Doc. 8259 2^nd edition
20 November 1998

Arrest of Pinochet

Written Declaration No. 285

2^nd edition, originally tabled on 3 November 1998

This written declaration commits only the members who have signed it

We were pleased to learn of the arrest in London of the former dictator Augusto Pinochet and of the steps taken by the Spanish judge B. Garson to have him extradited. We regret that it has not been possible to bring him before a Chilean court to answer for the crimes committed by the regime which he headed, but this impunity seems to be coming to an end thanks to the courage of European judges and the tenacity of the families of victims of the dictatorship.

      The legal battle that is beginning will be long and arduous, in particular because of the legal complexity of the procedure under way. But it is exemplary in more than one regard. There can be neither impunity nor borders where crimes against humanity and grave violations of human rights are concerned. Their imprescriptibility admits of no exception. Time cannot cause the missing persons, the dead and the one million Chileans who fled the country after the coup d'état to be forgotten.

      We call upon justice-loving democrats to support the fight to have Pinochet brought to what should be exemplary trial.

Signed : ¹

Badulescu, Romania, SOC

Barsony, Hungary, SOC

Carvalho, Portugal, UEL       /continued overleaf

Davis, United Kingdom, SOC

Dumont, France, SOC

Durrieu, France, SOC

Filimonov, Russia, UEL

Gremetz, France, UEL

Jirousova, Czech Republic, UEL

Judd, United Kingdom, SOC

Kelemen, Romania, EPP/CD

Kirilov, Bulgaria, SOC

Kuptsov, Russia, UEL

Laakso, Finland, UEL

Martinez, Spain, SOC

Melnikov, Russia, UEL

Oleinik, Russia, UEL

Oliynyk, Ukraine, UEL

Sandrier, France, UEL

Schieder, Austria, SOC

Urbain, Belgium, SOC

Van der Maelen, Belgium, SOC

Akçali, Turkey, EDG

Alis Font, Andorra, NR

Baburin, Ukraine, UEL

Cox, United Kingdom, SOC

Degn, Denmark, SOC

Fyfe, United Kingdom, SOC

I-B. Johansson, Sweden, SOC

Lekberg, Sweden, SOC

Lemoine, France, SOC

Magnusson, Sweden, SOC

Marmazov, Ukraine, UEL

Ponsonby, United Kingdom, SOC

Rakhansky, Ukraine, UEL

Stepova, Czech Republic, SOC

Strizhko, Ukraine, UEL

Symonenko, Ukraine, UEL

Tsybenko, Ukraine, UEL

Vitrenko, Ukraine, UEL

___________________

Total = 40

¹        SOC: Socialist Group

      EPP/CD: Group of the European People’s Party

      EDG:European Democratic Group

      LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers’ Group

      UEL : Group of the Unified European Left

      NR : Not registered in a group