| WASHINGTON
- March 26 - "Under the Convention against Torture, even a single act of torture
gives rise to criminal responsibility before the world," Amnesty
International reminded the UK Home Secretary, Jack Straw, as he reviews the case
for Augusto Pinochet's extradition to Spain.
"Jack Straw should not forget that, under the Convention against
Torture, the United Kingdom is obliged to proceed with extradition or to conduct
a trial in the UK," Amnesty International stressed. "The law and not
politics should guide his decision."
Despite the legal impediments to bringing Augusto Pinochet to justice on the
full range of charges raised by the Spanish extradition request, the fact that
thousands of people were victims of crimes against humanity, including torture,
murder and "disappearances", during the government of former general
Pinochet remains undisputed.
The House of Lords' ruling itself clearly states that "there is no real
dispute that during the period of the Senator Pinochet regime, appalling acts of
barbarism were committed in Chile and elsewhere in the world: torture, murder
and the unexplained disappearance of individuals, all on a large scale."
"Although it is not alleged that Senator Pinochet himself committed any
of those acts, it is alleged that they were done in pursuance of a conspiracy to
which he was a party, at his instigation and with his knowledge," the
ruling continues.
The House of Lords' landmark ruling should not be rendered ineffective by the
misleading impression that the remaining charges against Augusto Pinochet --
including one case of torture and certain conspiracies to torture - are somehow
'not enough' to justify his extradition and trial.
The opinion by Lord Hope of Craighead discussed only the three cases after 8
December 1988 -- which were listed in the sample draft charges prepared during
the course of the second hearing to assist the House of Lords in understanding
what charges in Spain would look like in an English court. It is not a complete
list of all the crimes included in the extradition request.
"Now that the House of Lords has reaffirmed the principle that heads of
state are not immune from charges of torture, the Home Secretary must not lose
sight of the fact that the pain of one human being, the blood of even a single
victim, is as worthy of justice as the suffering of thousands," Amnesty
International said.
One of the crimes for which the House of Lords' ruled Augusto Pinochet could
still be extradited involves the torture to death of a 17-year-old boy, Marcos
Quesada Yañez. Arrested by police on 24 June 1989, Marcos is said to have been
subjected to severe electric shocks.
Given that at present Augusto Pinochet is covered by parliamentary immunity
in Chile -- in his capacity as Senator for life -- and by the provisions of the
1978 amnesty law -- Amnesty International is calling on Jack Straw not to block
an avenue for justice left open to victims of human rights violations committed
during Pinochet's government.
"The Home Secretary, as he did last December, should let the judiciary
examine the cases still pending against the former general," Amnesty
International said. "Let the courts decide."
###
|
Share This Article With A Friend