Pinochet - Vatican intervention

We understand that the Vatican intervention in the Pinochet affair and released by Pinochet supporters yesterday originated not with the Pope but from the Vatican State Department.

Senior sources within the Roman Catholic Church in the UK and the British Foreign Office have told us that the intervention came from the office of Vatican Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano and was signed by him.

Despite news outlet attribution of the letter to Pope John Paul II, it is not yet clear to senior sources in the Roman Catholic Church in England whether Pope John Paul II had been consulted or whether the decision was wholly internal to Cardinal Sodano’s office.

Cardinal Sodano previously held a senior post in the Roman Catholic Church in Chile at the time of General Pinochet. (anyone with more information from Chile on his role at this time please file IMMEDIATELY by mailing to lakota@clara.co.uk).

Senior officials in the Catholic Church in the UK have been disconcerted by the Vatican intervention. The Roman Catholic Church in Britain has consistently supported General Pinochet’s extradition to face trial. The head of the Catholic Church in the UK, Cardinal Basil Hume, has vocally supported Pinochet’s extradition.

While the text of the intervention is not known, the London Daily Telegraph -- a favoured mouthpiece of General Pinochet’s supporters—suggested that the text put the view that General Pinochet did have immunity as head of state and should be released to Chile in the interests of Chilean reconciliation.

The source of the information provided to the Daily Telegraph is Lord Lamont, a former minister in former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s cabinet.

Lord Lamont had posed a parliamentary question to Baroness Symons, a junior minister in the British Foreign Office, which asked her whether the Foreign Office had "received representations from the Vatican about the arrest of General Pinochet."

Baroness Symons’ reply comprised one word: "Yes."

No contents were disclosed and Foreign Office officials refuse to comment on the arguments or the view put forward.

But the nature of the content of the Vatican note was disclosed to Lamont by the Chilean Government who appear to have been sent a copy after their heavily lobbying the Vatican on Pinochet’s part.

Both Rome and senior Catholics in London were furious at the disclosure. The British Foreign Office suplied a formulaic reply: that "your views have been noted."

The letter would not have been passed to the Law Lords who are currently condisering the Pinochet case and would thus have been unavailable to them were it not for Lord Lamont’s public disclosure.