Essay on The Dictator who Was Augusto Pinochet

5.Constable, Pamela, and Arturo Valenzuela. A Nation of Enemies Chile Under Pinochet. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, 1993. Print.

The United States is set to believe that they actually helped Pinochet rise to power in Chile by getting President Allende overthrown. As of now there is only 40 thousand people that where victims and are being recognized. The Chilean people were in step into facing a horrible genocide right when a man, by the name of Augusto Pinochet, took over which lead to many death as well as torture.

After the age of enlightenment, colonies and nations around the world began questioning their rulers and ruling nations. Liberal and nationalist ideas spread across Europe and the world, especially after the French Revolution. When these beliefs spread to the colonies of America, independence movements and revolts occurred. The Latin American revolution and Haitian revolution were both significant events during the 19th century that affected both their respective nations and the world. While both revolutions resulted similarly such that a social hierarchy based on race existed after independence, they differ in that while the Latin American revolutions placed an emphasis on ending the Spanish casta system, Haitian revolution was based on freeing slaves.

According to Garreton, the oppositions had successfully created a political front that aggregated enough support for an alternative to the current regime. This resulted in a democratization in Chile that was also free and repressive. Chile had a pacted transition which was actor-centered. This transition to democracy was repressive in that the elections were started from the top down, only once the elites and the official agreed to hold an election was there any form of a transition. As O’Donnell described it, it is ironically non-democratic because these pacts are negotiated among small numbers of elites. It was also repressive in that once Chile was democratized it delayed truth and justice. Those that were involved in many of the atrocities did not serve jail time because of the amnesty laws. However, this transition was also free because it resulted in elections that allowed for the public to decide whether or not they were going to transition to democracy. These elections were also free in that they were inclusive and also non-violent. This then resulted in a stable democratic government that was bred through both freedom and

He promoted his anti-communist agenda, and he fought communism and controlling governments including Chile’s Augusto Pinochet. Chile’s military government was commanded by Pinochet from 1974 – 1990. During Pinochet’s tyrannical reign, tens of thousands of people under his command were tortured and killed. Senator Helms challenged those who valued democratic freedoms. Helms urged everyone to protect the democratic freedoms at all costs and stated, “Communism is far from dead, and the cruelty of communist governments has not lessened.” Through all of these issues, no pressure ever forced Senator Helms to break his word, go against his values or religious

In 1989 under the George H.W Bush administration the United States was involved in war with Panama. In December of that year, the United States Military invaded Panama to overthrow Manuel Noriega, the military dictator of the country. Manuel Noriega was accused of drug trafficking in the United States and also abolished democracy in Panama. He also harmed the stability of the United Nations. Before Noriega was accused of such actions, he worked for the Central Intelligence Agency in the attempt to assist the U.S in the plan to reduce communism in Central America. He worked for the United States and then removed from the CIA because of his affiliation with drug trafficking. Then he was brought back to the side of the United

During 1973, Chilean Congress and Judiciary took a stand against Allende and it was claimed that Allende’s governmental rule broke the Chilean constitution. After the battle with congress, the military stormed Allende’s palace and killed Allende while armed. In modern times, millions of people were inspired by Allende’s road to socialism and believers found it necessary to argue on the lesson but, furthermore on Allende’s behalf. On the other hand, the Chilean Communist Party thought the presidential rule of

Paraguayans do not have many historical happy times in their past. Their history leading up to Operation Condor involves three men that led the country to a government based on military dictatorships. After Jose Francia and Carlos Lopez, two of the first leaders of Paraguay after winning independence from Spain, Francisco Lopez is in power in 1862 (Resnick). Lopez was interested in not being a country of isolation and forced everyone to be part of the military unless one was a priest or could pay the price to not be in the military. While he signs a treaty with Uruguay a war is about to begin over who is in power in Uruguay. Lopez runs into trouble with bringing Paraguay into the War of the Triple Alliance. Paraguay falls on the wrong side having to fight against Brazil, Argentina, and the Colorado Party of Uruguay (Resnick). Paraguayans are forced with two options that both end in death: not fight and be executed by Lopez or go to war and be killed by Brazilians, Argentinians, or Uruguayans. Paraguay eventually has to even send their children to fight due to the loss of many people. After Paraguay loses the war, Brazil takes the country over. The next known leader that Paraguay has after Brazil leaves is Alfredo Stroessner. This man starts the process of Operation Condor in 1975 (Resnick). Stroessner becomes leader of Paraguay in 1954 due to his planned military coup taking over the nation. He was the Commander in Chief of the military in Paraguay controlling all parts of the military. Stroessner put conditions in place like Argentina with additions including secret police, censorship, prison camps, torture, no freedom of speech, banning unions, curfew, dissolving Congress, and suspending the Constitution. His reason for the military coup and the new conditions put in place in Paraguay was due to the fear of

As Charles Bergquist observes, "Crises in Colombia tend to generate cycles of violence instead of mutations in the political regime." The reason is simple: regime changes in Colombia tend to produce very little change in anything other than nominal rule. Since Colombia's independence from Spain in the early 19th century, Colombia has seen a series of civil wars and secessions (Venezuela, Ecuador, and Panama the last coming rather conveniently at a time when the U.S. was prepared to pay millions for a canal through its nation preparation that later resulted in a multi-million dollar redress to Columbia). Colombia's political history, therefore, has been colored by outside influences pulling on the two dominant liberal and conservative parties, with violent exchanges, and long periods of instability being the consequences. While regime changes have occurred, they have not produced significant improvements. Rather, Colombia in the 20th century has become a nesting ground for paramilitary forces and drug traffickers, with U.S. Central Intelligence operatives contributing heavily to the violent conflict that has risen between regimes. This paper will examine the regime types that preceded the Rojas Pinilla regime in mid-20th century Colombia, analyze their similarities and differences, and discuss the extent to which Rojas Pinilla reached his goals and objectives.

After the socialist Sandinista party overthrew the Nicaraguan dictatorship in 1979, President Jimmy Carter and, later, Ronald Reagan’s respective administrations each concerned over other leftist movements in Central America. With leftist guerrilla forces on the rise in El Salvador, the country “was seen as the next link in the chain of communist aggression after Cuba and Nicaragua” (Anderson, 1982, 71). The Carter administration increased military aid to the new Salvadoran government after publishing a memorandum declaring that “the political direction, organization and arming of the Salvadoran insurgency is coordinated and heavily influenced by Cuba with the active support of the Soviet Union, East Germany, Vietnam and other Communist states” (De Onis,

Chile’s economy was effectively owned by US corporation’s, and these corporation’s controlled the country's resources. When Allende nationalized copper the two main American corporation were financially hurt severely and lost a lot of profit. This concerned the US and Nixon worried that Chile was falling under soviet control and communism. One of Nixon’s fears was that the Soviets would have total control in Americas backyard. However, the major reason that the US instigated the overthrow was because the corporations did not want Chile to take over their own resources and use them for their own benefit. The corporations were able to exercise leverage over Allende because Chile was in the middle of an economic depression and Chile was receiving loans from American banks. Once Allende was in power these loans were stopped by US foreign policy and of course Chile suffered economically . At this point,

Chile’s economy was in ruin, and its citizen were looking for a way out of the mess that was occurring. The middle class was fed up with President Allende’s policiess, and a Coup ensued with the help of opposition groups backed by the CIA and president Nixon. The Chilean military surrounded President Allende’s palace and eventually resorted to bombing. This bombing campaign led to the

Noriega’s intelligence was his strongest attribute as he used it reign Panama decisively . Noriega was abandoned at age five then raised by a separate impoverished family. With little to no financial support, he decided to take the initiative and worked hard in school. His perseverance paid off, and he was able to attend many top notch schools in Chile; the first one being The National Institute located in Lima, Peru. Many would suspect that Noriega would fail due to his impoverished upbringing, rather than succeed at such preeminent institutions.

In the years following the Congress of Vienna, revolts plagued many European countries as well as several areas in Latin America. France was driven from Haiti, Portugal lost control of Brazil, and Spain was forced to withdraw from all its American empire except for Cuba and Puerto Rico. Colonial government in South America came to an end. Three countries where revolts were successfully established were Haiti, Venezuela, and Brazil. The countries in Latin America benefited from the revolts because they became free from colonial rule, but, except for Brazil, they were left with many consequences.

It is impossible to separate the history of military dictatorships in Latin America from the history of economic exploitation and of US intervention in the region. The history of slavery and other forced labor in the pursuit of large-scale agriculture and resource extraction in the time of the colonies has created a legacy of economic exploitation. This poverty and inequality has in many cases led to popular uprisings and calls for reform, which provided the reason (or the excuse, depending on your point of view) to use military force to restore discipline. The United States' willingness to support strong regimes capable of securing its interests in the region also has played a decisive role. These