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British court orders disclosure of Pinochet medical report

graphic

February 15, 2000
Web posted at: 11:36 a.m. EST (1636 GMT)

LONDON (CNN) -- Belgium and others seeking Augusto Pinochet's extradition have the right to see the former Chilean ruler's medical report, Britain's High Court ruled on Tuesday.

The three-judge panel overturned Home Secretary Jack Straw 's ruling that the medical report -- which Straw said revealed the 84-year-old general was unfit to be extradited to Spain to stand trial on human rights abuse charges -- was confidential.

"The governing interest is the public interest in operating a procedure which would be perceived and accepted by the great majority to be fair," Lord Justice Simon Brown said. "That is the imperative, and in my judgment it outweighs any contrary private interest."

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Straw's attorney, Jonathan Sumption, said the report would be given to the four countries seeking Pinochet's extradition -- Belgium, Spain, France and Switzerland -- immediately. He said they would have until February 22 to file comments on it before Straw makes a final ruling.

Belgium is the only country involved in the current court case. Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon issued the original extradition request, but Spain has since blocked his attempts to pursue the matter.

Belgium and six human rights groups, led by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, sought redress in Britain's court system for access to the report, saying they could not mount a meaningful challenge to Straw's ruling without access to details of the medical report.

Pinochet's opponents want him to stand trial for torture and other human rights abuses they say occurred during his 17-year rule of Chile. An official Chilean report said that more than 3,000 people died or disappeared during his 1973 to 1990 reign.

More delays to follow

In Chile, opponents of Pinochet shouted with joy at the news from London of the court ruling.

"Happy, satisfied, we are one step closer to seeing Pinochet being extradited to Spain to face the courts there," Viviana Diaz, head of Families of the Detained and Disappeared, said at the headquarters of the protest group.

Tuesday's ruling will further delay Pinochet's attempts to return to Chile. The ailing Pinochet, who ruled Chile under an iron fist has been held under house arrest in London since October 1998, when British police arrested him on a Spanish warrant.

Pinochet's attorneys challenged the extradition without success, as Britain's courts ruled he could be sent to Spain to stand trial. But Straw sent a team of independent doctors to evaluate Pinochet's condition, culminating in the secretary's announcement last month that he was "minded" to send the general back to Chile.

Home Office lawyers have said that the medical report will be turned over to Belgium, as well as Spain, France and Switzerland, countries also seeking Pinochet's extradition. Those countries will be given the opportunity to comment on the report and Straw's decision before a final ruling is made.

With a Chilean air force jet waiting at an airport outside London to take him home, Pinochet must wait longer to learn his fate.

Correspondents Margaret Lowrie and Richard Blystone contributed to this report



RELATED STORIES:
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Belgium, rights groups go to court to stop Pinochet's release
January 26, 2000
Belgium, human rights groups challenge Pinochet medical exam
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Rights groups to ask British High Court to intervene in Pinochet case
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No quick decision expected on whether Pinochet can go home
January 18, 2000

RELATED SITES:
Britain's High Court
Amnesty International Online: human rights
The president of Chile
Human Rights Watch
Redress Trust
The Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture
United Kingdom/Chile: Pinochet
Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores de Espana - Ministry of Foreign Affairs
CIA World Factbook: Chile
CIA World Factbook: Spain
CIA World Factbook: Belgium
Belgian Federal Government Online

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