A Chilean transport aircraft has landed at a British military base, but officials deny it is a sign that a decision had been taken on the fate of the former Chilean dictator, Gen Augusto Pinochet, who is under arrest in London. Lawyers acting for the general will today try to overturn a fresh warrant for his extradition obtained by Spain, which accuses him of torture, conspiracy and hostage-taking. An original warrant accused him of murdering Spanish citizens in Chile.
The new warrant, the text of which has been obtained by the Guardian newspaper, was served on the general on Friday by police guarding his hospital bed at the London clinic, after legal challenges to the validity of the first warrant, served on October 16th.
When police served the first warrant, Gen Pinochet was told of the legal case being prepared against him but afterwards his family assured him it was all a mistake, and led him to believe his diplomatic passport continued to give him immunity from prosecution.
The British Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook, reiterated the government position that it would not try to influence the legal process in Gen Pinochet's case. Mr Cook met Chile's deputy foreign minister, Mr Mariano Fernandez, on Saturday after Chile formally requested the release of Gen Pinochet, but told him it was "neither proper nor possible" for him to intervene. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence confirmed that a Chilean military transport aircraft had landed over the weekend at the Royal Air Force base at Brize Norton, near Oxford, after a request from the Chilean government.
"The Chileans have been given permission to use the airfield under standard arrangements. The reason for this flight is a matter for the Chileans and it should not be taken to imply that any decision one way or another on Gen Pinochet has been made, which in any case is not a matter for the UK government," the spokesman said.
A Chilean senator said that he had seen Pinochet yesterday in the clinic and that his health was deteriorating. Mr Carlos Bombal, of the Union Democratica Independente, said the "dignity and sovereignty" of his nation had been affected.
Earlier, on his arrival at Heathrow as part of a six-strong delegation of senators, Mr Bombal said: "We have come to represent to the British authorities that as long as they keep their hands in Chilean affairs, they are seriously damaging the process of transition in Chile."
The British government admitted yesterday it had accorded a diplomatic greeting for Gen Pinochet when he arrived on his current medical visit, before he was arrested. The government earlier insisted it had played no role in what was a strictly private visit. A Foreign Office spokeswoman confirmed reports that the ministry had set aside a private lounge for Gen Pinochet when he flew into Heathrow earlier this month.