Is this straight up misinformation? I’ve been through 6 articles now and I can’t find any other source on this outside of Skwawkbox.
All I can find is stuff about him being a major person behind the Good Friday Agreement and HK + Chagos Islands handovers.
Even the Telegraph and fucking GB News – both of which try to paint Labour/Starmer in the worst light possible – don’t say anything about Pinochet. Where does this alleged link come from?
Looking into it, Skwawkbox has been caught lying multiple times, predominantly about the Grenfell Fire. They’ve also lost a libel case against one Labour MP and breached reporting standards about another. They, and I’m really not joking here, describe themselves as a non-traditional publication aimed at “aunties and uncles on Facebook”.
If anybody has any other sources please correct me on this.
Skwawkbox links to this Guardian article, which itself is sourced from a book from the time. It doesn’t seem that far-fetched that a renowned negotiator would be involved with a negotiation.
This article Guardian article, on top of just being an allegation in a book, doesn’t accuse Powell of doing what Skwawkbox says he did.
Literally all it says is that the press chief of the 1999 Chilean government (i.e. 10 years and 2 governments after Pinochet stepped down) had meetings with Powell. That’s it. Seems normal to me. I imagine the UK government would be chatting to Chile if they arrested David Cameron tomorrow.
Frei and his government, by the way, was anti-Pinochet. During his presidency, he indicted and arrested Pinochet.
I don’t know how you could read that and think it’s a confirmation that Powell negotiated release for Pinochet.
It absolutely argues that:
Frei argued to Blair that neither government would benefit if Pinochet were to die in England and that he could be tried in Chilean courts. […] Blair undertook to do what he could within the law provided the exchanges between the two leaders were kept secret. The authors claim that Blair suggested setting up a ‘back channel’, with two people appointed to liaise between the leaders’ private offices.
Also, those claiming to have no source on Powell being on the team that negotiated Pinochet’s release, only prove they’ve not only not actually gone looking for one, but haven’t even read op article, where the source is linked:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/jan/07/chile.pinochet
And it isn’t the only contemporary source, either:
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2001/08/chil-a30.html
As well as sources that confirms that Powell promoted deals with Saudi Arabia for a company that also paid £1m to Pinochet:
https://caat.org.uk/news/2005-09-27-2/
You can make as many excuses as you want to make yourselves feel better, but it will never magic these people in to being on our side as citizens.
This article Guardian article, on top of just being an allegation in a book, doesn’t accuse Powell of doing what Skwawkbox says he did.
Literally all it says is that the press chief of the 1999 Chilean government (i.e. 10 years and two governments after Pinochet stepped down) had meetings with Powell. That’s it.
Frei and his government, by the way, was anti-Pinochet. During his presidency, he indicted and arrested Pinochet.
I don’t know how you could read that and think it’s a confirmation that Powell negotiated release for Pinochet.
Stop spreading misinformation.
Thank you.
The guardian article is also the second result for “Jonathan Powell pinochet” on google.
All the article states is that Powell had meetings with the chief of press for President Frei’s government… the government that indicted and arrested Pinochet.
Never forget 9/11/73
For fuck sake.
Not a good look Keir.
