Word: junta
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...coup. He is seen in the company of his guards wearing a metal combat helmet and carrying a Soviet-made automatic rifle given to him by Cuba's Fidel Castro. Fascinating though they are, the photos do not resolve the questions about how Allende died. The military junta that now runs Chile claims that Allende committed suicide by killing himself with his rifle. But Allende's widow, Hortensia Bussi de Allende, now living in exile in Mexico, disputes that. Although she originally accepted the suicide theory, she now insists that her husband was shot by the junta...
...effort was worthwhile. The campaign gave him the opportunity to raise issues in public that would normally not be covered in the heavily censored press. Guimaràes spoke out against "arbitrary arrests and persecution, torture and violence." He called for an end to press censorship and lambasted the junta's refusal to allow Brazilians a direct voice in electing the President, observing that "people who are capable of working and paying taxes are also capable of voting." Surprisingly, the charges were printed in local newspapers...
Geisel, 65, is Brazil's first Protestant President, but otherwise is an exact image of his military predecessors. That means a strict adherence to the junta's drive to make Brazil "the Japan of South America," a drive that last year resulted in an economic growth rate of 11.4%, one of the highest in the world. Brazilians are happy with the relative prosperity the military dictatorship has brought. Geisel has also indicated that he will take a hard line on civil liberties, which have been suspended since 1964, when the generals overthrew leftist President Joao Goulart, Brazil...
There is still a depressing mood of fear in Chile. Armed troops patrol Santiago's streets, and gunfire is frequently heard at night. Most observers now believe that the death toll is around 2,000, not 675 as the junta claims. Executions continue, though indiscriminate killings apparently have ceased. Several thousand political leftists are still being held in military prisons without trial. Political parties have been banned, and the junta indicates that the earliest it might allow elections would be in two years...
Despite all this, Chileans, if they had the choice, would probably reluctantly vote for the junta as the lesser of evils. Though the junta is hardly popular, it does have the country running again. Chileans chafe under its totalitarian restrictions, but they also remember the chaos and strife of Allende's regime. For the moment Chile's citizens appear content to get back to work and the rhythms of an orderly society. But with their long democratic tradition, they are not likely to tolerate junta rule indefinitely...