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The unexpected ruling by the law lords on Nov. 25, 1998, that former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet is not immune from prosecution has created political and diplomatic dilemmas for UK Home Secretary Jack Straw. Straw is thought to be privately sympathetic to the idea that Pinochet should be allowed to fly back to Chile but such a move would be seen as treacherous by Labour Members of Parliament who are extremely anti-Pinochet. The wrong move could ruin Straw's career ambitions. Straw has until Dec. 11, 1998, to decide whether Spain's formal request for Pinochet's extradition should be heard by the courts.

The law lords put the fate of former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet into the hands of UK Home Secretary Jack Straw on Nov. 25, 1998, when they ruled that he did not have immunity from prosecution. Straw must decide before Dec. 2, 1998, whether to allow the Spanish government's formal request for Pinochet's extradition to be heard by the courts. Straw could decide to send Pinochet home on the grounds that Chile's internally-agreed peace process provides for him to be left alone. Pinochet's future is likely to be the subject of a long legal battle, whatever Straw decides.

Law lords Lord Slynn of Hadley and Lord Lloyd of Berwick ruled on Nov. 25, 1998, that former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet enjoyed immunity from prosecution as a former head of state. However Lord Nicholls of Birkenhead and Lord Steyn disagreed, a view supported by Lord Hoffman. Nicholls argued that the acts of torture and hostage-taking of which Pinochet is accused are an offence under international law, even when committed by a head of state. As a result, the law lords ruled by 3-2 that Pinochet is not immune from prosecution.

The law lords' unexpected ruling on Nov. 25, 1998, that former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet is not immune from prosecution for abhorrent crimes committed in his name was greeted with jubilation by Chilean exile groups across Europe. The 3-2 ruling puts immense pressure on UK Home Secretary Jack Straw to grant Spain's extradition request. Most Labour Members of Parliament felt on Nov. 25, 1998, that Straw would have to endorse the law lords' ruling although Home Office officials and Downing Street stressed that any decision would be taken in a quasi-judicial capacity.

Ex-UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and former Chancellor Norman Lamont spoke at a fringe meeting at the Conservative Party conference on Oct. 6, 1999, in an attempt to raise the profile of former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet. Pinochet's supporters are seeking to prevent his extradition to Spain to face trial on 35 charges of torture. Pinochet's lawyers have claimed that there is little difference between the torture charges and cases of police brutality in democratic countries, and that a prisoner subjected to electric shocks had not been tortured because he died instantly.

Lawyers for former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet took immediate action on Mar. 24, 1999, after the law lords ruled that he could be prosecuted and extradited for offences of torture and conspiracy to torture committed after Dec. 8, 1988. Pinochet's lawyers appealed to the High Court for a writ of habeas corpus together with leave to seek a judicial review of the authority to go ahead with extradition proceedings which Home Secretary Jack Straw issued in Dec. 1998. The law lords' ruling has reduced the case against Pinochet from 30 charges to just three.

Former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, arrested in the London Clinic on Oct. 16, 1998, could be free to return to Chile as early as the week of Nov. 2, 1998, after winning a High Court battle against his arrest and detention. Pinochet is alleged to have ordered the deaths of more than 4,000 people but Lord Chief Justice Lord Bingham ruled on Oct. 28, 1998, that he could not be tried for acts he committed as head of state. Bingham quashed the provisional extradition warrants made at Spain's request but the Crown Prosecution Service was given leave to appeal to the House of Lords.

UK Home Secretary Jack Straw hinted on Oct. 22, 1998, that former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet, who is under arrest in a London, England, hospital, could be sent home on compassionate grounds. Pinochet's arrest at the request of the Spanish government which wants to extradite him in connection with the murder of Spanish citizens in Chile when he was head of state is threatening to turn into a diplomatic crisis. The growing controversy threatens to overshadow the visit to Britain of Argentinian Pres. Carlos Menem in the week of Oct. 26, 1998.

UK Home Secretary Jack Straw decided on Apr. 15, 1999, that the extradition of former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet to Spain to face trial on charges of torture and conspiracy to torture should go ahead. A House of Lords ruling in Mar. 1999 had reduced the Spanish charges against Pinochet from 32 to three by setting a cut-off date of Dec. 1988. However the Crown Prosecution Service announced on Apr. 15, 1999, that it would be revising the list of charges on Pinochet's extradition warrant, Spain having provided it with information about more than 50 specific cases of torture committed after the cut-off date.

Lord Hoffmann has angered and embarrassed senior judges by failing to disclose his links with Amnesty International before hearing an appeal by former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. Hoffmann was one of three law lords who ruled on Nov. 25, 1998, that Pinochet was not immune from prosecution, overturning a High Court ruling and paving the way for the former dictator to be extradited to Spain. The House of Lords set aside the judgment on Dec. 17, 1998, and a fresh appeal will be heard in Jan. 1999. Lord Chancellor Lord Irvine has demanded measures to prevent such a situation ever recurring.

Lawyers for former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet argued on Dec. 15, 1998, that the Nov. 25, 1998, House of Lords ruling that Pinochet could be extradited to Spain to face charges of crimes against humanity should be set aside. They argued that Pinochet had been denied a fair trial because one of the judges, Lord Hoffmann, had links with Amnesty International and that this constituted a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights. Clare Montgomery QC, representing Pinochet, called on a panel of three current and two recently retired law lords to rescind the Nov. 25, 1998, decision.

The British High Court ruling on Oct. 28, 1998, giving former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet immunity from prosecution as a former head of state provoked both disgust and jubilation. Amnesty International pronounced itself extremely disappointed with the judgement although it was pleased that the High Court had ruled that Pinochet should remain under arrest until an appeal could be heard in the House of Lords. Chilean exiles in London, England, were outraged at what they saw as a first step towards freedom for Pinochet but the Chilean government expressed satisfaction with the ruling.

The British government is facing a series of diplomatic dilemmas following the arrest of former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet on Oct. 16, 1998, at the request of Spanish judges. The US is understood to be putting pressure on the Government not to assist in Pinochet's extradition to Spain to face charges of genocide, torture and terrorism relating to the period following the military coup that brought him to power in 1973. Meanwhile it emerged on Oct. 19, 1998, that Chilean human rights group Chile Democratico is planning to launch a private prosecution against Pinochet in the UK.

Any illusions that Chileans had come to terms with General Augusto Pinochet's 17-year military rule were shattered when the ageing former dictator was arrested in London, England, on Oct. 16, 1998. University of Chile political science professor Guillermo Holtzman pointed out that Pinochet's arrest was polarising society. Businessmen are strong supporters of Pinochet, seeing him as having sparked a long period of prosperity by introducing market reforms and privatisations. Other Chileans are delighted at Pinochet's arrest in connection with human rights violations.