Augusto Pinochet, the former Chilean President from 1973 to 1990,
died at 91 on Sunday at 2:15 PM (17:15 GMT) from heart
complications, a statement from the Santiago Military hospital said
on Sunday.
The hospital said Pinochet' condition suddenly worsened as
doctors rushed him back to the Intensive Care Unit, from which he
had only removed on Thursday. He had been recovering from an acute
heart attack he suffered one week ago.
Relatives and friends of Pinochet were arriving at the
hospital.
Pinochet had been admitted to hospital a week earlier with what
doctors described as an acute heart attack. He underwent an
angioplasty procedure in which doctors enlarged a clogged artery,
restoring blood flow to the heart.
Last Sunday, Pinochet had a coronary bypass operation after
suffering a heart attack, a very risky operation for someone of his
age.
Pinochet has been accused of four charges: the Caravan of Death
Case, referring to the kidnap and murder of two personal guards of
Salvador Allende, the left-wing president deposed by Pinochet in
the coup of Sept. 11, 1973; two other major human rights abuse
cases, and one for allegedly embezzling US$27 million of public
funds.
In 2000, Chile's Supreme Court stripped Pinochet of his
presidential immunity, paving the way for a trial. However, two
years later, the same court dropped the charges, saying the former
president was too ill to stand trial.
Born on Nov. 25, 1915, in Valparaiso City, Pinochet seemed bred
for a career in the military, being educated at the Military
Academy, the School of Infantry, the Academy of War and the Academy
of National Defense.
Pinochet began his army career in 1933 rising up the ranks to
become Commander-in-Chief of the army division in 1969,
Commander-in-Chief of the Santiago garrison in 1971 and Chief of
Staff of the Army in 1972. He led a military coup on Sept. 11, 1973
as Commander-in-Chief of the army, deposing president Salvador
Allende to form a military government.
Since then, he remained President of the military junta and
Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, head of state from June
1974 and President of Chile from Dec. 17, 1974. He resigned in
March 1990 after 55 percent of voters rejected a proposal that
Pinochet should stay in power in a national referendum held on
Oct.5.
(Xinhua News Agency December 11, 2006)
