Chile’s 9/11 protest marks anniversary of Pinochet coup, leaves 1 dead
A demonstrator is arrested by anti-riot police during a protest to mark the 39th anniversary of the military coup in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012. Protesters clashed with police after a march to remember the victims of the dictatorship led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet who toppled leftist President Salvador Allende on Sept. 11, 1973. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP)– Chile’s long night of violence marking the anniversary of a Sept. 11 coup is over, and police tallied up the results on Wednesday: one officer was killed and 26 wounded. There were 255 arrested, including 83 children.
Five public buses were set on fire to make barricades in the streets of the capital, prompting the transportation agency to cancel service for more than a million people. On Chile’s 9/11 protest, there was widespread looting through the night, and at least 58,000 homes were left without power after hooded protesters threw metal chains onto power lines in at least 12 of Santiago’s 35 districts, the electricity company said.
Demonstrators run away from the police water cannon during Chile’s 9/11 protest that marks the 39th anniversary of the Pinochet coup in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012. Protesters clashed with anti-riot police after a march to remember the victims of the dictatorship led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet who toppled leftist President Salvador Allende on Sept. 11, 1973. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)
Chile’s 9/11 protests mark the 1973 Pinochet coup, which began with Gen. Augusto Pinochet’s long dictatorship.
Metropolitan Police Chief Luis Valdes says 27-year-old Officer Cristian Martinez was shot to death trying to stop the looting of a supermarket.
President Sebastian Pinera said his government will do all it can to identify his killers. Valdez said suspects are under arrest.
Deputy Interior Minister Rodrigo Ubilla said the number of arrests had declined since previous years, but the violence had intensified, with firearms being used more than ever. There was “a greater number of gunshots, of weapons and we’re also concerned about seeing a greater number of young people in the streets,” Ubilla said.
Demonstrators lit a flare during a protest to mark the 39th anniversary of the Pinochet coup in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012. Chile’s 9/11 protest caused many protesters to clash with anti-riot police after a march to remember the victims of the dictatorship led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet who toppled leftist President Salvador Allende on Sept. 11, 1973. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)
In this 1971 file photo, then Chile’s President Salvador Allende waves to supporters in Santiago, Chile. On Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012, a Chilean court closed the judicial investigation into the death of Allende during the military coup of Sept. 11, 1973, confirming that the president committed suicide to avoid falling into the hands of the Pinochet coup led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet. (AP Photo)
Soldiers and firefighters carry the body of President Salvador Allende, wrapped in a Bolivian poncho, out of the destroyed La Moneda presidential palace after the Sept. 11, 1973 coup led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet that ended Allende’s three-year government. On Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012, a Chilean court closed the judicial investigation into the death of Allende, confirming that the president committed suicide to avoid falling into the hands of the military coup led by Augusto Pinochet. (AP Photo/El Mercurio)
