Presumably he needs rather heavy personalised sarcasm to conceal his view that the house arrest of Pinochet in London is reactionary and colonial.
Prior to this arrest, it was hard for anyone in Chile to imagine that Pinochet could be put on trial. Indeed one of the arguments used in England for Pinochet's prompt release was that Chile had come to a compromise that involved burying the past, and that his arrest would only stir up that fragile concensus. Instead it emboldened the left in Chile, and now they are dusting off their own legal process. The tactics of how the left argued this in Chile cannot obscure the overall position that has swung powerfully towards a trial. That has involved a combination of campaigning internationally and campaigning within Chile.
Lagos played the situation cautiously, and has been arguing like his opponent that the Chilean courts might consider the situation but they need to be independent of the President. It is obvious however that he is opening the door to Pinochet's trial. But on an interview with the BBC tonight he by no means demanded that Pinochet must immediately be returned by Britain. Instead he concentrated on emphasising that there is a Chilean legal system that could look at the matter.
Allegations of colonialism to justify an ultra-leftist position by "Mr Grinker" cannot really obscure the picture. Everyone knows that the case in London is in response to an application to tranfer Pinochet to Spain for trial. This is an issue of the emergence of international civil rights law starting to take precedence in crimes against humanity over the doctrine of state sovereignty. That is of course not the same political phenomenon as colonialism, except by way of rhetorical flourish.
It provides international forums where judges that some would wish to dismiss as mavericks can challenge former dictators world wide.
Certainly the case has to be argued that for example Pinochet is more worthy of trial than Egon Krenz, but at least it can be argued.
That, as well as the victory of Lagos, is a victory for justice in the world.
I doubt if "Mr Grinker" will be convinced.
Chris Burford
London
______________________
At 10:59 17/01/00 +0200, you wrote:
>Mr Burford wrote:
>>The harrassment of the old torturer by the cumbersome development of
>>bourgeois international civil rights law, is yes, bourgeois - suprise
>>surprise! - and YES, a victory for the people of Chile and the people of
>>the world!
>
>
>Maybe he should read the article which he forwarded with a bit more
>attention:
>
>> Mr Lagos is an opponent of the
>> former military dictator, and was
>> imprisoned briefly by the general
>> in the mid-1980s.
>>
>> He supported efforts to get General Pinochet
>> released from detention in London, saying he should
>> be tried in Chile.
>
>
>It seems then that Lagos' election platform OPPOSED the prosecution of
>Pinochet in the West. So maybe people in Chile actually do know a bit more
>than Burford about the real implications of the glorious new era of
>"international civil rights law" - that it means yet further space for the
>West to interfere in the affairs of their country. In true positive
>colonialist style Burford will however continue to know what's best for
>them.
>
>Russell
>
>