Camilo Valenzuela
Encyclopedia
Camilo Valenzuela was a Chile
an General and chief of the garrison in Santiago de Chile. In 1970 he led a group that with intent to stop the newly elected
Salvador Allende
from being inaugurated as president, tried to kidnap constitutionalist
Army Commander-in-Chief René Schneider
. On October 19, 1970, the group, supplied with tear gas grenades delivered by the CIA, made an attempt to kidnap Schneider as he was leaving a bachelor party
. But the attempt failed because Schneider left in a private car and not the expected official vehicle.
A second attempt October 20 was also unsuccessful. The CIA assured Valenzuela that "USG
support for anti-Allende action continues." But they also concluded: "since Valenzuela’s group is apparently having considerable difficulty executing even the first step of its coup plan, the prospect for a coup succeeding or even occurring before 24 October [the day for the Congressional vote] now appears remote."
At 2 a.m., October 22, machine guns were handed over from the CIA to Valenzuela's group. But before Valenzuela could make a new kidnap attempt, Schneider was shot later that day by a group led by Roberto Viaux
, and died three days later in hospital. (The weapons supplied to Valenzuela were not used in the killing.)
Following the shooting, Valenzuela was appointed "Jefe del Plaza for Law and Order"/chief of Santiago province and Schneider was succeeded by General Carlos Prats
. On October 24 the Congress confirmed Allende as president. The attempts to prevent Salvador Allende from taking office had failed.
Military courts in Chile found that Schneider's death was caused by two military groups, one led by Roberto Viaux and the other by Camilo Valenzuela. Viaux and Valenzuela were convicted of charges of conspiring to cause a coup, and Viaux also was convicted of kidnapping. The CIA aided both groups, the lawsuit said.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an General and chief of the garrison in Santiago de Chile. In 1970 he led a group that with intent to stop the newly elected
Chilean presidential election, 1970
A presidential election was held in Chile on 4 September 1970. A narrow plurality was secured by Salvador Allende, the candidate of the Popular Unity coalition of leftist parties...
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
from being inaugurated as president, tried to kidnap constitutionalist
Constitutionalism
Constitutionalism has a variety of meanings. Most generally, it is "a complex of ideas, attitudes, and patterns of behavior elaborating the principle that the authority of government derives from and is limited by a body of fundamental law"....
Army Commander-in-Chief René Schneider
René Schneider
General René Schneider Chereau was the commander-in-chief of the Chilean Army at the time of the 1970 Chilean presidential election, when he was assassinated during a botched kidnapping attempt. His murder virtually assured Salvador Allende's eventual overthrow and death in a coup three years later...
. On October 19, 1970, the group, supplied with tear gas grenades delivered by the CIA, made an attempt to kidnap Schneider as he was leaving a bachelor party
Bachelor party
A bachelor party , also known as a stag party, stag night or stag do , a bull's party , or a buck's party or buck's night , is a party held for a man shortly before he enters marriage, to celebrate his "last night of freedom" or merely to spend...
. But the attempt failed because Schneider left in a private car and not the expected official vehicle.
A second attempt October 20 was also unsuccessful. The CIA assured Valenzuela that "USG
USG
USG may refer to:Technology:* Medical ultrasonography, an ultrasound-based diagnostic imaging technique used to visualize internal organs* Urine Specific Gravity , a measure of urine concentration or relative densityOther:...
support for anti-Allende action continues." But they also concluded: "since Valenzuela’s group is apparently having considerable difficulty executing even the first step of its coup plan, the prospect for a coup succeeding or even occurring before 24 October [the day for the Congressional vote] now appears remote."
At 2 a.m., October 22, machine guns were handed over from the CIA to Valenzuela's group. But before Valenzuela could make a new kidnap attempt, Schneider was shot later that day by a group led by Roberto Viaux
Roberto Viaux
Roberto Urbano Viaux Marambio was a Chilean Army General and the primary planner in two failed coup d'état attempts in Chile in 1969 and 1970...
, and died three days later in hospital. (The weapons supplied to Valenzuela were not used in the killing.)
Following the shooting, Valenzuela was appointed "Jefe del Plaza for Law and Order"/chief of Santiago province and Schneider was succeeded by General Carlos Prats
Carlos Prats
General Carlos Prats González was a Chilean Army officer, a political figure, minister and Vice President of Chile during President Salvador Allende's government, and General Augusto Pinochet's predecessor as commander-in-chief of the Chilean Army...
. On October 24 the Congress confirmed Allende as president. The attempts to prevent Salvador Allende from taking office had failed.
Military courts in Chile found that Schneider's death was caused by two military groups, one led by Roberto Viaux and the other by Camilo Valenzuela. Viaux and Valenzuela were convicted of charges of conspiring to cause a coup, and Viaux also was convicted of kidnapping. The CIA aided both groups, the lawsuit said.