PART THREE
Chapter Two (A.2.a)

1974 through August 1977 (continued)

1. HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS COMMITTED BY GOVERNMENT AGENTS OR PERSONS WORKING FOR THEM (continued)
   
   
   2. CASES
      
      
      1. 1. In the cases of disappearances presented in this chapter, the following considerations enabled the Commission to come to the conviction that government agents were responsible:
            
            
            • The Commission had access to a great deal of testimony by witnesses who observed the arrests, were themselves arrested, or were held in prison sites along with the victims. These witnesses provide consistent and accurate accounts of the particular events recorded here and also of the existence of the organizations, methods, facilities, agents, and other means that are dealt with in this chapter.
              
              
            • With regard to cases involving the DINA and the Joint Command, the Commission has had access to statements by its agents. Those statements are consistent with what the above mentioned witnesses have said, and they add details and circumstances that such agents were better able to appreciate due to their position in the organization.
              
              
            • The Commission has also had access to statements by people who worked in various important capacities in the military government. They confirm that the security agencies, and particularly the DINA and the Joint Command were intensely involved in repressive activity that was outside the control of the courts and other government bodies.
              
              
            • The Commission has verified that those persons who disappeared have left no documentation, signature, registry of leaving the country, or any other kind of transaction subsequent to the date of their disappearance.
              
              
            • Most of the families have testified that they have not had any contact with, or news of, the victims since they were arrested and disappeared.
              
              
            • It has been established that the answers given by officials about arrests were generally untrue, and often contradictory, and that they were not given on the basis of any serious investigation into what had happened. Rather they indicated a concern to delimit responsibility or conceal the actions of the security agencies.
              
              
            • Efforts have been made to offer all persons or agencies involved in the events the opportunity to provide their version of what happened. Nevertheless, these persons and agencies have not offered any proof that would fundamentally refute the conclusions that the Commission reached.
              
              
            • It has been established that the security agencies, especially the DINA, systematically persecuted activists of the MIR, the Socialist party, and the Communist party by means of clandestine arrests, holding them in secret facilities, torturing them, raiding their homes, illegally killing them, and subjecting them to forced disappearance.
              
              
            • In those cases in which prisoners are said to have been subjected to forced disappearance at the hands of government agents even when there is no proof that they were arrested or held in any detention site, the reasons for the Commission's conviction are set forth.
              
              
            • Nevertheless, the circumstances proper to each case are briefly related, along with the relevant circumstances that amplify or qualify these observations. In those cases in which the victims did not disappear the account describes how they died or were killed.
              
              
            1. Cases similar to the repression patterns of late 1973
               
               As noted above, the most characteristic features of the 1974-1977 period were the systematic use of forced disappearance in order to eliminate people, with the DINA taking the lead, although other security agencies were also operating. Before examining the cases that were more typical of this period, we must note a series of grave human rights violations that took place during the first few months of 1974 and even later, which fit the patterns of repression prevailing in late 1973. Some of the victims during this period were active in MIR or other left parties, but their death or disappearance was not part of the centralized and systematic action on the part of the DINA and similar agencies that typified this period. Often enough the victims were not politically active, or their death or disappearance had nothing to do with their activism.
               
               
               1. Disappearance after arrest
                  
                  a.1.1) Cases in which repression is clearly politically motivated
                  
                  

                  On January 1, 1974, Gastón de Jesús CORTES VALDIVIA, 39, an office worker and labor union leader at the Compañía de Cervecerías Unidas [brewery], disappeared. Investigative police had arrested him December 29, 1973, and he was held at their barracks, where eyewitnesses say he was repeatedly tortured. On January 1 Gastón Cortés' family was told that he had escaped while being transferred to the local jail. The newspaper said the same thing, and added that the prisoner escaped when the vehicle transporting him was attacked by subversives. Since that day there has been no further information concerning his whereabouts or his fate. The Commission came to the conviction that the official account provided at that time is not true: it believes that government agents were responsible for the disappearance of Gastón Cortés, and that they thus violated his human rights. In arriving at that conclusion, the Commission noted that witnesses have said that Cortés was in very poor physical condition, that the alleged subversive attack did not leave anyone wounded, and that there has been no further information on him.
                  
                  On January 2, 1974, Guillermo RAMIREZ DEL CANTO, a regional MIR leader, was arrested. His wife and three other family members were arrested at the same time, but they were all later released. Witnesses identified those apprehending him as members of the investigative police and the army. Guillermo Ramírez was taken to the Artillery School in Linares where witnesses saw him. There has been no further word about him. The Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On January 4, 1974, Juan Ismael SUIL FAUNDEZ, a MIR activist, was arrested in downtown Santiago by uniformed air force troops. His brother-in-law was arrested with him but was later released. Those who arrested him took him to the El Bosque air base, and he then disappeared. The Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On January 7, 1974, Sergio Eduardo José CIENFUEGOS CAVIERES, 23, a University of Chile employee who was active in the Communist party, was arrested. He was arrested while at work by two men in civilian dress who identified themselves as police. In the presence of witnesses they asked him to go with them to the First police station to make a declaration. His family was initially told that he was being held at that site, but later it was denied. Despite many efforts by his family to locate him, there was never any reliable information on his whereabouts. Taking into account these facts, and in view of his political activism and the eyewitness accounts of his arrest, the Commission has come to the conviction that Sergio Cienfuegos disappeared at the hands of government agents in an action that violated his human rights.
                  
                  On January 9, 1974, Enrique Angel CARREÑO GONZALEZ, 22, a university student who was active in the Socialist party, disappeared. Police arrested him at his home in the city of Parral on September 20 and took him to the local jail. He was then transferred to the jail in Linares. Records indicate that he was released on January 9, 1974. Witnesses have testified that he was arrested by government agents as he was leaving the jail. The family says that he was taken to the Artillery School in Linares, and that there has been no further trace of him. To this day there has been no evidence of his whereabouts. The Commission has come to the conviction that Enrique Carreño underwent forced disappearance at the hands of government agents, in a grave human rights violation.
                  
                  On January 15, 1974, Levi Segundo ARRAÑO SANCHO, 27, a farm worker who was president of the San Isidro Small Farmer Committee in Quillota, voluntarily reported to a military unit in Quillota. He has been disappeared since that moment. The Commission thinks that Levi Arraño was probably killed by the same people who executed the people previously mentioned, since he was held at the same military facility. One of those executed was Hugo Aranda Bruna, the secretary of the committee of which Arraño was president, and hence it can be assumed that the motivations for killing him must have been the same. Official information indicates that he was released on January 17, but there has never been any information on him. The Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On March 6, 1974, investigative police agents in Quillota arrested Bernardino RODRIGUEZ CORTEZ in the presence of his common-law wife and their children. He had been a bodyguard for some Communist party candidates in the most recent congressional election. His wife was arrested the next day. Both were held at the investigative police barracks in Quillota, and both were tortured together. In its visit to this region, the Commission was able to verify the physical effects of the torture which were still visible on Rodríguez' wife. Bernardino Rodríguez disappeared from the investigative police station in Quillota. There has been no further word about him. The Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On April 4, 1974, navy intelligence agents arrested Silvio Vicente PARDO ROJAS, a MIR activist, on the streets of Valparaíso. Witnesses saw him at the Silva Palma navy base. There is evidence that at some point while under arrest Silvio Pardo was taken to the Melinka prison camp, but he was then returned to the Silva Palma garrison and disappeared from that facility. The Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On April 20, 1974, unidentified civilians arrested Luis Orlando TAPIA CONCHA, 37, a member of the Communist party who worked in CORA, at his home in Linares and in the presence of his wife. A few hours later soldiers from the city regiment came to his house looking for weapons. They dug large holes in his yard, but found nothing. Several witnesses saw Luis Orlando Tapia at the regiment of the Artillery School in Linares. There has been no further information about him. Judicial processes undertaken to locate him produced no results. Neither police nor military officials acknowledged the arrest. This Commission has come to the conviction that Luis Tapia disappeared at the hands of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On April 30, 1974, police arrested Luis Bernardo ACEVEDO ANDRADES, 31, a former mayor of Coelemu, Concepción, who was a member of the Communist party, at his home in that city. He was taken to the Fourth station. In official documents addressed to the tribunal that was dealing with the case of his disappearance, the police acknowledged that he had been arrested, but claimed that he had been released on May 1 of that same year. This Commission has received several credible statements from witnesses indicating not only that he was arrested but that he was held at that police station. Since there has been no word on Luis Acevedo since his arrest, and since witnesses attest that he was tortured while under arrest, this Commission cannot accept the claim that he was released, and thus holds the conviction that he disappeared at the hands of government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On May 13, 1974, José Emiliano CUEVAS CUEVAS, an active Communist, was arrested by police from Laja at the San Rosendo railroad station. He was then taken to the Laja police station where his wife saw him. She later saw him being taken from the police station in the automobile of a private citizen. To this day his whereabouts remain unknown. The Commission regards this case as a forced disappearance at the hands of the police who thereby violated his human rights.
                  
                  On July 29, 1974, Manuel SANHUEZA MELLADO, 30, a furniture maker by trade who was a member of the central committee of the Young Communists, disappeared from the police station in Pisagua. On July 10, 1974 he had been arrested in the city of Arica, along with his wife and other family members. The whole family was taken to the Rancagua Regiment, interrogated separately, and subjected to unlawful mistreatment and torture. In late July, Manuel Sanhueza was taken to the Pisagua police station and then disappeared. His relatives continued to look for him over many years. His body was found in the burial pit uncovered this year (1990) near the cemetery in Pisagua. The coroner's report calculated the day of death to be approximately July 29, 1974. Having established that Manuel Sanhueza was arrested and the manner in which the disposal of his remains was handled, this Commission holds the conviction that he died at the hands of government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On November 18, 1974, Manuel Nemesio VALDES GALAZ, an army second corporal who is known to have been active in the Socialist party and in the MIR, disappeared. The official account indicates that on that date he deserted from the Cavalry School in Quillota to which he was assigned, by not returning from leave. The fact that he was active in a left organization, contradictions in the official account over the date of his leave, the unlikelihood that he would have been granted another leave the day after returning from one, combined with the fact that to this day it has proved impossible to find any trace of him, enabled this Commission to come to the conviction that the official account of his desertion is untrue, and that in fact he disappeared at the hands of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  

                  a.1.2) Cases in which no clear political motivation can be discerned
                  
                  

                  On January 18, 1974, Domingo Clemente CUBILLOS GUAJARDO, 19, a worker, Ramón Remegio ORTIZ ORELLANA, 17, and Sergio GUTIERREZ SEGUEL, 18, were arrested together. None of them was known to be politically involved. That night they were walking near Calle Gálvez in downtown Santiago when two drunk men in civilian clothes came out of a bar. A fistfight apparently broke out. The civilians drew revolvers and shot. The three men ran away and hid in a cité on that street. According to several witnesses, police from the Fourth station arrived, searched the whole area, and arrested these youths. They have been disappeared since that moment. The official account, which the Interior Ministry offered to the courts in an official document, is that these disappeared people were not arrested. Consistent testimony from several witnesses refutes that version. Hence this Commission believes that these three were arrested by police, and that they disappeared as the result of illegal actions committed by government agents in violation of their human rights.
                  
                  On March 20, 1974, Luis Alberto CORDERO MUÑOZ, 36, a driver, was taken from his house by a military patrol. He was apprehended because he had been ordered to appear before a judge. There has been no information on him since his arrest. The Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On April 27, 1974, Pedro José VERGARA INOSTROZA, 22, a disabled merchant, disappeared from the Conchalí checkpoint. He had been arrested in the street by police and private citizens in the presence of several witnesses. They were traveling in a private automobile on a search operation prompted by a robbery report. A number of people were arrested on that occasion. Witnesses say that one of the police hit Vergara on the head. All those arrested were later released except Vergara, who has never been heard from again. On the basis of the testimony taken and the results of the judicial inquiry into the disappearance of Pedro José Vergara, it can be concluded that the arrests were not registered in the log at the Conchalí checkpoint to which they had been driven. The judge who investigated the disappearance declared himself incompetent and passed the evidence to the military justice system. This Commission came to the conviction that Pedro Vergara disappeared as a result of actions by government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On May 8, 1974, René Enrique MISSENE BURGOS, was arrested at his house in Chillán by a group of private citizens. They took him away saying that he was needed as a mechanic to repair a car at the police checkpoint in Cobquecura. At the checkpoint his wife was told that he had been held there, but that those who had apprehended him had later driven him to the Chillán Regiment. Those who had arrested him were not assigned to that checkpoint, and had identified themselves as belonging to military intelligence. In the criminal trial that was initiated later, the police denied these statements, but they could not say what had happened to Missene. His arrest and the subsequent circumstances recounted here, and the fact that nothing has been heard of him again, have enabled this Commission to declare that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On May 19, 1974, Juan Isaías CASTRO BRITO, 30, a worker who was not known to be politically active, was arrested in Santiago. The Commission has evidence that army troops took him from the house of Manuel Miranda, who was also arrested at that moment. Miranda's body was later found with bullet wounds to the brain and abdomen, according to his death certificate. This Commission is convinced that Juan Castro's disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  Disappearances of Mapuches in Lautaro in 1974
                  
                  In 1974 many arrests were made around the city of Lautaro, and as a result a number of people of Mapuche origins disappeared. Those making the arrests were officers from the police station in the city, except for the case of one person who was arrested by soldiers and members of the investigative police. In most instances the victims' relatives accepted their arrest and disappearance without making any effort to locate them through the legal system or anywhere else. The reasons for this seeming passivity may have been fear, ignorance of procedures, and a basic distrust in government institutions as means for meeting their demands. In a number of cases their captors beat these people at the moment of arrest, even in front of their relatives. Some of the relatives were also mistreated.
                  
                  On June 11, 1974, Juan Eleuterio CHEUQUEPAN LEVIMILLA, José Julio LLAULEN ANTILAO, Miguel Eduardo YAUFULEN MAÑIL, José Domingo YAUFULEN MAÑIL, Oscar Romualdo YAUFULEN MAÑIL, Antonio Ceferino YAUFULEN MAÑIL, and Samuel HUICHALLAN LLANQUILEN, all of them small farmers, were arrested. Juan Cheuquepan was arrested early in the morning that day. The police said he had been accused of robbery. His relatives vigorously reject that story and say that the police were drunk. They also say that when Cheuquepan was being arrested they could see that José Llaulen and Samuel Huichallan were already under arrest. The same police arrested the brothers Miguel, José, and Oscar Yaufulén at their house in the afternoon that same day. The police arrested Antonio Ceferino Yaufulén in the city of Lautaro along with his father. His father was released a month later. On August 28, 1974, Samuel Alfonso CATALAN LINCOLEO, 29, who was apparently a member of the Communist party, was arrested by soldiers who were assisted by members of the investigative police. When the matter reached the criminal courts, the investigative police acknowledged the arrest. Several relatives and employees were arrested along with Samuel Catalán, and all have stated that they were taken to the Concepción Regiment in Lautaro. On October 26, 1975, Gervasio Héctor HAUIQUIL CALVIQUEO, 25, was arrested by police. Witnesses have said that on the day of the arrest police set fire to Hauiquil's house, but his relatives inside were able to escape.
                  
                  In view of the large amount of testimony by witnesses who agree on the time and circumstances of the arrest and subsequent disappearance of these people about whom there has been no further word, and taking into account the similarity between the method used to arrest these Mapuches and those used in other cases investigated in this area, the Commission came to the conviction that all these people disappeared after arrest as the result of action by government agents, and that their human rights were thus violated.
                  
                  On June 12, 1974, Carlos Manuel GONZALEZ OSORIO, 19, a worker who had recently been released from the psychiatric hospital, was arrested by soldiers and taken to the Buin Regiment. Two other young people arrested along with him were released some time later. One of the witnesses told the Commission that González had been ridiculed and humiliated at the Buin Regiment, apparently because of his mental condition. They even tortured him by crushing their cigarettes against his face. Since that time it has not been possible to find out what happened to him. The introduction of an appeal for protection and the initiation of a criminal case produced no results. In view of the evidence it has been able to gather, the Commission has come to the conviction that government agents were responsible for the disappearance of Carlos González and that they thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On June 25, 1974, Víctor Manuel VILLARROEL GANGA, a worker, was arrested at his home in Santiago by plainclothes agents who did not identify themselves. Víctor Villarroel disappeared that day. There is no evidence that he was held at any prison facility. The Commission nonetheless believes that there is sufficient testimony to his arrest to enable it to come to the conviction that he underwent disappearance at the hands of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  In July 1974, Henry Francisco TORRES FLORES, disappeared. There is proof that at that time he sent his family a letter from Pisagua that was stamped by the authorities of the prison where he was being held. There has been no further word about him. Since it is established that he was arrested, the Commission is convinced that his disappearance was the work of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  In July 1974, Fermín Manuel PALMA PALMA, 25, a married merchant who was not politically active, and his friend, Alfonso René SEPULVEDA MONTANARES, who was also a merchant, were arrested in the city of Lautaro in the Ninth Region. They were in a restaurant when a policeman entered and asked them to present their identification cards, which he then took away. Several hours later these two merchants were arrested; there has been no further information about them. The Commission has come to the conviction that the disappearance of Fermín Manuel Palma and Alfonso René Sepúlveda was the work of government agents who thus violated their human rights.
                  
                  On September 21, 1974, Juan Segundo GUAJARDO PIZARRO, 18, an unmarried employee of the María Elena nitrate company who was not known to be politically active, was arrested in Vicuña where he was visiting his family and friends over the independence holidays. As noted in an official document sent to the court in Vicuña on October 14, 1974, the governor sent for him because there were a number of far left groups working at Minerales del Norte, and he was working in that same area. There has been no further word about him since the police took him to their station. This Commission holds the conviction that Juan Guajardo disappeared at the hands of government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  In October 1974, Sergio Amador PANTOJA RIVERA, 19, and Juan Francisco PEÑA FUENZALIDA, 20, neither of whom was politically active, were arrested in Putre. These two people were enlisted men at the Rancagua Regiment in Arica, and were taken out to Putre on a campaign in October 1974. Testimony obtained by this Commission indicates that in that area some kind of incident occurred-apparently the theft of a tin of carmel. Juan Peña was accused of the theft, and a corporal gave him a public beating, "leaving him in very poor condition." As a result Juan Peña deserted and set off walking through the desert. The corporal who had beat him set out in pursuit, arrested him, and brought him back.
                  
                  These events prompted an investigation by the SIM (Military Intelligence Service), some of whose members went from Arica to Putre. All the enlisted men in Peña's unit were questioned. The investigation led to the arrest of Juan Peña and his friend, Sergio Pantoja. SIM agents took both of them toward Arica. Whether they arrived is not known. Since that day there has been no word concerning their whereabouts, and their relatives have received no official explanations on the matter. The document on Sergio Pantoja's military status indicates that he was listed as "OK" at a time when the top officers of the regiment were writing in official documents that these two men were deserters. All these facts and the testimony received, enable the Commission to state that both of these enlisted men are disappeared as a result of actions by government agents who to this day have provided no official explanation, and that their human rights were violated.
                  
                  Disappearances of persons connected to a criminal's escape
                  
                  During the October 18-25, 1974 period in the area of Parral, seven persons, all interrelated, disappeared after being arrested by police from the police station in the city. The events began with the escape of a well-known criminal in the area. From that point on, he hid in various places in the area, forcing small farmers and passers-by to provide him with food and places to sleep. In searching for him the police were reinforced by army troops and helicopters. One of the places he hid was the house of José Apolinario MUÑOZ SEPULVEDA, 33, and Benedicto de la Rosa SEPULVEDA VALENZUELA, 64. They were out and only their families were at home at that moment. When police found him, this fugitive shot and killed two of them and escaped on horseback. The other police and soldiers came into the Sepúlveda family's house and seized all present. José Muñoz and Benedicto Sepúlveda turned themselves in at the police station on October 18, 1974 in return for the release of their families. They were never heard from again.
                  
                  In connection with the same case, Edelmiro Antonio VALDES SEPULVEDA, 42, and Rolando Antonio IBARRA ORTEGA, 32, were ordered to go to the Parral police station because of their connections to "The Eagle." Both were renting a parcel of land from the criminal's wife. They reported there on October 25, and nothing further was heard of them.
                  
                  Armando Haroldo PEREIRA MERIÑO 49, and Luis Alcibíades PEREIRA HERNANDEZ, 31, were also obliged to report to that same police station because they knew the criminal. They were apparently accused of having helped him in his flight. In fact Armando Pereira had been a classmate of his. They likewise turned themselves in on October 25, and nothing further has been heard about them either.
                  
                  The arrest and subsequent disappearance of Alcibíades VALENZUELA RETAMAL, 29, is also connected to this same fugitive. Police from Parral came looking for Valenzuela, but other family members say that when they failed to find him, they took his parents. When he turned himself in on October 21, his parents were released. Nothing further is known about Valenzuela, however. In a report to the appeals court in Chillán, the police acknowledge that Alcibíades Valenzuela was arrested on October 21, and go on to say that he was handed over to a security agency in the area. The appeal for protection was accordingly rejected, since the arrest had been made by competent bodies.
                  
                  In none of these cases did efforts made through the legal system produce any results. The status of all these people is that of disappeared. This Commission is morally convinced that these seven people disappeared as the result of unlawful actions by government agents who thus violated their human rights. Not only are the names of those who arrested them fully known; there are also witnesses who have attested either to the fact of their arrest or to the circumstances in which some of them turned themselves in to the police.
                  
                  In late May 1975, Grober Hugo VENEGAS ISLA, 43, who was not known to be politically active, was being held at the investigative police barracks in Arica for alleged involvement in drug traffic. Soldiers took him out because they said he had information on weapons hidden in the Azapa Valley. Since that date there has been no information on the whereabouts of Grober Venegas. The Commission came to the conviction that this prisoner disappeared at the hands of government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On September 17, 1975, Juan Manuel LLANCA RODAS, 26, a worker, was arrested at his mother's house in Puente Alto. The previous day he and some friends had attacked an army subofficer. That night he was arrested and was taken to the Puente Alto Regiment, according to his friends and accomplices who were also being held there. They were released after completing their sentences, but there has been no further word about Juan Llanca since the day of his arrest. Taking into consideration the proofs and testimony it has been able to gather, the Commission is convinced that he disappeared at the hands of government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  

               2. People killed without any due process of law
                  
                  a.2.1) Cases motivated by political repression
                  
                  

                  On January 3, 1974, Sergio Gustavo LEIVA MOLINA, a former government official who was inside the Argentinean embassy in Santiago where he had taken asylum about two months previously, was killed. He was on the branch of a tree within the embassy compound when he was hit by a bullet shot fired from outside by a policeman. The official account claims that he was shot for not heeding an order to halt as he was trying to seek asylum. That account, however, does not fit the evidence in the Commission's possession, and hence it has come to the conviction that he was executed in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On January 4, 1974, Bernardo Querubín CUEVAS PARRA, 38, a teacher and CORFO (Corporation to Stimulate Production) agent in Linares who was active in the Communist party, was killed. Police arrested him in Parral on September 12, 1973, and took him to the police station there. He was taken to the Artillery School in Linares, and then to the city jail. According to an official report he was taken from that jail to a place on the Panamerican Highway going south. Then, "as the events of the crime in trial No. 18-37 were being reconstructed he tried to escape.... Those guarding him consequently were forced to open fire and hence shot him to death to accomplish their objective."
                  
                  It should be noted that he had an ulcer and had been tortured, and was thus in poor physical condition. It is therefore hardly likely that he would have attempted to escape, but even if that were the case, nothing justifies the killing of an unarmed person by armed and trained personnel in order to halt that person. This Commission has come to the conviction that Bernardo Cuevas was executed by government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On January 4, 1974, Carlos Alberto GALAZ VERA, 22, a construction worker who had been arrested by police from Algarrobo on January 3, 1974, and taken to Tejas Verdes, died of the torture he underwent at the Engineering School. The official in charge of the school told his family that he had died of a cardiac arrest. Such an account does not fit the information on the death certificate which states that the place of death was the military camp at Tejas Verdes, and that the cause was "acute loss of blood and pulmonary hemorrhaging." That analysis is consistent with the likely result of being subjected to torture. It is also supported by testimony that the Commission has received. This Commission holds the conviction that Carlos Galaz died at the hands of government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  Execution in Quillota
                  
                  On January 18, 1974, six noted leaders in Quillota were executed by troops from the Cavalry School in that city:
                  
                  Víctor Enrique FUENZALIDA FUENZALIDA, 35, head of the technical department of CORA (Agrarian Reform Corporation) in Quillota who was the provincial secretary for the Communist party, voluntarily reported to the military prosecutor's office in Quillota on September 15, 1973, after being summoned by military decree, and was arrested immediately.
                  
                  Manuel Hernán HURTADO MARTINEZ, 35, an employee of the Treasury Department in Quillota who was the local secretary for the Socialist party, voluntarily reported to the police station in Quillota on September 18, 1973 after a summons from the police had been delivered to his house, and was immediately arrested.
                  
                  Osvaldo Mario MANZANO CORTEZ, 32, a textile worker who was president of the Rayón Said union and a MIR activist, was arrested September 17 at his job by troops from one of the military units stationed in Quillota.
                  
                  Julio Arturo LOO PRADO, 27, a textile worker who was secretary of the Production Committee at Rayón Said and an active Communist, was arrested September 17, 1973, when he voluntarily reported to one of the military units in Quillota.
                  
                  Angel Mario DIAZ CASTRO, 41, a neighborhood leader and a textile worker, was arrested September 11, 1973 by troops who were stationed in Quillota.
                  
                  Hugo Hernán ARANDA BRUNA, 30, an unmarried farmer, and neighborhood leader, was also arrested. The exact date is not known, but it was probably during the second half of September. It has been established that Aranda was held at the same facilities as the others who were executed. According to the official account provided by the military governor of the department of Quillota, these people were killed as the result of a leftist attack on the military patrol that was transferring them from the Cavalry School to the Engineering Regiment in Quillota. Taking advantage of the attack, the prisoners are said to have tried to escape, and hence had to be shot down. Two of them, however, are said to have succeeded in escaping. These two remain disappeared to this day:
                  
                  Pablo GAC ESPINOZA, 43, the mayor of Quillota and an active Socialist. By order of the new authorities, he was obliged to sign in at the military prosecutor's office in Quillota, and did so at regular intervals. Local troops arrested him January 17, 1974.
                  
                  Ruben Guillermo CABEZAS PARES, 46, a lawyer who was a counsel for CORA in Quillota and an active Communist, was arrested at his private office on January 17, 1974 in the presence of witnesses, and was taken to one of the military units in Quillota.
                  
                  The Commission could not accept the official account and came to the conviction that these eight prisoners were executed by the government agents who were holding them in custody and who thereby violated their human rights. The grounds for that conviction are as follows:
                  
                  

                  • It is not credible that all these people had to be killed to halt their alleged escape attempt, since they were unarmed and were under heavy military guard.
                    
                    
                  • Several of them had voluntarily reported to military officials, and hence it does not seem consistent that they would have tried to escape. Some of them had even contacted lawyers for their defense in the court cases that they were told were being prepared against them.
                    
                    
                  • The alleged leftist attack is said to have occurred at a strategic location that was therefore heavily protected. It is also not plausible that such an attack could have been attempted during the curfew period, and that none of the attackers was captured. It likewise stretches credulity that neither of the supposed fugitives was captured.
                    
                    
                  • None of the subversives who are said to have attacked the patrol was killed or wounded, and yet six of the prisoners were killed. Nor were any troops in the patrol killed. The military report only notes that one soldier received a light wound. That is inconsistent with the alleged violence of the attack as it is described in the official report.
                    
                    
                  • Nor is it plausible that two persons as prominent and well known in the area as Pablo Gac, the mayor of Quillota, and Rubén Cabezas, a respected lawyer and CORA legal counsel in the city would be the only survivors and that they would have attempted to escape and been able to do so, especially in view of the fact that they had offered no resistance when they were arrested on that very same day.
                    
                    

                  On January 21, 1974, Juan Guillermo NAVARRETE SOLAR, 37, a labor leader who was active in the Christian Democrat party, was killed. Witnesses saw him being arrested at his workplace, the El As clothing factory, by a police patrol that day. After his wife had been looking for him for some time, she learned at the Medical Legal Institute that he was buried in Lot 29 of the General Cemetery. According to his death certificate, he had died of "six bullet wounds to the chest" on January 21. The Commission came to the conviction that Juan Navarrete was executed by government agents and that he therefore suffered a grave violation of his human rights. The grounds for that conviction include the established fact that he was arrested, his status as a union leader, which given the context of the time made it likely that such a thing could occur, and the fact that he died of bullet wounds.
                  
                  On January 29, 1974, Calixto Juan de Dios PERALTA GAJARDO, 30, a worker at Inacap who was a former CUT leader in Valdivia, was killed. He was married and had a newly born daughter. Calixto Peralta was arrested at his mother's house in the La Granja district in Santiago by heavily armed civilians who broke into the house and took him away without showing any warrant for his arrest. A few hours later his body bearing two bullet wounds was taken to the Medical Legal Institute. His remains were not turned over to his relatives. The Commission has come to the conviction that Calixto Juan Peralta died of the two bullet wounds he received while in the hands of agents of a security agency and thus in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On January 31, 1974, the following residents of the Lintz neighborhood in the city of Puerto Montt were executed by members of the air force:
                  
                  Pedro Antonio BAHAMONDE ROGEL, 24, an office worker;
                  
                  Héctor Hugo MALDONADO ULLOA, 26, an office worker;
                  
                  José Hernán MAÑAO AMPUERO, 22, an office worker; and
                  
                  José Antonio SOTO MUÑOZ, 23, an office worker.
                  
                  A military decree issued by the head of the state of siege of the province of Lanquihue and Chiloé stated that in the early morning hours of January 31, 1974, "as four men who had been arrested for attacking a member of the air force and inflicting considerable injury on him were being transferred, one of the prisoners took advantage of a careless moment by a member of the patrol, seized his weapon, and opened fire. The other three prisoners also took advantage of the opportunity and charged the members of the patrol, obviously intending to seize their weapons and attack them. In response the patrol fought off the aggression, and the four prisoners were killed."
                  
                  A number of witnesses say that the incident arose out of a minor incident in a bar involving members of the air force and these four men. Afterwards they all went home. Some time later an air force patrol violently arrested all of them at their homes, beat them out in the street, and took them toward an unknown destination. Their relatives only learned what had happened to them through the military decree issued by the local military commander.
                  
                  The Commission came to the conviction that this case constituted a grave abuse of power by government agents and that the human rights of these people were violated. Certainly the official account cannot be accepted since it is unlikely that during curfew four unarmed civilians who had recently been beaten and in some cases were only half dressed would have assaulted the armed patrol that was transporting them, and that the incident would lead to the death of all the prisoners.
                  
                  On February 4, 1974, Miguel Angel MOYANO SANTANDER, 24, a worker who was a labor leader and MAPU activist, was killed. He was arrested January 16, 1974, at his house in the Quinta Normal district in Santiago by plainclothes agents. His house had been searched some months before, and the agents had first looked for him at his father's house. His family's efforts to find him after the arrest were unsuccessful. Some days later a policeman told Moyano's wife that her husband was in the General Cemetery. The death certificate indicates that he died at the San Antonio hospital on February 4, 1974 of "acute blood loss," and hence it can be presumed that he was taken to some detention site near San Antonio. This Commission came to the conviction that Miguel Moyano was executed by government agents who violated his human rights, since his arrest was proven, he died while being held in custody, he was buried at the cemetery in Santiago, far from San Antonio where he died, and the family knew nothing about it.
                  
                  On February 25, 1974, Juan Segundo BRUNA BRUNA, an active member of the Communist party, died in Salamanca. He had been accused of having weapons and had been held under arrest from shortly after the military coup to the day of his death. His body was turned over in a sealed coffin, and his relatives were not allowed to see it. With the evidence it has in hand, the Commission has come to the conviction that he died of the mistreatment he received from government agents while under arrest and that those agents thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  In February 26, 1974, Vasco Alejandro ORMEÑO GAJARDO, 18, a leather worker, was arrested at his home by a military patrol. Those arresting him did not indicate what was to happen to him. Months later in May 1974 his body, with a bullet wound to the chest, was found on the Landa estate. A member of the military later acknowledged to a military prosecutor that he had arrested and killed Vasco Ormeño. The evidence gathered leads to the presumption that this was an act of personal revenge in which the killer hid behind the authority invested in him. The Commission accordingly came to the conviction that this was a grave abuse of power in violation of the victim's human rights.
                  
                  On March 12, 1974, air force General Alberto Arturo Miguel BACHELET MARTINEZ, died. He had first been arrested on September 11, 1973 at his office in the Ministry of Defense. He was released that same night, but his house was raided during the next few days and he was rearrested on the 14th. He was first held at the Air Force War Academy and then at the air force hospital. During this period he was tortured by men who were at that time beneath him in rank. He was kept hooded for a long time, and was beaten, and sharp objects were thrust under his nails. In mid-October he was put under house arrest. When he returned home he was in poor physical condition. The heart ailments that he had been suffering for some time and that required periodic checkups had worsened. On December 18 he was once more arrested and taken to the public jail, and was put on trial before a war tribunal (the so-called "Proceso FACh" [Chilean Air Force trial]). During this period he was again subjected to torture, humiliation, and mistreatment. He died of a cardiac arrest in his cell on March 12, 1974.
                  
                  This Commission has come to the moral conviction that the treatment he suffered-itself a violation of his human rights-can only have aggravated General Bachelet's condition, which was well-known, and therefore his captors had to have been aware of it. The Commission therefore declares its conviction that Alberto Arturo Miguel Bachelet suffered a violation of his human rights by government agents inasmuch as he died as a result of the mistreatment and torture that he suffered at the hands of his captors.
                  
                  On March 15, 1974, José TOHA GONZALEZ, a lawyer who was an active Socialist and had been minister of defense in President Allende's government, died at the military hospital in Santiago. He was arrested at La Moneda Palace on September 11, along with a group of officials and aides of the overthrown government, and taken with them to the Military Academy, where he was held for several days. He was then taken to Dawson Island along with most of the other cabinet members. There he was subjected to continual torture and mistreatment by the military who were running that facility. Still in custody, he was taken to various hospitals: the air force hospital in Punta Arenas, the air force hospital in Santiago, and then the military hospital there. Due to his imprisonment and mistreatment, his physical condition seriously deteriorated, and he lost 27 kilos [59.5 pounds] and came down to 49 kilos [108 pounds], although he was 1.92 meters [6 feet 3 inches] tall. He had been brought from the south to Santiago because he was so malnourished-so much so that when he was at the military hospital he could not get out of bed. All the testimony that the Commission has received indicates that he was in very poor condition both physically and psychologically. Even the autopsy report notes his extreme state of malnutrition.
                  
                  The official account given to his family was that he committed suicide by hanging himself in his closet with his belt. His family members do not accept that account. They say that he was so weak he could not even move, and that he was taller than the space in which he was said to have hung himself. The Commission did not have enough evidence to decide whether the hanging, which was the immediate cause of the death of the former minister Tohá, was the work of those who were holding him prisoner or whether he took his own life. It did come to the conviction, however, that even if José Tohá took his own life, he died as a result of violations of his human rights. For this Commission believes that a person who takes his or her own life is a victim of human rights violation when the circumstances make it possible to come to an honest judgement that the person committing suicide was pressured toward that choice by physical or mental torture, by the conditions of imprisonment, or by some other situation for which the government is responsible, and which in itself violates human rights.
                  
                  On April 5, 1974, Bernardo del Tránsito CORTES CASTRO, a student, was killed by army troops. He was arrested the previous day in Coquimbo and taken to the Arica Regiment in La Serena, where relatives saw him. When they went back the next day they were told that he had been killed while trying to escape. This account is hardly credible since Castro was under heavy guard at a regiment. That conclusion is further confirmed by the fact that the army has not provided any explanation of the circumstances of these events, and that his body has never been returned to his family. For all these reasons the Commission is convinced that Bernardo Cortés was executed without any due process of law by government agents who thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On April 28, 1974, Ogan Esteban LAGOS MARIN, 21, a MIR activist who was a student at the University of Concepción, was killed. He was arrested March 15, 1974 by members of the investigative police and taken to the regiment in Chillán and then to the jail in that city. He was arrested along with Bartolomé Salazar. On April 24, 1974 he was taken out of the Chillán Regiment by order of the military prosecutor's office in Ñuble; his body was later found abandoned on a country road. The death certificate and autopsy indicate that he died of many bullet wounds to the head and body. The Interior Ministry claimed that Ogan Esteban Lagos had been released on April 29, 1974. In view of testimony by witnesses and the evidence it has examined, the Commission has come to the conviction that Ogan Esteban Lagos was executed by government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  In late April 1974, professor Bartolomé Ambrosio SALAZAR VELIZ, who was an active Socialist (and active in MIR according to some indications), was killed. He was arrested in Chillán on April 17, 1974. He had recently gone there in order to get away from security agents who were following him. His wife was supposed to meet him that day along one side of the city square. Since he was late she went to their house. Individuals who did not identify themselves arrested her there, and took her to a military base, presumably the Chillán Regiment. She was later released. The Commission's investigations indicate that Bartolomé Salazar was also held at the Chillán Regiment. On April 27, Bartolomé Ambrosio Salazar's body was found near Quinchamalí on a riverbank. He was buried anonymously on May 2. The cause of death was: shock, acute loss of blood, numerous bullet wounds. In view of these facts, the Commission has come to the conviction that Bartolomé Ambrosio Salazar was executed by government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  That same month, the MIR activist Rolando Gastón ANGULO MATAMALA, a government employee, was killed in the Eighth Region. He had been arrested on April 19, 1974. His body was found in San Carlos together with those of four other persons who had been arrested with him. With the available evidence, the Commission came to the conviction that he was executed by government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On May 1, 1974, Carlos MASCAREÑA DIAZ, a student and MIR activist, died. He was arrested November 1, 1973 in Punta Arenas. He had gone there from Puerto Montt after September 11, 1973. He was transferred to Puerto Montt where he was seen at the investigative police garrison. He was tortured with beatings and suffered sexual assaults. He died as a result of such torture while he was at the Chin-Chin prison. Hence this Commission holds the conviction that his human rights were violated and that government agents were responsible.
                  
                  On June 21, 1974, Luis Alberto JORQUERA JORQUERA, a machinist who was president of the Machinists Union of Soquimich, died. He was arrested by civilians in mid-1974 while he was working in Tocopilla. He was detained at the police station there, and was later transferred to Antofagasta, where one family member visited him. In late June they were told that he had died. His body showed signs of violence. The Commission came to the conviction that Luis Alberto Jorquera's human rights were violated, since he died from the torture government agents inflicted on him.
                  
                  On July 6, 1974, Gabriel Antenor CASTILLO CASTILLO, a miner and CUT leader, died at the regional hospital in La Serena. Police from La Serena arrested him September 20, 1973 and took him to the police station in Coquimbo where witnesses saw him being tortured. On September 22 he was transferred to the prison in that city. On October 24, he had to be transferred to the regional hospital because his lungs were hemorrhaging. After being hospitalized for several months, he was released. When he returned to his native city, Andacollo, he was rearrested, interrogated, and tortured by police. A fellow prisoner has testified about those tortures, which consisted of beatings with fists and weapons. After thirty-two days in jail he suffered a very serious hemorrhage and had to be hospitalized again. While he was in the hospital, but still under arrest, he died. The death certificate states that the cause of death was "inability to breathe, advanced and active TB." The Commission came to the conviction that Gabriel Castillo died of the torture and mistreatment he had received, or at least as a result of negligence on the part of government agents who failed to provide the medical care he should have received while he was imprisoned, and that those agents thus violated his human rights.
                  
                  On July 15, 1974, Francisco Miguel LINARES GALARCE, 43, a taxi cab driver who was an active Communist, was arrested during the curfew period by police who took him back to the Sixth station. As a result of the mistreatment he received from police officers there he was transferred to Public Assistance in Valparaíso and provided with medical treatment. Those efforts failed to save his life, however, and he died July 29, 1974 as a result of "damage to the head, bleeding from the left hemisphere of the brain." This Commission has come to the conviction that Francisco Linares was a victim of the use of excessive force by government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On July 29, 1974, Miguel Angel BECERRA HIDALGO, a DINA employee who lived in Colonia Dignidad with his son, was killed. He had told his brother and other members of the Colonia that he wanted to quit the DINA and to move away from Colonia Dignidad and take his son with him. His dead body was found July 29, 1974 on the Panamerican Highway six kilometers south of Linares. On the criminal report his cause of death is said to be "ingestion of oxyphosphorate pesticides." Becerra died of poisoning when he ate an apple that contained pesticide. Official documents from the Medical Legal Service point out that pesticides "have a penetrating odor, and we think it would be hard not to notice their presence in a food item like an apple, since they would also give it a different color and flavor." The DINA itself recognized that his death was due to foul play. In view of the characteristics of the death of Miguel Angel Becerra Hidalgo, the Commission has come to the conviction that it was caused by private citizens who were acting for political reasons and that they violated his human rights.
                  
                  On August 13, 1974, Héctor Victoriano GARCIA GARCIA, a doctor, and Jorge Rubén LAMICH VIDAL, a worker, were killed. A group of civilians and military arrested them that day in Buin where they lived. Lamich was arrested at home in the early morning, and García was arrested during the morning at the hospital in Buin where he was a doctor. They were accused of attempting to poison the city's water and bread. They were taken to the Chena Regiment in San Bernardo, where witnesses say that they were beaten and had electric current applied to them. Subsequently they were executed in the presence of the troops. The government told the Interamerican Human Rights Commission that Lamich's death was like that of three other persons: all of them at different times and in different circumstances had been killed in gun battles with "police or security agents," and all were accused of "criminal or subversive activities or sabotage." There was no official statement on the causes of Dr. García's death.
                  
                  On the basis of testimony it has taken from eyewitnesses, this Commission has come to the conviction that both of them were executed by army troops, that they were not involved in any sort of gun battle, and that therefore the government was responsible for the violation of their human rights.
                  
                  

                  a.2.2) Cases in which other motivations were at work or which were not politically motivated.
                  
                  

                  Execution of people with criminal records
                  
                  On January 13, Manuel Segundo SALGADO MORALES, occupation unknown, was killed.
                  
                  On January 14, Leoncio del Carmen SARMIENTO CANTILLANA, a worker, was killed.
                  
                  On January 17, Luis Enrique CORTES PINTO, a cargo carrier at the market, was killed.
                  
                  On January 20, David Alejandro LEON FARIAS, a worker, and Emilio MORALES LOBOS, a cargo carrier at the San Miguel open market, were killed.
                  
                  On March 21, Ernesto Ramón MONDACA VEGA, a worker, and Juan Francisco MONDACA VEGA, a merchant, were killed.
                  
                  All these persons, who were killed in a short period of time, had in common that they were not known to be politically active, had criminal records, and lived in the southern part of Santiago. Moreover, according to witnesses, air force personnel were involved in some of the arrests, the manner in which the people were shot was generally similar, and the killings took place in close proximity to one another. For all these reasons, the Commission has come to the conviction that these persons were all executed without any due process of law in violation of their human rights, by some sort of group composed of government agents that was established at that time in the southern part of Santiago in order to get rid of current or former habitual criminals.
                  
                  On January 28, 1974, Raúl Humberto PEREZ JORQUERA, a shoe repairman, left his house to buy some goods and never returned. A couple months later the family learned that his body had appeared at the Medical Legal Institute. The autopsy report indicates that the cause of death was two bullet wounds. In view of the facts thus summarized, the Commission has come to the conviction that Raúl Pérez was probably killed as a result of the situation of violence then existing, but it has not been possible to establish the exact cause of his death.
                  
                  On February 4, 1974, Luis Manuel ROMO ESCOBAR, 20, a street vendor who was not politically active, was killed. He was arrested by soldiers during curfew when he and some friends were drunk in the street. His friends managed to run away. Romo's father found his body with bullet wounds on February 4, 1974 at the corner of Departamental and Américo Vespucio. The death certificate states that the cause of death was a "bullet wound." The autopsy report notes that he had "many scars from cuts on the chest, abdomen, and upper and lower extremities... as well as linear abrasions on the upper extremities and raw skin two centimeters wide around the wrists." He also bore many bullet wounds, and there was adhesive tape around his eyes. The Commission came to the conviction that Luis Romo was killed by government agents who used undue and excessive force, and that hence his human rights were violated. The grounds for that conviction are as follows: witnesses have testified to his arrest; it is established that he died of bullet wounds during curfew; his body showed clear signs of mistreatment, his hands had been tied, and he was blindfolded at the moment of death; and the perpetrators left his body in the street.
                  
                  On March 18, 1974, José Luis del Carmen CARROZA CARROZA, 37, a construction worker, was killed. Police arrested him at his house in Santiago after his family members accused him of abusive treatment. They later went looking for him at different sites unsuccessfully until they were told that he had died of twenty-one bullet wounds. The Commission holds the conviction that he was executed by government agents without any sort of trial in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On March 18, 1974, Waldo Antonio RIQUELME AVILES, 22, an unmarried painter, and Nicolás FLORES MARDONES, 18, an unmarried upholsterer's assistant, neither of whom was politically active, were killed in the city of Santiago. By examining the evidence provided, the Commission has been able to establish that both were arrested that day during a search operation conducted by soldiers of the Buin Regiment on the Quinta Bella shantytown. Their bodies were found a few days later in a stream near the road to La Herradura, according to the police report which this Commission examined. The autopsy reports state that the cause of death was bullet shots from behind. The Commission has come to the conviction that they were both shot by government agents in violation of their human rights.
                  
                  On April 2, 1974, Vicente Armando HINOJOSA CESPEDES, a street vendor, was killed in Santiago. A military patrol had arrested him March 26, and his body was later found with a bullet wound. The Commission holds the conviction that he was executed by government agents in violation of his human rights.
                  
                  On May 23, 1974, soldiers killed Manuel Segundo MIRANDA LIZAMA. According to a witness, he was arrested on May 19 by a military patrol from the Guardia Vieja Regiment of Los Andes. His bullet-ridden body was later found at the Medical Legal Institute where the staff said that it had been found on the road to Quilicura. The Commission came to the conviction that Manuel Miranda's human rights were violated since he was executed by government agents.
                  
                  On June 30, 1974, Javier Alberto SALINAS VELASQUEZ, 48, a teacher whose political positions are not known, was killed after being arrested on the street by members of the army two days before. The autopsy report states that the cause of death was asphyxiation by hanging. This Commission believes that under the circumstances, even if Javier Alberto Salinas actually took his life (and the Commission is not in a position to say that he did), he should be regarded as having suffered human rights violations, since he may have done so because he was overwhelmed by his situation, which was in itself unlawful.
                  
                  On July 1974, Daniel CACERES PEREDO, 17, who was retarded, was killed. According to testimony received, a military patrol wounded him in front of the emergency ward of the San Bernardo Hospital. The witnesses said he escaped from the medical service where he was being treated and was caught by a military patrol which wounded him after he was arrested. Surgery was attempted at the hospital, but he died at 11:00 p.m. The death certificate states that the cause of death was a bullet wound. Since both his arrest and the circumstances and cause of death have been established, this Commission has come to the conviction that Daniel Cáceres was executed and was the victim of the use of excessive force by government agents whose motivations were not political.
                  
                  

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Posted by USIP Library on: October 4 2002
Source: Report of the Chilean National Commission on Truth and Reconciliation
(Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1993), vol. I/II, Part Three, Chapter Two (A.2.a), 505-525.
Note: Digitized and posted by permission of the University of Notre Dame Press, February 22, 2000.