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Spanish and Chilean Foreign Ministers accused of deliberate obstruction to justice
Nizkor Human Rights Team; Human Rights Association of Andalucia; Human Rights Association of Spain and Serpaj Europe:HAVING REGARD TO:
The position made public by the Foreign Affairs Minister of Chile, Juan Gabriel Valdes, in which he requested the State of Spain to interrupt the extradition process of Senator for Life Augusto Pinochet Ugarte, by using, as an instrumental mechanism, the arbitration anticipated in Article 30 of the Convention Against Torture.
The position made public by the Foreign Affairs Minister of Spain, Abel Matutes, in the sense that they would be carefully studying the Chilean government's "original proposal" with the purpose of requesting Spanish State Council's opinion as to promote the instrumental utilization of the Convention Against Torture.
The idea on the part of the Spanish government of requesting the first opposition party to collaborate in the machination of the legal mechanism needed to give form to the said instrumentation, always aiming at putting an end to the proceedings against Senator for Life Augusto Pinochet Ugarte, detained by the British police on October 16, 1998.
The recognition on the part of the Spanish Foreign Affairs Minister of having sent to the Chilen authorities judicial information on the case that is being conducted before the Spanish National Audience, which he has done in an official manner and through the ordinary diplomatic channels, without appealing to the Investigating Court Number Five and without complying with the mandatory judicial procedure typical of the Rule of Law.
WE WOULD LIKE TO RECALL THE FOLLOWING:That Chile is not legitimated to make use of Article 30 of the Convention Against Torture, due to the fact that the said country made a reservation to such article upon ratifying the Convention.
It is obvious that the Foreign Miniter of Chile has knowledge of this fact in a reliable way, therefore his actions have the only possible purpose of obstructing the course of justice, protecting Senator for Life and consolidating the impunity of which Chile enjoys.
None of the States currently involved in the detention of Senator for Life is a party to the proceedings, or which is the same, neither Spain, nor Chile, nor the United Kingdom are a party to the proceedings and therefore they are not entitled to have any iniciative except for those anticipated under the Rule of Law.
Spanish justice did not apply the Convention Against Torture, as it is clear from the writs issued by the Criminal Court of the National Audience dated November 4 and 5, 1998; the panel of Judges of this Court unanimously defined as genocide, and not as torture, the offenses committed by Senator for Life A. Pinochet.
It is obvious that the Foreign Affairs Minister of Spain has knowledge of this fact in a reliable way,
therefore his actions have the only possible purpose of obstructing the course of justice and protecting
someone who has been indicted by a Spanish judicial body because of serious offenses against human rights, thus turning Spain into an accomplice in the pretended protection in favour of A. Pinochet.
The rules that govern under the Rule of Law do not permit, in any case, the law to be interpreted out of the justice courts and consequently, they forbid any extrajudicial arrangements while dealing with this type of offenses. In this case, the courts have issued themselves in time and form, both in the United Kingdom and Spain, therefore the Governments of the said countries should proceed according to their resolutions, never conspiring against the course of international justice.
The Spanish government has exhausted Augusto Pinochet Ugarte extradition process in the terms legally established by the Spanish legal system, therefore there is not any room left for retractation and much less through a pretended legal retroactivity as it has been proposed to the Secretary-General of the Spanish Socialist Party, Joaquin Almunia.
The Convention Against Torture is a human rights international law instrument which aims at pursuing the systematic practice of torture and the conspiracy for torture, facts that, in any case, the legal counsel of Senator for Life was kind enough to recognize in the proceedings before the House of Lords; therefore it is obvious that the possible interpretations pretended by the mentioned Foreign Ministries are indeed forms of collaboration typical of what is known as concealment; in this case we are talking about the covering up of the crimes committed by Senator for Life A. Pinochet Ugarte.
The Chilean government has reiterated in numerous opportunities its resignation to appeal to The Hague International Court of Justice, before which it could denounce the "wrong" application of the Convention on the part of the British or the Spanish justice. This intelligent decision consolidates our opinion that we are facing a mere concealment and justice obstruction operation carried out in a planned and premeditated way.
REQUESTED ACTIONS:1) That the Judge in charge of the investigation proceedings of the case in favour of the Spanish disappeared in Argentina and Chile indicts the Foreign Ministers of Chile and Spain for obstruction to justice and conspiracy for concealment of crimes against humanity.
2) That the Spanish government proceeds to dismiss its Foreign Affairs Minister because of violation of his constitutional obligation of respecting justice and the principle of separation of powers.
3) That the Chilean Government proceeds in identical way against its Foreign Affairs Minister, Juan Gabriel Valdes.
4) That the Spanish government proceeds to make public all documents in its hands on Chilean repression; until the moment these documents have been deliberately hidden.
PLEASE, SEND MESSAGES TO:A) Spanish Authorities:
- Presidente del Gobierno. D. José María Aznar (President of Government) - Fax: +34.91.549.2739
- Ministra de Justicia. Dña. Margarita Mariscal de Gante y Mirón. (Ministry of Justice) - Fax: +34.91.390.2268
- Fiscalía General del Estado. D. Jesús Cardenal Hernández. (Attorney-General's Office) - Fax: +34.91. 319.3317
- Presidente del Congreso de los Diputados. D. Federico Trillo-Figueroa Martínez- Conde. (President of Congress) - Fax: +34.91.429.7138
- Portavoz del Grupo Popular ante el Parlamento. D. Luis de Grandes. (Popular Party Speaker before the Parliament) - Fax: +34.91.420.2516
- Portavoz de CiU ante el Parlamento. D. Joaquim Molins i Amat. (CiU Speaker before the P.) - Fax: +34.91.429.6776
- Portavoz del PNV ante el Parlamento. D. Iñaki Mirena Anasagasti Olabeaga. (PNV speaker before the P.) Fax: +34.91.429.4623
- Portavoz de Coalición Canaria ante el Parlamento. D. Juan Carlos Mauricio Rodríguez. (Coalición Canaria speaker before the P.) Fax: +34.91.369.0515
- Portavoz del Partido Socialista Obrero Español ante el Parlamento. D. Joaquin Almunia (Socialist Party speaker before the P.) Fax: +34.91.429.7860
B) Chilean Authorities:
- Presidente de la República - Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle - Palacio de la Moneda - Santiago, Chile - Telegramas: Presidente, Santiago, Chile - Fax: + 562 694 5080
- Ministro del Interior - Raúl Troncoso - Palacio de la Moneda - Santiago, Chile - Telegramas: Ministro Interior, Santiago, Chile - Fax: + 562 696 8740 / 699 2165
- Ministra de Justicia - Sra. María Soledad Alvear - Ministerio de Justicia - Morandé 107 - Santiago, Chile - Telegramas: Ministra Justicia, Santiago, Chile - Fax: + 562 698 7098
- Ministro de Relaciones Exteriores - Sr. Juan Gabriel Valdes - Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores - Catedral 1158, Piso 3 - Santiago, Chile - Fax: + 562 696 8796 / 672 6274
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