

Born in 1915, Pinochet rose through the ranks of the Chilean Army, reaching the position of Commander-in-Chief in 1973, following the resignation of his predecessor and mentor, Carlos Prats, after he was unwilling to join a coup and following [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alejandrina_Cox_incident a bizarre traffic incident]] that made Prats lose support in the Army (he was later assassinated in Buenos Aires). Pinochet ascended to the post in the midst of considerable national turmoil. Allende’s Marxist-Social Democratic coalition government had narrowly won office in a three-way election promising a sweeping platform of land reform and nationalization. In addition to the mounting economic and constitutional crisis, he faced a quiet undercurrent of discontent within large parts of the military, which believed Allende was going to lead Chile down the path of a Marxist Revolution. His actions, which culminated in a month-long visit by Fidel Castro in 1971, had also alarmed the UsefulNotes/RichardNixon Administration, and in particular UsefulNotes/HenryKissinger, who saw Allende as a personal enemy. With this in mind, the USA imposed sanctions to asphyxiate Chile's economy ("Make it scream" - in Nixon's words) and lent its support to Admiral José Toribio Merino and Air Force General Gustavo Leigh’s plot to remove Allende, a plan which was altered at the last minute to include Pinochet, until then, they did not know which side he would be on since he had been vital in defending the government in the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanquetazo "Tanquetazo"]] (attempted coup) on June 29 of the same year, as were others loyal to General Carlos Prats. On September 11th the military surrounded and bombarded the Presidential Palace. Allende killed himself and the junta assumed control of Chile, establishing the precedent that 9/11 is a bad day for democracy the world over long before the events of 2001.

Much of what went on in Pinochet's prisons was utterly ''sickening'', with stories of dogs being trained to rape prisoners, and rats being inserted into the vaginas and anuses of detainees not being the worst of them. The "parrilla" ("electric grill"), which involved prisoners being strapped to tables and tortured with electric shocks, was so ubiquitous that President Michelle Bachelet admitted she was treated better than other detainees because she was not subject to them. Other inhuman acts included dragging half-dead victims into parking lots and running them over with trucks repeatedly, throwing people into vats of human sewage, flogging people to death with chains, throwing people off helicopters into the ocean or the Andes and the technique known as the "telephone", which involved slamming hands on the victim's ears until they were deaf.

Many of the victims simply disappeared into the ether, never to be seen again, enduring their prolonged confinement, torture, and executions out of the public eye. Not content with savaging his own population, Pinochet lent the services of his secret police force, the DINA, to the Pan-South American ''Operation: Condor'', a joint operation launched by Pinochet himself between the [[UsefulNotes/NationalReorganizationProcess Argentine]], Paraguayan, Uruguayan, Brazilian, Bolivian, Peruvian, and Chilean juntas that aimed to stamp out Communist activity (violent and peaceful alike) all across the continent. Estimates as to the deaths caused by this politicide vary, with some reaching 60,000.

[[CommonKnowledge Contrary to the popular imagination in the 1988 plebiscite, the return to democracy was not debated]], that had already been decided by Pinochet himself, so there would be elections for parliamentarians, what was defined was whether he would continue to be president or a new one would be elected, winning the option "No" that implied presidential elections. He continued on as Commander-in-Chief of the Army until 1998, when he retired to become a Senator-for-Life. Having pardoned himself of all charges, Pinochet was immune from prosecution on all human rights violations. The subsequent centrist governments would maintain and even expand his economic policies, including regimes led by Allende's own Socialist Party. While he was put under house arrest on a trip to Britain in 1998, he made it home in 2000…only to be arrested on seventy-five charges of kidnapping from which he had not pardoned himself. The new government believed Pinochet’s return had damaged the country’s reputation, and pressed on with the case. Pinochet’s lawyers put up a strong defense, claiming the general was senile and could no longer remember the crimes he had committed. Before the case could actually reach trial, Pinochet died on the 10th of December, 2006, at the age of 91. He remains a controversial figure to this day; while most people across the political spectrum revile him he has defenders both within Chile and without, who argue that his regime was a necessary evil or even a positive good.

* In ''[[ComicBook/DiabloChile Diablo]]'', [[TheProtagonist Alex/Diablo]]'s father made a DealWithTheDevil to make suffering to the world in exchange of protection. And the way to make this deal is being a DINA/CNI agent and torturer for Pinochet's regime. Before he died, he reconvert into Catholicism, so the deal will be passed to his son.

* Ikaros Publishing released in 2012 the controversial artwork ''[[http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2012/12/03/infamous-world-leaders-reimagined-as-moe-characters Nyotaika!! Dictator Biographies in the World]]'', which represents infamous dictators from 20th century as [[MoeAnthropomorphism cute and/or sexy girls]] accompanied with their biographies. As expected, Pinochet appears in this artwork, represented as a [[https://www.deviantart.com/jiswing/art/Nyotaika-Sekai-no-Dokusaisha-Retsuden-Pinochet-342254345 green-eyed blonde cougar]] with a book burning in the background, a known action made during the first years of his regime.

* The Academy Award-nominated Chilean film ''Film/{{No}}'' (2012), starring Gael García Bernal, chronicles the attempts of Chile's opposition parties to oust Pinochet in 1988 and 1990, with the focus being on the media battle that was waged against him. Pinochet himself is not portrayed by any actor--rather old footage of him is used.

* In ''Series/BreakingBad'', it's implied Gustavo "Gus" Fring (a Chilean national) had substantial ties to the Pinochet regime. The Chilean government has [[TheSpook no records of Fring prior to his immigration to Mexico in 1986]], which Gus [[UnreliableExpositor claims]] to Hank is a result of the dictatorship's poor record keeping. In a flashback, Hector Salamanca calls Fring "Gran Generalissimo" and Don Eladio notes that while they are "not in Chile anymore", he will spare Fring since he knows who he really is. If all of this is taken together and at face value, Fring might have been a high ranking military officer in Pinochet's regime, or perhaps even involved in military intelligence.

Despite this, Pinochet remained popular with the prosperous conservative sectors of society, who strongly disagreed with the left-wing reforms of Allende's presidency which they identified as a chaotic regime. This may have led him to believe that he had enough support to continue governing, now through democratic means. In 1988, he held a referendum on the dictatorship, and to his surprise, lost. He was forced to step down as President, though he continued on as Commander-in-Chief of the Army until 1998, when he retired to become a Senator-for-Life. Having pardoned himself of all charges, Pinochet was immune from prosecution on all human rights violations. The subsequent centrist governments would maintain and even expand his economic policies, including regimes led by Allende's own Socialist Party. While he was put under house arrest on a trip to Britain in 1998, he made it home in 2000…only to be arrested on seventy-five charges of kidnapping from which he had not pardoned himself. The new government believed Pinochet’s return had damaged the country’s reputation, and pressed on with the case. Pinochet’s lawyers put up a strong defense, claiming the general was senile and could no longer remember the crimes he had committed. Before the case could actually reach trial, Pinochet died on the 10th of December, 2006, at the age of 91. He remains a controversial figure to this day; while most people across the political spectrum revile him he has defenders both within Chile and without, who argue that his regime was a necessary evil or even a positive good.

Initially power was shared among the members of the junta, but within a year Pinochet, the last man to join the coup d’état, managed to maneuver his way into the Presidency, eventually ousting the other junta leaders. An arch-conservative and proponent of laissez-faire economics, Pinochet reimposed social order through strict authoritarian controls, put the army in charge of all government positions, and handed control of the Chilean economy over to a group of US-educated economists known as the “Chicago boys”. Fans of Pinochet will point to the substantial economic growth as proof that his rule was not all bad. Non-fans will point out that Chile's economic growth lagged somewhat behind the South American average throughout Pinochet's term in office (partially but perhaps not entirely attributable to the decline in the price of the main export, copper), suffered two economic crises, and also to the severely increased poverty, inequality and social exclusion that his policies created. If anything, Chile's economy only improved after Pinochet's fall and the return of democracy.

Born in 1915, Pinochet rose slowly through the ranks of the Chilean Army, reaching the position of Commander-in-Chief in 1973, following the resignation of his predecessor and mentor, Carlos Prats, after he was unwilling to join a coup and following [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alejandrina_Cox_incident a bizarre traffic incident]] that made Prats lose support in the Army (he was later assassinated in Buenos Aires). Pinochet ascended to the post in the midst of considerable national turmoil. Allende’s Marxist-Social Democratic coalition government had narrowly won office in a three-way election promising a sweeping platform of land reform and nationalization. Attempts at carrying out those promises had been met with considerable opposition and outright sabotage from Chilean landowners and the bourgeoisie, amply represented in the majority-conservative Chilean congress. In addition to the mounting economic and constitutional crisis, he faced a quiet undercurrent of discontent within large parts of the military, which believed Allende was going to lead Chile down the path of a Marxist Revolution. His actions, which culminated in a month-long visit by Fidel Castro in 1971, had also alarmed the UsefulNotes/RichardNixon Administration, and in particular UsefulNotes/HenryKissinger, who saw Allende as a personal enemy. With this in mind, the USA imposed sanctions to asphyxiate Chile's economy ("Make it scream" - in Nixon's words) and lent its support to Admiral José Toribio Merino and Air Force General Gustavo Leigh’s plot to remove Allende, a plan which was altered at the last minute to include Pinochet. On September 11th the military surrounded and bombarded the Presidential Palace. Allende killed himself and the junta assumed control of Chile, establishing the precedent that 9/11 is a bad day for democracy the world over long before the events of 2001.

Born in 1915, Pinochet rose slowly through the ranks of the Chilean Army, reaching the position of Commander-in-Chief in 1973, following the resignation of his predecessor and mentor, Carlos Prats, after he was unwilling to join a coup and following [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alejandrina_Cox_incident a bizarre traffic incident]] that made Prats lose support in the Army (he was later assassinated in Buenos Aires). Pinochet ascended to the post in the midst of considerable national turmoil. Allende’s Marxist-Social Democratic coalition government had narrowly won office in a three-way election promising a sweeping platform of land reform and nationalization. Attempts at carrying out those promises had been met with considerable opposition and outright sabotage from Chilean landowners and the bourgeoisie, amply represented in the majority-conservative Chilean congress. In addition to the mounting economic and constitutional crisis, he faced a quiet undercurrent of discontent within large parts of the military, which believed Allende was going to lead Chile down the path of a Marxist Revolution. His actions, which culminated in a month-long visit by Fidel Castro in 1971, had also alarmed the UsefulNotes/RichardNixon Administration, and in particular UsefulNotes/HenryKissinger, who saw Allende as a personal enemy. With this in mind, the USA imposed sanctions to asphyxiate Chile's economy ("Make it scream" - in Nixon's words) and lent its support to Admiral José Toribio Merino and Air Force General Gustavo Leigh’s plot to remove Allende, a plan which was altered at the last minute to include Pinochet. On September 11th the military surrounded and bombarded the Presidential Palace. Allende killed himself and the junta assumed control of Chile, establishing the precedent that 9/11 is a bad day for democracy the world over ([[{{UsefulNotes/BerlinWall}} except for Europeans, that is]]).

Initially power was shared among the members of the junta, but within a year Pinochet, the last man to join the coup d’état, managed to maneuver his way into the Presidency, eventually ousting the other junta leaders. An arch-conservative and proponent of laissez-faire economics, Pinochet reimposed social order through strict authoritarian controls, put the army in charge of all government positions, and handed control of the Chilean economy over to a group of US-educated economists known as the “Chicago boys”. Fans of Pinochet will point to the substantial economic growth as proof that his rule was not all bad. Non-fans will point out that Chile's economic growth lagged somewhat behind the South American average throughout Pinochet's term in office (partially but perhaps not entirely attributable to the decline in the price of the main export, copper), suffered two economic crises, and also to the severely increased poverty, inequality and social exclusion that his policies created.

** In ''VideoGame/HitmanBloodMoney'', Agent 47 is given a contract to take out one Don Fernando Delgado, a former colonel of Pinochet's regime who is running a [[TheCartel ring]] out of his vineyard in Colchagua Valley, Chile.

** In ''VideoGame/HitmanBloodMoney'', Agent 47 is given a contract to take out one Don Fernando Delgado, a former colonel of Pinochet's regime who is running a [[AcceptableProfessionalTargets cocaine ring]] out of his vineyard in Colchagua Valley, Chile.