Thousands of mourners in bright sunshine bowed their heads in a mass show of grief for Chile's late leader, one of the 20th century's more divisive leaders, while in another part of the capital protesters denounced his crimes.

Three cannon boomed and soldiers saluted as the cortege wound its way towards a helicopter. It ferried the coffin out of the city, towards the Pacific coast, and beyond vengeance.

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The cargo was offloaded for cremation at a cemetery at Concon and the ashes were due to be taken to the Pinochet family ranch at Los Boldos, safe from those who given the chance would desecrate the tomb of a man who used helicopters to dump murdered opponents into the same strip of sea, a terror campaign known as the caravan of death.

The 91-year-old retired despot met his end in a hospital bed last Sunday, succumbing to heart complications while surrounded by doctors and family. Yesterday's send-off revealed to what extent he remains revered and reviled.

President Michelle Bachelet, who was herself tortured during the general's 1973-1990 rule, vetoed a state funeral, with officials saying it was inappropriate for a man who seized power in a coup by bombing the presidential palace.

The government agreed to a military funeral, a concession which failed to appease the general's supporters. More than 50,000 streamed into the Bernardo O'Higgins military school to view and caress the coffin, with some youths giving a stiff-arm Nazi salute.

"Without Pinochet we would have been another Cuba, maybe even worse," said Horacio Correa, 38, a civil engineer.

By overthrowing the Marxist president Salvador Allende and laying the foundations for a successful market economy the general had averted a communist take-over and the price - 3,000 opponents killed, thousands more tortured - was worth it. "It was necessary. How many more would have died in a civil war? Think of Spain."

Marcella Arias, 48, a hairdresser, spent a night-long vigil with her family. Her mood was defiant.

"He was a liberator, this man," she said, pointing to a poster of Pinochet walking in a field with children. And the atrocities? "Lies. All lies."

A hawker selling the posters and other memorabilia winked when asked if he supported Pinochet. "No. My family is socialist. They killed my uncle in 1978. But business is business."

The military school displayed its best pomp yesterday: flags at half-mast, a brass band, cadets in gleaming uniforms standing behind rows of seated guests, an A-list of the upper middle-class which formed the core of Pinochet's support.

Allegations that he and his family spirited away millions into foreign bank accounts were forgotten amid their grief and resentment that the rest of Chile - the political establishment, the media and most voters, according to opinion polls - loathed their hero.

The defence minister and sole government representative, Vivianne Blanlot, was jeered. "Go home," they shouted. In contrast a glimpse of leading members of the former regime, which gave way to democracy in 1990, prompted cheers.

"Did Hitler arrive?" muttered one photographer, after a loud roar. Not for the first time since Sunday, mourners turned on the media. A TV crew was pelted with coins and dragged down a staircase until soldiers intervened.

The crowd exulted in the fact that Pinochet died without any of the more than 200 human rights abuses and financial fraud cases against him reaching conclusion. "Never convicted, never convicted," they chanted.

Speaking from the podium the army chief, General Oscar Izurieta, asked Chileans "to let history make a balanced and fair judgment" of a soldier who loved his fatherland.

His words fell flat across town where more than 3,000 people gathered to pay tribute to Allende, who died during the 1973 coup, and those relatives who were killed under Pinochet.

There is expectation that his death will galvanise prosecutors to accelerate criminal cases pending against his aides.

For many Chileans, however, the dictator's era is fast fading into irrelevance. Construction workers on skyscrapers rising over the military school - evidence of the booming economy - paused only briefly to gaze down at the ceremony.

The national stadium into which opponents were herded for torture and execution in 1973 will today pit Colo Colo, a Santiago football team, against Mexico's Pachuca club.

Though their passion surprised some observers, the Pinochet supporters who spilled from the funeral yesterday were quickly swallowed by a city of shoppers and motorists who carried on as normal. Having lived to a ripe age, a fate denied many of his opponents, the dictator was peacefully disappearing.

From CNN:

According to an official report by the civilian government that succeeded Pinochet in 1990, at least 3,200 people were killed for political reasons and another 1,197 disappeared.

Chile had ten million citizens at the time that Pinochet was busy killing them. The US has 300 million citizens, that's 30 times the population of Chile at the time. To appreciate how many political prisoners Pinochet had put to death, an equivalent number in American terms would be nearly 100,000 Americans put to death for their political beliefs, and another 36,000 Americans mysteriously disappeared by the government. Is that a price you're willing to pay for economic growth?

Apparently, 136,000 people killed for their political beliefs is a price the Washington Post finds acceptable for a couple percentage point bump in the GDP. The Post's closing paragraph:

The contrast between Cuba and Chile more than 30 years after Mr. Pinochet's coup is a reminder of a famous essay written by Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, the provocative and energetic scholar and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who died Thursday. In "Dictatorships and Double Standards," a work that caught the eye of President Ronald Reagan, Ms. Kirkpatrick argued that right-wing dictators such as Mr. Pinochet were ultimately less malign than communist rulers, in part because their regimes were more likely to pave the way for liberal democracies. She, too, was vilified by the left. Yet by now it should be obvious: She was right.

Less malign. Killing the equivalent of nearly 140,000 Americans for political reasons is "less malign" so long as there's an economic trade-off.

That's disgusting.

And it's yet again a clear sign as to why the Washington Post has been so supportive of George Bush's abuses over the past several years. Donald Graham is not his mother's son. I'm beginning to wonder if he's even an American.

Hat tip, Editor & Publisher.

AUGUSTO PINOCHET, who died Sunday at the age of 91, has been vilified for three decades in and outside of Chile, the South American country he ruled for 17 years. For some he was the epitome of an evil dictator. That was partly because he helped to overthrow, with U.S. support, an elected president considered saintly by the international left: socialist Salvador Allende, whose responsibility for creating the conditions for the 1973 coup is usually overlooked. Mr. Pinochet was brutal: More than 3,000 people were killed by his government and tens of thousands tortured, mostly in his first three years. Thousands of others spent years in exile.

One prominent opponent, Orlando Letelier, was assassinated by a car bomb on Washington's Sheridan Circle in 1976 -- one of the most notable acts of terrorism in this city's history. Mr. Pinochet, meanwhile, enriched himself, stashing millions in foreign bank accounts -- including Riggs Bank, a Washington institution that was brought down, in part, by the revelation of that business. His death forestalled a belated but richly deserved trial in Chile.

It's hard not to notice, however, that the evil dictator leaves behind the most successful country in Latin America. In the past 15 years, Chile's economy has grown at twice the regional average, and its poverty rate has been halved. It's leaving behind the developing world, where all of its neighbors remain mired. It also has a vibrant democracy. Earlier this year it elected another socialist president, Michelle Bachelet, who suffered persecution during the Pinochet years.

Like it or not, Mr. Pinochet had something to do with this success. To the dismay of every economic minister in Latin America, he introduced the free-market policies that produced the Chilean economic miracle -- and that not even Allende's socialist successors have dared reverse. He also accepted a transition to democracy, stepping down peacefully in 1990 after losing a referendum.

By way of contrast, Fidel Castro -- Mr. Pinochet's nemesis and a hero to many in Latin America and beyond -- will leave behind an economically ruined and freedomless country with his approaching death. Mr. Castro also killed and exiled thousands. But even when it became obvious that his communist economic system had impoverished his country, he refused to abandon that system: He spent the last years of his rule reversing a partial liberalization. To the end he also imprisoned or persecuted anyone who suggested Cubans could benefit from freedom of speech or the right to vote.

The contrast between Cuba and Chile more than 30 years after Mr. Pinochet's coup is a reminder of a famous essay written by Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, the provocative and energetic scholar and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who died Thursday. In "Dictatorships and Double Standards," a work that caught the eye of President Ronald Reagan, Ms. Kirkpatrick argued that right-wing dictators such as Mr. Pinochet were ultimately less malign than communist rulers, in part because their regimes were more likely to pave the way for liberal democracies. She, too, was vilified by the left. Yet by now it should be obvious: She was right.

Dorfman, who wrote a book about Pinochet called "Exorcising Terror," declares that the dictator "misruled from 1973 to 1990 and then continued to terrorize as commander in chief of the army for eight more years." He then refers to charges of "murder and torture, kidnapping and grand larceny" brought against him and recalls the thousands of "disappeared" and "massacred." He notes that Pinochet's "bleak and unrepentant heart" had died but wonders: "Will he ever stop contaminating every schizophrenic mirror of our life?"

Now consider the Post editorial. "For some," it admits, "he was the epitome of an evil dictator. That was partly because he helped to overthrow, with U.S. support, an elected president considered saintly by the international left: socialist Salvador Allende, whose responsibility for creating the conditions for the 1973 coup is usually overlooked. Mr. Pinochet was brutal: More than 3,000 people were killed by his government and tens of thousands tortured, mostly in his first three years. Thousands of others spent years in exile.

"One prominent opponent, Orlando Letelier, was assassinated by a car bomb on Washington's Sheridan Circle in 1976 -- one of the most notable acts of terrorism in this city's history. Mr. Pinochet, meanwhile, enriched himself, stashing millions in foreign bank accounts -- including Riggs Bank, a Washington institution that was brought down, in part, by the revelation of that business. His death forestalled a belated but richly deserved trial in Chile."

But the Post then adds: "It's hard not to notice, however, that the evil dictator leaves behind the most successful country in Latin America. In the past 15 years, Chile's economy has grown at twice the regional average, and its poverty rate has been halved. It's leaving behind the developing world, where all of its neighbors remain mired....Like it or not, Mr. Pinochet had something to do with this success. To the dismay of every economic minister in Latin America, he introduced the free-market policies that produced the Chilean economic miracle -- and that not even Allende's socialist successors have dared reverse. He also accepted a transition to democracy, stepping down peacefully in 1990 after losing a referendum.

"By way of contrast, Fidel Castro -- Mr. Pinochet's nemesis and a hero to many in Latin America and beyond -- will leave behind an economically ruined and freedomless country with his approaching death. Mr. Castro also killed and exiled thousands. ...

"The contrast between Cuba and Chile more than 30 years after Mr. Pinochet's coup is a reminder of a famous essay written by Jeane J. Kirkpatrick....Ms. Kirkpatrick argued that right-wing dictators such as Mr. Pinochet were ultimately less malign than communist rulers, in part because their regimes were more likely to pave the way for liberal democracies. She, too, was vilified by the left. Yet by now it should be obvious: She was right."

But The New York Times' editorial on Monday concluded: "Out of office, General Pinochet's reputation slowly disintegrated. Although his second wave of economic policy worked, the center-left governments that followed deepened reforms and brought their benefits to average people, refuting the argument that a Pinochet was necessary for economic discipline. Chileans who argued that the human rights abuses were exaggerated were shown irrefutable proof.

"Investigators also discovered at least $28 million that General Pinochet held in more than 100 secret bank accounts, most of them in the United States. At the time of his death, he was under indictment for kidnapping, torture and murder, as well as corruption-related charges of tax evasion and possession of false passports. Time has revealed that the once-admired General Pinochet was accomplished only at holding power."

President Ricardo Lagos addressed the nation on Sunday evening and confirmed that an investigation had found at least 151 dissidents were assassinated by Pinochet's security forces and thrown into rivers, lakes or the Pacific Ocean. Among them was Diaz's father, Victor, a communist leader.

"All I've wanted, all these years, was to find the remains of my father and be able to bury them," Diaz said Monday. "Now, I am told that I will never be able to do so."

Killed for 'thinking differently'

Still, Diaz was encouraged by the official disclosure.

"What is really important is that the army has, for the first time, admitted that it killed 200 Chileans just because they thought differently."

Lagos also praised the military for admitting the killings, saying "it shares the pain that those acts provoked."

The new information is the product of a six-month investigation by human rights activists, religious officials and the army. Former President Eduardo Frei called on all three groups to work together to find answers to what happened to dissidents who disappeared after Pinochet's 1973 coup.

The armed forces conducted a quiet internal investigation while religious groups gathered information privately -- sometimes from former agents who preferred to reveal their old secrets to priests instead of military officials.

Lagos said the work yielded information on 200 people -- 151 who were thrown into the ocean, rivers or lakes, 20 who were buried in a mass grave yet to be found and 29 who are scattered in graves around central Chile.

Praise from human rights activists

Human rights activists praised the effort but stressed the need for more information.

According to an official report by the civilian government that succeeded Pinochet in 1990, at least 3,200 people were killed for political reasons and another 1,197 disappeared.

Some relatives expressed skepticism about the report. Gladys Marin, president of the Communist Party, whose husband Jorge Munoz was among those killed, dismissed the information as "a mockery, impossible to believe."

Lawyer Carmen Hertz said she did not believe her husband, journalist Carlos Berger, was thrown into the sea.

"This looks like an intelligence operation by the army to divert ongoing investigations by the courts," Hertz said.

But Pamela Pereira, a prominent human rights lawyer who sat on the 1999 commission, had no doubts about the report, which found her father, Andres Pereira, was thrown into the sea the same day he was arrested -- October 6, 1973.

She insisted, however, that the police are still withholding details about missing people.

"Look me in the eyes, and tell me that there is no more information," she told reporters, challenging the head of the police.

'Who do I believe?'

Nelson Donato, a member of Families of the Detained/Disappeared, said he was confused after the military's report revealed that his father was thrown into the ocean. Guzman's investigation had found that Donato's father was cremated in Santiago.

"Two deaths for one person. Who do I believe?" Donato asked.

For Diaz, whose father was arrested in May 1976 and killed six months later, knowing his remains are resting at the bottom of the Pacific was not nearly enough.

"I need to know exactly what happened, how were his final hours," she said. "Who made the decision to kill him, how was he taken to the sea and exactly where?"

Pinochet, 85, was indicted last month on homicide and kidnapping charges related to the so-called "Caravan of Death" that left 75 political prisoners dead. The Supreme Court dropped the charges because Judge Juan Guzman did not question Pinochet first.

Guzman, who is pursuing a second indictment, agreed to reschedule medical tests of Pinochet for Thursday and Friday, and a legal interrogation for January 15. Pinochet's legal team accepted the new dates.

Pinochet failed to show up on Sunday and on Monday for psychological tests that Guzman had ordered to see if he is mentally fit to stand trial. The judge is leading a probe into more than 200 cases of Pinochet-era human rights abuses.

Military officials said 60,000 Chileans had stood in line to pay their final respects at the open-topped casket of the former leader on Monday after his death at 91 from heart disease in a military hospital on Sunday. After the mass, attended by the Pinochet family, including his widow, Lucia Hiriart, and senior military officials, the casket was flown by helicopter to a secret location for cremation. At the start of the mass, there was applause as the casket was carried in by uniformed pall-bearers.

Pinochet's death has left deep divisions in Chile, some recalling his 17-year-rule as a time of repression and torture of political opponents, others saying it saved Chile from Marxism and opened an era of economic wealth.

The eldest daughter of the general, Lucia Pinochet, said her father had lit "a flame of freedom" when he helped stage the violent coup in 1973 that overthrew Salvador Allende, who had won open elections three years earlier. Allende died during the coup.

Augusto Pinochet, formerly the long-serving Chilean dictator, has breathed his last. With his demise, an inglorious chapter in human history closes. His was a classic tale - being as he was the instrument of imperial change in Chile. His ascension in 1973 and the demise of Salvador Allende, the man he deposed - gave the world another lesson in what happens to local satraps when they don't dance to the tune of their foreign masters; and at who's behest these local rulers are expected to terrorize their own peoples.

Pinochet rose from the ranks of the Chilean army and caught the conspiratorial eye of the Americans, after Salvador Allende swept Chile's 1973 presidential election. Allende's communist leanings didn't sit well with the Washington crowd, and although the Americans have never made a clean breast of it, evidence has never been in short supply that Washington aided and abetted the coup Pinochet and three other generals staged to oust and assassinate Allende.

[Editor's Note: In 2000, the United States officially admitted for the first time, to CIA involvement of Salvadore Allende. For a list and overview of the declassified record, click here ].

Just as in recent times, the Americans wanted Palestinians to go to the polls - but not elect Hamas - in 1973 they wanted Chileans to hold elections but not choose Allende. Just as they and their European allies now punish Palestinians for defying their wishes, they went all out to roast Chileans on the spit for electing Allende, a man the U.S. hated to the bone.

As President Richard Nixon's secretary of state, Henry Kissinger infamously intoned, "I don't see why we need to stand by and watch a country go communist due to the irresponsibility of its own people." And America did not. With Washington's full support, throughout his 17-years of repressive rule, Pinochet mercilessly hounded Allende party activists, sympathizers and dissidents. And while the rest of the world labeled him a pariah for his massive killings, kidnappings and torture, the Americans stood by him unconscionably and without inhibition. The Americans turned a blind eye to the reign of terror he let loose on his people.

It was only after Chileans had lost all patience with his repression and domestic pressure against him became unbearable that the Americans abandoned him - just as they did their staunch ally the Shah of Iran after the Islamic Revolution swept him off his throne. Even when the dethroned monarch desperately sought asylum, the Americans told him bluntly that he wasn't welcome in the United States. In like fashion, the Americans merely abandoned Pinochet to his inglorious past - one which they had had a big hand in. It was a legacy that haunted Pinochet every moment after he left office. Although not as painful as the brutalization he exercised over his own people, it was a legacy that punished him all the same.

Before laying down the baton, he had made himself Senator for life. But despite the lifetime immunity this conveyed, the gross human rights violations he perpetrated against his own people haunted him wherever he went. While visiting Britain, for example, a Spanish court sought his extradition to Spain to stand trial for human rights abuse.

Of course, due to his support during the Falklands War RealVideo, the British were quite lenient toward him. He was the only Latin American leader to side with Britain against Argentina. London found a way out to rebuff the Spanish request and sent him home safely. But at home there was no escaping the consequences of his brutal rule. Several court cases against his were underway in Chile. The courts had quashed his senatorial immunity, but he never actually stood trial. His lawyers managed to argue that he should be exempt due to old age, ill health and mental infirmity.

Pinochet did, however, manage to turn around Chile's sagging economy. But the beneficiaries of this economic miracle were the upper classes who now mourn his passing, not the lower classes which had only tasted the tyranny of his rule.

Such are the wages reaped by leaders that rule by trampling the civil liberties and political freedom of their peoples, and savage them at the bidding and for the pleasure - of alien masters.