CHILE:
Army Chief Draws Fire Over Tragic Accidents
María Cecilia Espinosa

SANTIAGO,  (IPS) - Tragic events that caused the deaths of dozens of soldiers last year have led to criticism of Chilean army chief General Juan Emilio Cheyre, the only person to have admitted the army's "institutional responsibility" for the thousands of forced disappearances and acts of torture committed during the 1973-1990 dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.

Cheyre has built up a strong reputation during his four years as army commander-in-chief, taking steps to modernise, professionalise and depoliticise the army while introducing training in human rights, graduate courses and foreign languages, and reducing the number of regiments from 67 to 28.

His declaration of "Never again," when he acknowledged the army's responsibility for the human rights abuses committed during the de facto regime, was accompanied by criminal proceedings against officers and an end to obstructions of justice.

But on his return from an official visit to South Africa, the general found himself facing criticism over the deaths of three soldiers who fell into a crevasse in Antarctica while on an unauthorised mission in September, about which he at first denied knowledge.

And on Feb. 9, a military tribunal investigating the deaths of 45 soldiers convicted former major Patricio Cereceda of manslaughter and dereliction of duty, sentencing him to five years in jail. The young recruits died in an early winter blizzard during a march on the slopes of the Antuco volcano last May.

Lesser sentences for dereliction of duty were handed down to former colonel Roberto Mercado, lieutenant colonel Luis Pineda and captains Claudio Gutiérrez and Carlos Olivares, all from the Reforzado Los Angeles regiment.

Both events show that there is a "lack of military leadership" in the army, said lawmaker Jorge Ulloa of the rightwing opposition Independent Democratic Union (UDI), who is chairman of the National Defence Committee in the lower house.

Government spokesman Osvaldo Puccio declined to comment on the verdicts in the Antuco case, and repeatedly defended commander Cheyre, pointing to the "historic, transformational character" of his command, which has forged "closer ties with civil society."

President Ricardo Lagos himself praised Cheyre's action with respect to the two tragic cases, and emphasised the change in the officers' corps after the 17-year dictatorship. General Cheyre is due to step down as commander-in chief on Mar. 9.

But Alfredo Morgado, a lawyer representing a number of the victims of both tragedies, believes Cheyre should admit responsibility and testify in a civilian court, since members of military tribunals are all subordinate to him.

Morgado told IPS that "the government's unconditional backing of certain top commanders is a mistake, when direct accusations are being made about 'encapsulating' information, which is nothing other than covering up the truth" and "obstruction of justice."

In his opinion, both accidents were foreseeable and preventable. In addition to lack of transparency and misplaced priorities, he blames "a culture of fear, in which junior officers are afraid to inform their superiors, and superiors don't listen to their subordinates."

On May 18, 44 conscripts with less than a month's military training, and one sergeant, froze to death on a 27-kilometre march on the slopes of the Antuco volcano, 585 kilometres south of Santiago. The poorly equipped soldiers were overtaken by a sudden snowstorm, and officers were accused of deserting their men.

Most of the 18 and 19-year-old recruits were from low-income families.

Four months later, a captain and two lower-ranking officers died when their snow vehicle fell into a 30 metre deep ice crevasse in Antarctica. At first it was reported as an accident that occurred during an official mission, but investigations later revealed that the men had taken expensive equipment out in bad weather, without authorisation, to recover a sledge from the same crevasse.

Colonel Miguel Santibáñez, former commander of the Antarctic Department, testified in a military court that Cheyre sent him instructions to keep information quiet about the deaths in Antarctica, and not to reveal that the mission was unauthorised, in order to safeguard the army's image, already tarnished by the Antuco case.

However, this week the prosecution refused Morgado's request that Cheyre be summoned for questioning.

Legislator Jorge Tarud of the co-governing Party for Democracy, a member of the National Defence Committee in Congress, told IPS that "civil-military relations are good, the army is working together with the civilian authorities, and conversations with parliament are going well," so he thought the army leadership would not be called into question.

Tarud acknowledged that "Chileans had little confidence in an army that participated in all kinds of human rights violations in our country." But "after Pinochet, the commanders-in-chief have acted honestly, working towards reconciliation between the army and the civilian population, so that the army has come to be seen as belonging to all Chileans rather than to one political sector."

He maintained that the criticism voiced by the UDI is aimed at politicising the subject and at getting back at the commander-in-chief for his declaration of 'Never again,' which did not please right-wing sectors that had ties with the dictatorship.

In Morgado's view, both cases have created "public alarm" which can be heard on the streets.

"People still trust the army as an institution, but some of its authorities have distorted information and manipulated people's feelings," remarked Jorge Díaz, a national airline operator.

"Commanding officers should be responsible, honest, and respect the regulations. Army personnel should rigorously follow procedures, and the officers involved in these cases haven't done so," teacher Lucía Garcés told IPS.

To many of the victims' families, the sentences in the Antuco case are no consolation, and they have filed appeals. At a peaceful demonstration outside the Palacio de la Moneda, the seat of government, they remembered their dead and called for Cheyre to resign. One of the signs the protesters carried said, "Military justice acts only when an officer dies".