AUTUMN OF A DICTATOR
- Share via
Most readers probably believe “The a masterful rewrite of Chilean history. Dorfman claims that Gen. Augusto Pinochet was a tyrant, seeking to reign forever; “ended democracy there” by (“backed by the U.S.”) overthrowing Allende; “terrorized” the people and brought “economic crises” to Chile.
But, the worse lie is that Pinochet “hit upon . . . an ingenious idea” to turn National Stadium into a concentration camp for torturing and executing dissidents.
It was Allende, not Pinochet, who first filled National Stadium with “dissidents.” One was my wife’s brother, severely tortured but released. Not so lucky were hundreds with him who Allende killed.
Yes, “all the atrocities must be remembered.” Let’s remember every communist killed by the military in the battle for Chile; let’s also remember those hundreds, maybe thousands, of anti-communists killed by Allende.
ROBERT G. HAMLIN
Santa Monica
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
