CHILE: SANTIAGO: MILITARY CEREMONY

(10 Jul 1995) Spanish/Nat

The President of Chile, Eduardo Frei, has met the former dictator General Augusto Pinochet for the first time since two army generals were convicted of the killing of ex-minister Orlando Letelier.

They appeared together Monday in public to witness a military ceremony at which hundreds of army conscripts swore their allegiance to the flag.

These tanks were not here on ceremonial duty - they were guarding the military parade from possible violence.

This was a big day not only for the new army conscripts but for the country as a whole.

The presence of the chief of the armed forces and Chile's former leader, General Augusto Pinochet at the ceremony in Santiago was not unusual.

But the appearance of the civilian President Eduardo Frei was unexpected

It was the first time the two men had appeared in public together since a row broke out between them over the incarceration of two army officers.

General Manuel Contreras and his deputy Brigadier General Pedro Espinoza had been found guilty of ordering the assassination of the former Chilean ambassador to the U-S, Orlando Letelier.

The civilian courts had ordered the two men be jailed for seven and six years respectively.

But General Contreras who is staying in a naval hospital has refused to go to prison. Thousands of people have taken to the streets to protest but the military continues to back his pleas to stay in hospital.

Today (Monday), neither Pinochet nor Frei commentated on the row between the civilian authorities and the military.

But the issue looks set to continue to ignite politics in Chile for some time to come.

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