List of political prisoners in the Chilean state (early September 2011 update)
From Liberación Total (September 3, 2011):
The following is a list of revolutionary prisoners currently locked up in the Chilean state’s prisons. This list is being constantly updated due to transfers and the different circumstances experienced by the prisoners.
Let’s also remember the situation of various fugitive comrades, among whom are Carlos Gutiérrez (charged in the Security Case), Diego Ríos, and Gabriela Curilem. We hope they never have to be added to this list and never have to set foot in prison.
Send all contributions and updates to liberaciontotal [at] riseup [dot] net.
SANTIAGO 1 PRIVATE PRISON:
Francisco Moreno
Santiago 1 Private Prison, Block 35
On July 14, 2011, Moreno was arrested during a mass student march and accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at the Brazilian embassy, injuring one riot cop and leaving another with serious burns.
Moreno was recognized by undercover police, who supposedly identified him by his clothes as well as a photo in which he is masked up. He was ultimately charged with felony assault, attempted homicide, and weapons possession (a Molotov cocktail).
He is currently in custody awaiting trial.
Patricio Gallardo
Alejandro Rodríguez
Santiago 1 Private Prison, Security Wing
Gallardo and Rodríguez were arrested on August 30, 2010 and charged with attacking a Prosegur armored car in September 2009. Both were MAPU Lautaro militants and political prisoners in the 1990s. Their arrests and the proceedings against them were an attempt to link them to the Bombings Case as financiers, but the maneuver came to nothing.
They are currently in custody awaiting trial.
HIGH SECURITY PRISON:
Marcelo Villarroel
High Security Prison, Special High Security Wing, H Block North
Villarroel was a MAPU Lautaro member and political prisoner in the 1990s. He is charged with taking part in the September 2007 Banco Santander robbery in Valparaíso and the October 2007 Banco Security robbery in Santiago during which repressive agent Luis Moyano died in a shootout while the perpetrators were making their escape.
After a period as a fugitive, Villarroel was arrested on March 15, 2008 together with Freddy Fuentevilla in Neuquen, Argentina. They were then deported to Chile on December 15, 2009.
He is currently in custody awaiting trial.
Juan Aliste Vega
High Security Prison, Special High Security Wing, J Block
Aliste Vega was a MAPU Lautaro member and political prisoner in the 1990s. He is charged with taking part in the September 2007 Banco Santander robbery in Valparaíso and the October 2007 Banco Security robbery in Santiago during which repressive agent Luis Moyano died in a shootout while the perpetrators were making their escape.
Aliste Vega was arrested on July 9, 2010 in Argentina and later deported to Chile on July 22, 2010. He is specifically charged with shooting at the police during the Banco Security escape.
He is currently in custody awaiting trial.
Freddy Fuentevilla
High Security Prison, Special High Security Wing, H Block North
Fuentevilla is a former member of the MIR (Leftist Revolutionary Movement). He is charged with taking part in the September 2007 Banco Santander robbery in Valparaíso and the October 2007 Banco Security robbery in Santiago during which repressive agent Luis Moyano died in a shootout while the perpetrators were making their escape.
After a period as a fugitive, Fuentevilla was arrested on March 15, 2008 together with Marcelo Villarroel in Neuquen, Argentina. They were then deported to Chile on December 15, 2009. Fuentevilla is accused of driving the motorcycle from which shots were fired at the police.
He is currently in custody awaiting trial.
Esteban Huiniguir
High Security Prison, Special High Security Wing, J Block
Huiniguir is a former MAPU Lautaro member. After his home was raided on March 29, 2008 (Young Combatant’s Day), he and other residents were arrested on charges of possession of Molotov cocktails.
Out of a blatantly absurd desire to lock him up, he was sentenced to three years and one day in prison for growing marijuana, plus another 541 days for misdemeanor drug trafficking, even though only a few plants were found at his home.
He is currently serving out his sentence.
SOUTH SANTIAGO PRISON (Former Penitentiary):
Alberto Olivares Fuenzalida
South Santiago Prison (Former Penitentiary), A Block
Olivares Fuenzalida was an FPMR (Manuel Rodriguez Patriotic Front) member and political prisoner during the 1990s. At the moment, he is locked up on charges stemming from a number of expropriations. In prison, he has participated in hunger strikes and protests while writing and fomenting rebellion as a member of the January 22 Collective.
He is currently serving out his sentence.
SUBJECT TO PREVENTIVE MEASURES:
Rodolfo Retamales
Cristián Cancino
Candelaria Cortez Monroy
Felipe Guerra
Mónica Caballero
Francisco Solar
Carlos Riveros
Camilo Pérez
Andrea Urzúa
Diego Morales
Vinicio Aguilera
Pablo Morales
The defendants are charged with belonging to a fantasy criminal organization. Among them are anarchists, antiauthoritarians, people who have been active in occupied social centers, and former members of armed groups. They were all arrested on August 14, 2010, mixed up in the so-called Bombings Case, and charged as members of a terrorist cell responsible for carrying out 29 bombings.
None of them are currently in prison, but all are awaiting trial, either on probation (having to regularly sign in at their local police station) or under house arrest. The most frequently updated sites with information about their case are solidaridadporlxspresxs.blogspot.com and libertadalos14a.blogspot.com.
MAPUCHE POLITICAL PRISONERS:
Their situations and the list are continually being updated here.
String of arsons in Chile claimed by International Revolutionary Front [UPDATED with fourth arson]
From Liberación Total (August 8, 2011):
Responsibility claim for arsons. Vindication for the actions of our comrade Luciano Pitronello. Our reflections.
We are the seed of a tenacious plant. And it’s because of the road we’ve traveled and the need to keep fighting that today, although bruised, we feel somewhat more mature than yesterday. We are thus undertaking, with all our hearts, to let loose some reflections and claim responsibility for our actions as well as those of our comrade-in-ideas Luciano Pitronello, so that they might spread and be discussed in any corner of the world.
These days, it seems that a negative idea has taken root: thinking that everyone involved in the struggle goes through periods of advance and retreat, ups and downs. And although we may think that way, feeling that times are dark for us right now, there still exists the need to regroup, ensure that the unpleasant experiences of the past aren’t repeated, learn lessons, and use every possible means to avoid the bottom of the pit.
We’ve now written something about this, through which we hope our point of view comes across as clearly as possible. We don’t want to overlook any comrade’s practice. This is only what we are thinking and doing, but we are always open to discussion because the struggle is nourished by diversity. It’s the different types and ways of understanding the war that allow us to pave our way.
Firstly, we recognize the existence of an inexplicable quality born within our hearts, that drives us even to risk our lives. It’s the need to be free that makes us hurl ourselves into the void, often without thinking of any consequences. That valiant warrior spirit keeps conflict alive in its most brilliant (but neither its only nor its principal) splendor: our violence against their violence.
Through this text, we mainly want to call for new methods, materials, and knowledge to be incorporated into the violent struggle against authority. We would never dare to judge or oppose comrades who launch themselves into attack without better knowledge or infrastructure. We’re not interested in becoming professional at anything, but we are motivated by the need to intensify the war while preserving our lives and the lives of our comrades. So even if actions always involve the possibility of accidents like Mauri’s death or Luciano’s situation (which are clearly indicative of heightened conflict against authority), to us those accidents also represent a giant step backward because each attacking individuality is in itself an act of liberation, and we must use every means to avoid losses in the course of antiauthoritarian action. It’s not good to treat those tragedies as normal, even though fighters have to learn to live with them.
Secondly, it thus follows that when an individual decides to get organized and make the shift toward violent action—whether that organization takes collective or individual form—the more deeply one gets involved in the battle, the more one needs a certain minimum knowledge of methods and materials to allow for increased, sustained impact. We must be clear that said infrastructure is constructed in relation to the goals of autonomy and liberation, and it never should be considered an end in itself. Building up infrastructure is crucial to our safety, which allows us to perpetuate our actions as much as possible, thereby advancing the struggle.
We need a cushion to land on when situations get complicated, and we need to appropriate methods and knowledge that will improve our mobility, but both needs shouldn’t for any reason nullify our present. The struggle continues, and part of this war involves advancing with regard to materials. While we can’t obsess over it, we also shouldn’t overlook what we still lack.
We will continue to attack authority, maximizing our safety measures and choosing from among the enormous range of existing possibilities for attack, always increasing the diversity and breadth of our actions. Right now we choose to use fire. What will you choose?
We claim responsibility for the following actions carried out just last week:
- Leaving a homemade incendiary device, quick and easy to prepare, at the entrance to the Local Police Courthouse in La Cisterna on the chilly evening of Wednesday, August 3 (we don’t know how much damage was caused).
- Torching a Banco de Chile near the Plaza de Armas in downtown Santiago on the blazing evening of Thursday, August 4 (damaging the facade).
- Setting fire to a Banco Santander in the same area on the same evening of August 4 (damaging the interior, which the press said had been looted).
- Carrying out an arson at the Olavarría Ltd. luxury car dealership in La Reina during the early hours of August 9.
FOR POWER, FIRE.
FOR LUCIANO, OUR HEARTS.
—International Revolutionary Front (Southern Fire Columns)
P.S. We send warm greetings of solidarity to our comrades around the world, especially those being charged, tried, or sentenced by the authorities, like our brothers and sisters in Greece and Switzerland and the Chilean comrades involved in the “Bombings Case.” We won’t forget them.
“Bombings Case” prisoners end hunger strike
Today, the comrades framed for the “Bombings Case” in Chile ended their 65-day hunger strike, which began on February 21. We wish them all a speedy recovery, as well as a quick release from prison.
Police bus attacked outside University of Santiago campus in Chile
From Hommodolars Contrainformación (April 22, 2011):
Note: The following communiqués were sent via e-mail, and both refer to the same action—a direct attack on those who constitute the apparatus of the prison system, against the backdrop of the week of agitation and solidarity with the A14 compas. We are publishing both as reflections on the action.
Communiqué 1: USACH Street Solidarity
The three cop buses stationed at different points around the University of Santiago, Chile (USACH) campus neither intimidated nor deterred the longing for solidarity and fire that compelled various individuals to take the streets on Thursday, April 21 as part of the week of agitation and propaganda for the political prisoners framed in the “bombings case.”
In the middle of a silent morning, while capital’s dogs were fattening themselves and sleeping in their opulent buses, people in solidarity took to the streets and set one of those buses on fire, with the surprised pigs only managing to flee, as usual.
What’s the point of this whole apparatus, with its buses and patrols? The streets are surely ours, and that has been demonstrated once again. There is no room for intimidation in our freedom-hungry hearts, and we will use our weapons to clash with anyone who tries to take that freedom away from us.
The confrontation lasted just over an hour, during which at least three of Hinzpeter’s loyal dogs took direct hits from our enraged fire. The demonstration ended with all the comrades free and the cops hidden behind their machines.
Resist, cabros. Solidarity is becoming action, and you are not alone. Subversion, insurrection, and revolt are spreading everywhere.
IMMEDIATE RELEASE for the Prisoners framed in the “Bombings Case”!
Fire to the prisons and their guards!
Communiqué 2
Approximately 50 comrades came from far and wide, appearing by surprise yet again in front of the University of Santiago (USACH), looking for a confrontation with the State’s dogs. The campus has recently been crawling with a rather excessive number of “special forces” (what a contradiction, since the only thing special about them is their strange willingness to defend what doesn’t belong to them, for a pitiful salary).
Since Monday, a water cannon, an armored car, a bus containing a disproportionate number of asshole pigs, and a patrol squad with the same characteristics were stationed in front of the University. Elsewhere, a patrol squad and a bus could be seen near the president’s office at certain times during the past few days. Watchers had also been posted near the USACH metro station. We don’t know what their purpose was, nor do we care. We only question their incredible capacity for delirium and the deployment of disproportionate numbers of oppressors.
Strangely, today’s reality was a bit diminished since there were only three buses surrounding the University, one of which was parked directly in front. That was our target.
We came out by surprise, without being heard. Upon seeing us, the valiant guardians only managed to hide inside their filthy vehicle, which we turned into shit with pure fire. It was one of those scenes that swells your heart and brings tears to your eyes, watching those cowardly faces run for their very lives when confronted with a lightly armed but brave group of people.
The fight lasted approximately 45 minutes, during which the bourgeoisie’s little lapdogs didn’t even dare to advance, instead spraying a considerable amount of their disgusting gas.
Our motive: Unconditional support for the political prisoner comrades on hunger strike for the past 60 days. Many of those who participated in today’s events didn’t share all the ideas of the people in the State’s dungeons, but that didn’t matter to us, because they nevertheless took action. Our goal will always be solidarity among revolutionaries, and we hope the smell of our gasoline reaches the cells of our compas and conveys our appreciation during these difficult times. Patience.
We are aiming for active solidarity on all fronts in the hope of breaking the ideological barriers that divide us and unifying our actions to achieve confrontation with the bourgeoisie. That is our goal.
Freedom for all comrades who are prisoners of the state. Solidarity everywhere. Each small battle is a contributing blow, and every method is valid.
P.S. Afterward, we were approached by a group of imbeciles from the Medical Sciences department, along with some engineering students. They tried to start something with a few compas, who showed no fear. This isn’t the first time that’s happened. The class traitors shouted “This goes against the university” while trying to throw the compas out. They don’t scare us. Just the opposite. Their cheap discourse doesn’t sway us. The university is a bourgeois institution and everyone knows it, but those who manage to get in from other strata make a tremendous effort to find ways of generating subversion wherever we are. And we are everywhere.
Long live the young combatants!
Free the world’s prisoners!
End the “Bombings Case” set-up!
For the spread of solidarity everywhere, using all forms of struggle!
“Bombings Case” prisoners intensify hunger strike
From ArdeMoyano Records (April 19, 2011) and Libertad A Lxs 14A (April 14, 2011):
On Tuesday, April 19, the “Bombings Case” prisoners in Chile—on the 58th day of their liquid hunger strike—decided to intensify and radicalize their strike by refusing to drink isotonic sports drinks or any other liquid besides water. Their demands have been summarized in the most recent solidarity poster:
As a means of mediation, our comrades have demanded that Santiago Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati visit them in prison and that a committee be formed to modify the Antiterrorist Law. If the law is not changed by Wednesday, April 27, the prisoners will initiate a completely dry hunger strike, meaning they won’t eat or drink anything.
