A Vigorous Pinochet Gets Hero’s Welcome

Welcomed with a show of force and loyalty by a reverential military contingent, former dictator Augusto Pinochet stepped slowly but steadily back onto Chilean soil Friday--and brought with him a blast of the conflict that has accompanied him for decades.

The Chilean air force 707 carrying Pinochet landed here after a 25-hour flight from Britain, where authorities had freed him from 16 months of house arrest on grounds he is too ill to stand trial in Spain on charges of human rights abuses during his regime. But upon emerging from the plane, the 84-year-old general showed a vigor that raised questions about the true state of his health.

Looking cheerful and well rested in a dark blue suit, Pinochet surprised onlookers when he rose from his wheelchair and walked with the aid of a cane into the embraces of the four chiefs of the armed forces and his family. As an army band blared his favorite marches, Pinochet waved to about 500 supporters, mainly former officials of his military regime and right-wing leaders.

A Puma helicopter then transported Pinochet to a military hospital in the heart of this capital city in a traffic-stopping operation that featured three swooping escort helicopters, rooftop snipers and a phalanx of commandos in black berets and combat gear who escorted Pinochet’s wheelchair across the hospital’s helipad.

In the streets around the hospital, about 6,000 admirers cheered, waved Chilean flags and honked horns. The honors and flourishes of the military reception and the emotions of the crowd, some of whom insulted and punched a group of leftist marchers and scuffled with police, showed that the former strongman retains a cult of personality among a vocal far-right minority of Chileans.

“The English pirates had to return my general,” exclaimed Hugo Diaz, a retired professor. “I came to welcome him so he knows that he has the support of all of us.”

Although Chile’s center-left government fought to win Pinochet’s release, its leaders reacted swiftly and harshly to the hero’s welcome, calling it inappropriate for a man who escaped extradition to Spain because doctors said he was physically and mentally debilitated.

Presidential chief of staff Jose Miguel Insulza told reporters that the airport welcome reminded him of the Nazis: The army band’s helmets resembled those of the German army in World War II, and the band played Pinochet’s favorite German song from that era.

“It was a grotesque spectacle that hurts Chile’s international image,” said Sen. Sergio Bitar, the leader of the Party for Democracy. Bitar was among those who interpreted the military’s actions as a veiled message to activists intent on prosecuting Pinochet here: He may no longer be a powerhouse, but he retains the loyalty and protection of the armed forces.

“They want to show they are not defeated and that he is the savior of the nation,” said human rights lawyer Roberto Garreton. “It is really irritating.”

Pinochet underwent medical tests at the hospital, checked out about 8 1/2 hours later and headed for his home in an upscale Santiago neighborhood. After months in which some accounts suggested that his ailments were life-threatening, he seemed intent on demonstrating his resilience Friday.

The crowd outside the hospital chanted triumphantly: “He returned on his feet!”

In contrast, Mauricio Lepe, watching the helicopters circle the skyscrapers near the hospital, said he doubts the validity of the medical tests that enabled Pinochet’s release from house arrest. British Home Secretary Jack Straw set Pinochet free because doctors found serious health problems, including memory lapses that the specialists said would impede him from participating in his defense in an eventual trial.

“This was all a trick by the Chilean and British governments,” said Lepe, 30, an airline employee.

Interior Minister Raul Troncoso bristled at that notion, saying, “The fact that someone can get off a plane walking does not mean he is in condition to stand trial.”

But Bitar disagreed with the interior minister, a political ally.

“The television cameras did their own medical exam,” the senator said. “Pinochet looked quite agile and recognized everyone. The British exams were strange when you see that a person could recuperate so much during a flight. There should be new medical exams conducted in Chile.”

In fact, a Chilean special magistrate investigating Pinochet already has ordered new tests. Only mental illness would excuse Pinochet from a trial here, but first the courts would have to remove the senator-for-life’s parliamentary immunity--a big hurdle.

Talk of trials and subterfuge angered the Pinochet forces during the celebration of the long-awaited return of their leader, who in their eyes was a victim of epic injustice. Pinochet’s eldest daughter, Lucia, called for unity.

“The country has not been reconciled,” she said. “Those who preached so much for reconciliation are the ones who do the least to bring it about.”

Another daughter, Jacqueline, told reporters after an emotional family reunion that Pinochet said he was eager to return to “his desk in his home in the countryside.” And, citing her father’s health, she said she doubts that he will resume his duties in the Senate.

The government has pointedly expressed hope that Pinochet will bow out of politics. Troncoso reiterated that sentiment Friday when asked whether Pinochet should attend the March 11 inauguration of President-elect Ricardo Lagos, who will become the country’s first Socialist leader since President Salvador Allende, whom Pinochet overthrew in 1973. He went on to rule for 17 years.

Some Chileans wonder whether Pinochet might attend the swearing-in anyway, perhaps stealing center stage.

Pinochet’s son Marco Antonio told reporters that he asked his father how it felt to be back after his ordeal. He said his father answered with characteristic brevity: “The air here is different.”