rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (06/26/91)
/** reg.samerica: 150.0 **/
** Topic: Political Prisoners End Strike **
** Written 8:49 pm Jun 24, 1991 by chilevencera in cdp:reg.samerica **
Santiago, June 22, 1991
POLITICAL PRISONERS END STRIKE
Chile's political prisoners ended their hunger strike Saturday,
June 21, at noon, after 23 days. The decision came in the wake of
government assurances that several new measures were in the works
to expedite the handling of their cases. At least six strikers had
been hospitalized by the time the strike was called off. Friday
evening supporters of the strikers held a government authorized
march, through downtown Santiago. Around 5,000 people marched in
support of the hunger strikers.
Supporters of the strikers read a statement outside of the
public jail in Santiago Saturday afternoon that called the
strike a success. Some of the considerations for ending the strike
were:
1) President Aylwin, last week, in conversations with Supreme
Court President Correa, secured Supreme Court support for the
appointment of special judges to deal solely with the political
prisoner cases.
2) The government has dispatched special legislation to
Congress with the status of "urgent." Congress must deal with it
in 10 days or less. This legislation would allow most political
prisoners the right to bail if their cases are not administered in
an expeditious manner.
3) The government has begun compiling the histories of each
political prisoner so that when petitions for pardon are made, the
facts surrounding the individual and his case will already be at
hand, thus enabling the president to quickly decide on the case.
At the same time, eleven more political prisoners sentenced under
Pinochet's repressive laws were granted pardons by President Aylwin
yesterday. Aylwin has now pardoned a total of 130 political
prisoners.
Justice Minister Cumplido said that the petitions for pardons were
filed before the political prisoners' hunger strike and that
Aylwin's decision to pardon the eleven was in no way influenced by
the strike.
** End of text from cdp:reg.samerica **