This was in response to a request from a judge in an Italian court which linked him to the kidnapping of two Italian women and one man.
I remember with poignancy how at the time of Pinochet's house arrest in London, a prominent figure in Marxism Space, and owner of his own List, thought it his ideological duty to mock the importance of the actions of a "maverick" Spanish judge. This, it turned out subsequently, was a line of demarcation between Kautskyism and genuine Leninism (the sort defined by having an FBI record).
Events have now moved on and it is easier to see who more correctly identified the movement going on under our very eyes.
The fine print about Astiz, comes at a time of a flurry of cases developing a new concept of international (bourgeois) law in defence of human rights.
On thse lists people have rightly been restrained in crowing with any sense of victory about the transportation of Milosevic in view of the highly imperialist nature of the war and all the manoeuvrings. Nevetheless this is history developing under our eyes.
The extradition of Milosevic to the Hague is a qualitative step in a process of developing international law. The possibility of international extradition for crimes against humanity began with Pinochet, detained in a gilded cage in London, three or four years ago.
The extradition of Montesinos to Peru has been coordinated by the US state, and against the will of the Venezuelan regime but it is some proof that even under Bush the USA thinks it has to appear equitable in the development of international justice.
The pressure is now on for the surrender of Serbian fascists like Mladic and Karadicz. But there is a sting in the tail on Milosevic. If the Hague cannot make all the charges stick, it may have to convict him on lesser charges, the sort that would make leaders of the US accountable to international courts.
Karadicz and Kissinger also to the Hague!
Chris Burford
London
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Montesinos is accused of massive corruption while serving as President Alberto Fujimori's right-hand man during his 1990-2000 presidency. He faces 52 court cases on charges including murder, money laundering, drug trafficking, arms dealing and directing death squads.
A videotape of Montesinos bribing an opposition lawmaker led to Fujimori's downfall. He lives in exile in Japan, his ancestral homeland.