Note: This article was originally posted on September 12, 2010. We are republishing it on the eve of the fortieth anniversary of the 1973 military coup in Chile.
While most people in the States associate September 11th with the
tragedies in 2001, that date has a different significance for some
Chileans. On that day
in 1973 the Chilean military carried out a coup d'etat against the
government led by Salavdor Allende.
Over 3000 people marched in
Santiago on Saturday in order to "pay homage to the victims of the military dictatorship" under Augusto Pinochet Others, however, view Pinochet's legacy
in a more positive light and defended the coup. Opinions differ in
Chile over whether the coup was justified but September 11,1973 was a
key date in that nation's history.
"The Battle of Chile"
was a critically acclaimed documentary filmed in three parts by
Patricio Guzman. Made in 1975, 1976, and 1979, the movie examined the
conditions that led to the coup against Allende as well as the deep
social and political divisions before and after the golpe.
The following clip
(below the page break) come from Guzman's film and shows the military onslaught against the Chilean
presidential residence, the military junta's first post-coup televised
address, and the start of the infamous crackdown against government
dissidents.
We will return on Wednesday with several news stories from the Americas including more on the fortieth anniversary of the 1973 "golpe."
Online Sources - BBC News; Press TV; NPR; Icarus Films
Video Source - YouTube via user Jose Vergara
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