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CHRONOLOGY - 1983
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MARCH 24, 1983
Thousands participate in a March
Against Hunger. The police repression is assisted by plainclothes
agents armed with brass knuckles, who made their first appearance the year
before and were dubbed "gurkas" by the regime's opponents.
MARCH 16, 1983
Three foreign priests, active in human
rights defense work, are kicked out of the country. Irish priests
Brendan Ford and Desmond MacGuillicudy as well as Australian Brian
MacMahon are deported.
MAY 11, 1983
The first National Protest takes place, the result of
a long process of growing resistance against the regime. Organized
primarily by the Confederation of Copper Workers (CTC) with backing from
political groups, the diversity and magnitude of the first national
protest takes the government and even protest organizers by surprise. The
regime responds with massive military occupations throughout Santiago and
particularly of working-class neighborhoods in southern Santiago where the
protest was most intense. More than 300 people were arrested. Protests
continue on a nearly monthly basis for the next two years.
AUGUST 22, 1983
A new political movement called the
Democratic Alliance is created, comprised of the Christian Democratic,
Republican, Radical, Socialist, Social Democrat and Popular Socialist
Union parties. The movement's objective is to negotiate a transition to
democracy with the dictatorship.
AUGUST 30, 1983
Gen. Carol Urzua Ibañez, Santiago
governor, is assassinated by the Movement of the Revolutionary Left
(MIR). In 1977, Urzua, an expert in military intelligence, defended
the military government before the Inter-American Defense Commission.
SEPTEMBER 10, 1983
The Movimiento Democratico Popular
(MDP) is formed as an alternative opposition alliance of the left.
Despite its growing organizational strength, the Communist Party's demand
for full participation in the Democratic Alliance had gone unheeded, which
led it to found the MDP together with the Clodomiro Almeyda branch of the
Socialist Party, the MIR, the Mapu Obrero Campesino (MOC), and the PS-CNR
among others. Its goals were an end to the military regime, a national
agreement with the Alliance, and a provisional government comprised of all
political sectors.
NOVEMBER 11, 1983
Sebastian Acevedo self-immolates in
a dramatic protest of the detention of his son and daughter. Following
a protest in the city of Concepcion, Acevedo's children Candelaria and
Galo Fernando are arrested. Their father searches for them, but at each
police station officials deny any knowledge of their whereabouts. In
despair, Acevedo plants himself at the Cathedral entrance, shouting "Give
me back my children!" Pleading that the CNI not torture his children,
Acevedo pours gasoline over his clothing, and threatens to set himself on
fire. A uniformed policeman attempts to disperse the crowd that has
gathered, challenging him to carry out his threat. In an instant, Acevedo
strikes a match, his body igniting like a torch. He dies that same day,
after learning that Candelaria has been released. The agonizing image of
50 year-old Sebastian Acevedo, captured by a photographer, stuns the
world. His act of bravery and devotion inspires the birth of a non-violent
protest movement two months later. Led by priest Jose Aldunate, the
Sebastian Acevedo Anti-Torture Movement becomes a broad-based organization
that challenges the practice of torture.
NOVEMBER 18, 1983
The Democratic Alliance sponsors a
rally in Parque O'Higgins. The gathering is considered one of the
largest protests of the decade following the coup, with an estimated
500,000 participants.
DECEMBER 10, 1983
The Catholic church confirms its earlier
resolution to deny torturers communion. The bishops unanimously
approved the resolution at the Chilean Episcopal Conference, headed by
bishop Bernardino Pinero. The resolution stated: "torturers, their
accomplices, and those who have the power to prevent torture, but fail to
do so cannot receive the holy communion unless they sincerely repent...
the fundamental reform of security forces and the CNI in particular is
absolutely indispensable and urgent so that they act within the confines
of morality and just laws that should govern a country."
DECEMBER 23, 1983
The Manuel Rodriguez Patriotic Front
(FPMR) makes its first appearance, claiming responsibility for a
blackout that left much of central Chile without electricity. Founded with
backing from the Communist Party, the FPMR is formed specifically to
organize armed resistance against the dictatorship.
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