Turning a Blind Eye

One of Reagan’s biggest mistakes during the Cold War and in relation specifically to Pinochet’s regime in Chile was turning a blind eye to the violence and abuses made by the junta. Just as you can be punished for being an accessory to murder here, the US was an accessory to mass murder globally. They funded Pinochet’s regime for some time, trained his soldiers, and turned a blind eye to the murder and human rights abuses all in the name of anticommunist action. As long as Pinochet vowed to take out the communists then Reagan wouldn’t move against him. All matters of policy were wishy washy and what US policy makers called quiet diplomacy was in reality the failure to take action against the obvious wrongs that are supposed to be at the heart of our own constitution. When I think of the foreign policy towards Chile for so many years I think of Pontius Pilate washing his hands of the murder of Jesus. Even though he knew it was wrong, he didn’t care as long as he maintained his power. As Christians it is our job to not only abstain from human rights violations, but to act against them when possible. Even the Pope acknowledged the problem in Chile and mitigated to fix it. The US just practiced “soft diplomacy” which meant that they would dangle economic sanctions but not actually do anything. In the end the plebiscite gave the US a way to come out as good guys who finally stopped Pinochet.