Demand Freedom for Disappeared Prisoners in Chile!, World Peace Council 1977
With protests and general strikes against inequality and neo-liberalism gripping Chile right now, the state and government have responded with a violence and repression not seen since the fascist military junta of the 1970s.
This distressing echo of the Pinochet years has led to headlines that tell a terrible tale. Chile Protesters Tortured, Sexually Abused by Security Forces: Report, Chile: State Violence Leads to 1,420 Arrests and 11 Deaths and 'So Awful': Military Returns to Streets in Chile as Unrest Simmers are just a few.
We looked at the situation in The Left Chapter's two last news roundups Chile Protests, Federal Election Results, Evo Morales Wins & more -- The Week in News, Opinion and Videos October 20 - 27 and Mass Protests in Chile, Honduras, Ecuador and Catalonia, Bolivia Votes & more -- The Week in News, Opinion and Videos October 14 - 20.
This leaflet issued by the World Peace Council in 1977 reminds us of the horrific disappearances, repressions and brutality of the Pinochet years, the last time the military patrolled the streets of Chile and martial law was imposed after the overthrow of the democratically elected leftist government of Salvador Allende.
It chronicles cases of state violence and disappearances. These include figures like Communist leader Victor Diaz who was arrested in 1976 and never heard from again. We now know he was murdered after months of torture.
It also contains suggestions and plans to put international pressure on the junta. Sadly the Pinochet regime would remain in power for another 12 years.
Leaflets like this serve as a stark reminder as to why international pressure must be brought to bear to stop Chilean state and military violence now.
(Click on scans to enlarge)
When The Left Chapter began part of what I wanted to do on the blog was to show and highlight vintage public leftist election/political leaflets and booklets. While many of these have been offered with commentary to date, a very large collection of hundreds of them from several different sources remains and to preserve these often quite rare documents we will be posting them on a regular (almost daily) basis now often without or with minimal commentary so that people may have access to them as quickly as possible as an historical resource.
While these will all be leaflets from a variety of different leftist viewpoints and countries, they are being posted as an historical/study resource and the views or opinions expressed in them do not necessarily reflect the views of this blog or blogger.
All of these posts (as well as posts made to date) will be listed on the page: Vintage Communist/Socialist Leaflets (which is still being updated with past posts).
If you have any public, vintage leaflets or booklets you would like to contribute to this project please contact us via theleftchapter@outlook.com
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