CONFIDENTIAL Page 'ic o' EXDIS Case Number S199900030 Chile Project wSI99900030 US Department of State Release Excise Deeny Declassify' In part In Exempt on s CONFIDENTIAL UililV AMVII Fu I ' i- 01 PAGE SANT IA 01 011632Z OF 02 ADS-00 SSO-OO INRE-00 000 W LOG-00 NSAE-00 INFO 07135 SS-OO ACTION AS-01 CIAE-00 ------------------340607 C IMMEDIATE U ft'Q g 'I'J3 E N T I - A L 01 SECTION NSCE-00 011924Z 38 0 311348Z SEP 88 ZFF4 FM AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO TO SECSTATE WASHDC NIACT DODE-00 8454 OF 02 SANTIAGO 07135 M CAP TIONEB DELIVER ARA ABRAMS EO 12356 FOR 11AM MEETING 01 OCT 88 DECL OADR TAGS PINS CI SUBJ REF IMMINENT POSSIBILITY OF BARNES KOZAK TELCON 30 GOVERNMENT OCT STAGED COUP 88 1 SUMMARY COMMANDER OF SANTIAGO MILITARY FORCES GEN ZINKE HAS DESCRIBED ALLEGED COMMUNIST PLOT TO DISRUPT OCTOBER 5 PLEBISCITE COMMENCING WITH TERRORIST ACTS THIS WEEKEND AND WITH WIDESPREAD VIOLENCE ON THE DAY OF THE PLEBISCITE THE FORCES APPARENTLY ARE NOT PREPARED TO TAKE ANY MEASURES AHEAD OF TIME DESPITE PREDICTIONS OF THE KILLINGS THAT WILL RESULT THE PERSONS WITH WHOM ZINKE SPOKE ARE CONVINCED HE FOR UNKNOWN REASONS WAS WARNING THEM OF WHAT WERE PLANNING TO DO TO THA ARMY AND NOT THE COMMUNISTS DISRUPT THE PLEBISCITE END SUMMARY ARMED 2 I RECEIVED A SURPRISE VISIT LATE EVENING EXD SEPTEMBER 30 FROM IS CONFIDENTIAL Page 2 4 i CONFIDENTIAL' ' EXDIS Case Number S199900030 Page 3 MONICA JIMENEZ HEAD OF THE CIVITAS CIVIC EDUCATION CRUSADE WHO CAME TO ME AT THE URGING OF CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND COMMANDO FOR THE NO HEAD PATRICIO ALYLWIN WITH WHOM DCM AND I $03f IAL gPQNFIDENTIAL PAGE 02 SANTIA 07135 01 OF 02 011632Z BREAKFAST THAT MORNING MANY OF US IN THE EMBASSY KNOW MONICA JIMINEZ VERY WELL AND HAVE GREAT CONFIDENCE IN HER HENCE THE ACCOUNT SHE GAVE ME WE WOULD ACCEPT AS A COMPLETELY BELIEVABLE ONE OF WHAT SHE WAS TOLD BY BRIG GEN JORGE ZINKE CHIEF OF THE SANTIAGO MILITARY ZONE AND THEREFORE COMMANDER OF ALL ARMED FORCES OF THE SANTIAGO METROPOLITAN REGION HAD 3 TO SEE ZINKE AT THE SUGGESTION OF POLICE HELP SHE SOUGHT IN PROVIDING ADEQUATE SECURITY FOR THE CIVIC EDUCATION HEADQUARTERS ON PLEBISCITE DAY SHE ARRANGED THE APPOINTMENT THROUGH FAMILY CONNECTIONS AND ZINKE RECEIVED HERE AND THE CRUSADES LAWYER MID-AFTERNOON SEPTEMBER 30 WITH GREAT CORDIALITY SUDDENLY SHE FOUND THAT ZINKE WAS TELLING THEM ABOUT A COMMUNIST PARTY PLOT TO DISRUPT THE OCTOBER 5 PLEBISCITE ZINKE SAID THE PLOT WOULD UNFOLD THAT VERY AFTERNOON AND WOULD CONSIST OF VARIOUS TYPES OF TERRORIST INCIDENTS WHAT WAS MORE THE COMMUNISTS WOULD SEND IN GOON THEY SQUADS ON PLEBISCITE DAY TO BREAK UP THE VOTING PROCESS WOULD ALSO DESTROY ALMOST ALL QF THE HIGH TENSION TOWERS SO THAT ONLY LIMITED ELECTRICITY WOULD BE AVAILABLE AND THE ARMY WOULD NQT HAVE THE MANPOWER TO PROTECT THE POWER INSTALLATIONS ZINKE SAID FURTHER THAT WHEN CROWDS SENT BY THE COMMUNISTS INTO THE STREETS DID NOT DISPERSE THEY WOULD BE WARNED BY MEGAPHONE THEN BE SUBJECT TO TEAR GAS AND RUBBER BULLETS AND THEN BE FIRED ON THERE WOULD BE WOMEN AND CHILDREN KILLED BECAUSE THE COMMUNISTS CAME WELL SUPPLIED WITH ARMS THAT HAS BEEN SMUGGLED INTO THE COUNTRY SEVERAL YEARS AGO THEY HAD AT LEAST 1200 RIFLES AND JIMENEZ WOULD SEE THAT THOSE KILLED HAD NOT BEEN KILLED WITH BULLETS FIRED BY THE CHILEAN ARMY BUT ONES FIRED BY THE COMMUNISTS WHO USED A DIFFERENT TYPE OF BULLET JIMENEZ OFFICERS HAD GONE WHOSE 4 WHEN JIMENEZ AND HER COLLEAGUE EXPRESSED ASTONISHMENT AT THE RELATIVELY RELAXED ATTITUDE THAT ZINKE WAS TAKING IN THE FACE CONFIDENI IAL CONFIDENTIAL EXDIS CONFIDENTIAL ' Page 3 CONFIDENTIAL EXDIS Case Number S199900030 PAGE 03 SANTIA 07135 01 OF 02 011632Z OF SUCH A THREAT THE MOST HE WOULD SAY WAS THAT THE ARMY KNEW ALL ABOUT THE COMMUNISTS PLANS BUT WOULD NOT REACT SAVE AT THE APPROPRIATE TIMES WHEN JIMENEZ SUGGESTED THAT AT LEAST THE CITIZENRY SHOULD BE WARNED ZINKE SAID THAT HE AND THE MINISTER OF THE INTERIOR MIGHT SAY SOMETHING AT SOME POINT PERHAPS ON OCTOBER WHEN SHE EXPRESSED CONCERN ABOUT THE INTERRUPTION OF THE VOTING PROCESS BY ELECTRIC OUTAGE TO WHICH HE HAD ALLUDED HIS RESPONSE WAS THAT NOBODY WOULD BE ALLOWED ON THE STREETS TO CELEBRATE OR DEMONSTRATE UNTIL AT LEAST MIDNIGHT WHICH WOULD BE THE REQUIRED 4 HOURS AFTER THE LAST POLLING PLACE MIGHT HAVE CLOSED AND THAT IF THE POWER FAILED THEN THE ARMY HAD CANDLES AND MATCHES TO HELP PROVIDE LIGHT SO THE ELECTION BOARDS COULD GO ON WITH THEIR WORK 3 5 BOTH JIMENEZ AND THE LAWYER CAME AWAY FROM THE MEETING CONVINCED BY ZINKE'S CASUAL ATTITUDE ABOUT SOMETHING SO SERIOUS THAT EVERYTHING WAS ALL SET TO TAKE PLACE AS PLANNED AND THAT LITERALLY WHAT THEY WERE HEARING WAS WHAT THE ARMY PLANNED TO DO AND NOT THE COMMUNISTS SAVE TO THE EXTENT THEY WITTINGLY OR UNWITTINGLY LENT THEMSELVES TO THE GOVERNMENT'S PLANS HER CONCERNS ON THIS SCORE HAD BEEN REINFORCED BY A CONVERSATION EARLIER THAT DAY WITH A RETIRED ARMY OFFICER WHO SERVES AS A SECURITY ADVISOR AND WHO COUNSELLED HER BECAUSE HE KNEW THE ARMY'S PLANS TO BE SURE ALL RECORDS OF THE CRUSADE WERE REMOVED BECAUSE THE BUILDING WOULD BE RAIDED IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS AND IN ADDITION SHE SHOULD NOT GO ABOUT ANY LONGER BY HERSELF 6 SHE TOLD THIS ACCOUNT TO AYLWIN WHO IMMEDIATELY CONVOKED A MEETING OF HIS SENIOR LIEUTENANTS AND ASKED HER TO COME TELL ME BECAUSE OF OUR CONVERSATION THAT MORNING IN WHICH WE SPECULATED ON WHAT PINOCHET MIGHT DO TO PREVENT A DEFEAT IN THE PLEBISCITE WHICH WAS BECOMING MORE AND MORE LIKELY FOR HIS PART AYLWIN'S PRELIMINARY REACTION WAS TO TRY TO GET THROUGH TO AIR FORCE AND POLICE COMMANDERS MATTHEI AND STANGE TO SEE IF THE INFORMATION WAS ONLY ARMY PROPERTY AND ALSO TO USE SOCIALIST PARTY LINKS TO SEE WHETHER THERE WAS ANYTHING IN THE ALLEGATIONS ABOUT THE CONFIDENTIAL ' C'ONFIDENTIAL PAGE 04 COMMUNIST SANTIA 07135 01 OF 02 011632Z PARTY PLANS EXDIS CONFIDENTIAL' Page 4 CO g ENj IAI' ' EXDIS Case Number S199900030 7 IS TRYING TO REACH SERGIO MOLINA EARLIER TO SEE IF MOLINA WAS GIVEN INFORMATION WHEN SHE TRIED TO REACH MOLINA JIMENEZ ALSO SAW ZINKE A OF THE SAME EARLIER IN THE EVENING SHE WAS TOLD BY MOLINA'S SECRETARY THAT MOLINA HAD RECEIVED A REPORT THAT THERE MIGHT BE AN ATTEMPT TO ASSASINATE SOME OF THE NO CAMPAIGN LEADERS DURING THE NO RALLY OF OCTOBER FEW DAYS WHO ANY 1 1 1$ h ' CONFIDENTIAL U i' ' 0 Il CONFIDENTIAL EXDIS ' CONFIDENTIAL ' i ' CONFIDENTIAL ' '' ' iEXD I S Case Number S199900030 PAGE 01 ' 011632Z 02 OF 02 SS-OO ACTION 000 CIAE-00 CIAE-00 ADS-00 LOG-00 INRE-00 INFO 07135 SANTIA ' AS-01 W NSCE-00 NSCE-00 DODE-00 DODE-00 --------------- —--347663 0 311348Z SEP 88 ZFF4 FM AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO TO SECSTATE WASHDC NIACT C G N F 1 'D'E EXDIS ' ' T I 'N A L DELIVER ARA ABRAMSFQR EO 12356 IMMEDIATE SSO-OO INRE-00 020509Z 38 8455 SECTION 02 OF 02 SANTIAGO 11AM MEETING NSAE-00 NSAE-00 01 OCT 07135 88 DECL OADR TAGS PINSCI SUBJ REF POSSIBILITY OF IMMINENT BARNES KQZAK TELCON STATED COUP GOVERNMENT 300CT 88 8 COMMENT AS OUR MOST RECENT SCENARIO CABLE PUT IT A PINOCHET ABORTION OF THE CQNSTITUTIONALPROCESS WE COULD NOT BERULED OUT SHARE JIMENEZ'S VIEW THAT ZINKE'S STORY DOESN'T RINGTRUE NOT SO MUCH WITH REGARD TO POSSIBLE COMMUNIST PLITS THOUGH OUR SENSE IS THAT THE TIMETABLE WOULD START AFTER THE PLEBISCITE AND NOT BEFORE OR WHILE IT IS STILL ON AS TO THE IMPROBABLE NATURE QF THE CHILEAN ARMY QUIETLY LETTING THIINGS HAPPEN WHENTHE PERPETRATORS ARE REALLY COMMUNISTS WE WILL BE IN TOUCH WITH AYLWIN AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE OCTOBER 1TO LEARN WHAT STEPS HE MAY NOR WECAN HAVE TAKEN OVERNIGHT EVEN THOUGH NETIHERJIMENEZ FIGURE OUTZINKE'S MOTIVES FOR TELLING HER SO OPENLY WHAT HE DID WE TAKE THE INFORMATION EXTREMELY SERIOUSLY AND URGE THAT WASHINGTON DO SO AS WELL BARNES CANS'ID r' 'CONFIDENTlA'L- PAGE 02 '- SANTIA 07135 02 OF 02 011632Z EXDIS CONFIDENTIAL CONFIDENTIAL EXDIS Case Number S199900030 Page 7 - CONFIDENTIAL - 8 3 i i ' w ' i ' i ' EXDIS 'CONFIDENTIAL Page 7