editorial
Pinochet’s Chile not
a democracy at all
It was a day of political irony, with disturbing implica
tions. On Nov. 6, citizens of the United States gave President
Ronald Reagan a resounding re-election victory. On the
same day, Chilean President Augusto Pinochet, praised by
the Reagan administration for his efforts to promote
democracy in Chile, declared a state of siege.
Pinochet made the announcement for a state of seige
one day after his cabinet resigned because of continuing
controversy over the government’s attempt to crush opposi
tion movements in the country. He claimed that only with a
state of seige could democracy and freedom be preserved in
Chile. Pinochet, who came to power in a 1973 CIA-backed
coup that toppled the elected government of President
Salvador Allende, has vowed to remain in office until 1989.
In the eight days since the declaration of the state of
siege, Chileans have found themselves in the midst of a
government-sponsored campaign of terror. For the first time
since 1973, Pinochet has deployed the regular armed forces
in the streets of the capital city of Santiago.
On Saturday, soldiers began a door-to-door search look
ing for possible “leftist subversives,” a label usually given
to anyone who opposes or questions the Pinochet govern
ment. The army focused its attention mostly on the poor
shantytowns on the outskirts of Santiago. In the ghetto area
known as Silva Henriquez, paratroopers sealed off the entire
area and arrested every male over the age of fifteen. By
nightfall on Saturday, more than 3,000 people had been ar
rested and taken away for interrogation.
Under the new laws created by the state of siege, the
government of Chile can detain anyone suspected of being a
“subversive” and hold them indefinitely without the right
to a trial. It is the latest effort by the Chilean government to
stop a rising opposition movement that has repeatedly call
ed upon Pinochet to step down from office and to hold free
elections.
During the past ten years the U.S. State Department has
remained largely silent concerning events in Chile. At the
same time, the people of Chile have watched their civil liber
ties stripped away by a government put in power with CIA
support. The Reagan administration, which has continued
its barrage of verbal attacks against the Nicaraguan govern
ment, accusing the Sandinistas of human rights violations,
has offered no comment on the plight of the Chilean people
now suffering under the U.S.-backed dictatorship of
Pinochet.
Like the Soviet leaders, who can’t seem to find any fault
with the communist regime in Poland that has banned the
Solidarity labor union, jailed its followers and murdered a
pro-Solidarity priest, the Reagan administration can’t seem
to find any fault with the the Pinochet regime, which has
banned labor unions, arrested opposition leaders and
murdered hundreds of people during 11 years of military
rule.
Questions, not answers
come from Autzen killings
The tragedy that struck the University community Mon
day has shocked many people. The shooting incident at
Autzen Stadium that left two people dead and one wounded
brought back bitter memories of the killing spree at the
McDonalds restaurant in San Ysidro, Calif, last July.
Once again, innocent people have become the victims of
senseless and unpredicted violence. It is impossible to com
pletely prevent the kind of violence that occurred Monday.
But with tighter gun control laws (even though in this case
one of the guns used was stolen) and better availability of
professional counseling, incidents like this might be
prevented.
The apparent increase of random unpredicted violence
in America during recent years should lead citizens of this
country to question the “cult of violence” that has been
avidly promoted by Hollywood. On television and in the
movies, violence has become rampant. Perhaps it’s time for
Americans to take a closer look at what we are subjected to
on film and how it may or may not be affecting the real
world around us.
The Emerald staff sends its best wishes for a quick
recovery to Rick O’Shea, who was wounded in Monday’s
shooting. We also send our deepest sympathy to the grieving
families of Chris Brathwaite and Michael Evan Feher.
Page 2
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letters
Abolish rape
Rape is not a man’s right.
Rape is not a joke. Rape is not
an option for what to do with
feelings of anger and
powerlessness. Rape is an act of
violence, an outward manifesta
tion of the rampant misogyny in
this country. Not only does rape
occur, it is condoned.
Socializaton of men in the
military, fraternities, and other
male institutions are in part
responsible for the acceptance
of such a deplorable act as rape;
this acceptance must be stop
ped. Men need to reject the lies
that equate rape with sex and
manhood. Women never ask to
be raped. Never.
Because men rape, rape is a
man's problem. Men must
educate themselves and each
other about the realities of rape
in order to stop the continuation
of these acts of hate and
violence.
Creating cages of fear or
defensiveness is not the answer.
All aspects of our society that
condone rape must be abolish
ed. This fight must be fought by
women and men alike. We need
to get angry and stay angry,
channeling that anger into pro
ductive work before these
violent acts destroy any and all
possibilities of equality and har
mony between us as women and
men. We do have the power.
Leah Juniper
Psychology
Conspiracy
Yes, I know you’re all still
celebrating the way King
Reagan trounced that sniveling
liberal Mondale. But I felt it
urgent to warn you of a menac
ing conspiracy afoot. I have
been informed of the existence
of a group known as the USDA
(Unwitting Soviet Dupes of
America). Their motives and ac
tions are incomprehensible to
normal Americans. 1 think you
may find the following ex
amples of their behavior quite
shocking.
They blaspheme the sacred
politics of Republican and
Democrat alike, and when
they’re in a labelling mood,
might call themselves (gasp!)
anarchists. They have
disgusting vices such as the in
gestion of mind-expanding
drugs. They occasionally make
seditious statements like “na
tionalism sucks.” They discuss
such sinister topics as the rela
tionship of quantum duality to
the collective unconscious.
They have unsavory fantasies of
seeing corporate executives
planting vegetable gardens.
Finally, they are all guilty of the
heinous crime of open-minded
skepticism.
Beware when approaching an
agent of this organization, as
they are known to be smiling,
unarmed, and dangerous.
John Rygh
Eugene
Throwing away
Does the Emerald advocate
throwing away student fees? A
recent campus incident would
seem to indicate they do. It has
been disclosed that on Oct. 29
and 30. distributors of the
Emerald, under orders from the
Emerald office, disposed of
hundreds of copies of the
following student publications
by ASUO-funded groups:
1. The Advocate — the newslet
ter of the Survival Center.
2. The Impact — the newsletter
of the Oregon Student Public In
terest Research group.
3. Avenue — a publication of
the Dept, of Architecture and
allied arts.
4. Off the Record — a monthly
news and feature magazine ex
ploring student participation at
the University.
5. The Link — an independent
publicaton representing the
local gay community.
These publications represent
the total of hundreds of hours of
student work and untold stu
dent fees, yet they were taken
away and dumped from seven
Emerald distribution points.
The Emerald office is claim
ing that these papers improper
ly occupied Emerald rack space.
So far, all parties have claimed
innocence in regard to this
charge. It is now being assumed
that other students or ground
skeepers, in an attempt to help
out or keep the areas clean,
picked up the papers and put
them in the racks.
Granted, the campus has
recently been inundated with
nearly a dozen publications by
different interest groups and the
problem exists of where to put
them all. However, hopefully, a
more reasonable solution can be
found in the future.
Brian Elliott
Journalism
Oregon daily
emerald
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University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, 97403.
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Tuesday, November 13, 1984