Sergio Poblete

Diagnoses

Personal

Passions

Vocation

Chilean military officer, general of the Air Force who was arrested and tortured after the coup d'état of 11 September 1973. In 1975 he was sent into exile in Liege, Belgium, where he appealed to various organizations, such as the United Nations Human Rights Commission, to denounce the abuses committed by the Military Regime. As a result, Augusto Pinochet's regime deprived him of his Chilean nationality in 1977. Poblete temporarily returned to Chile for the 1988 plebiscite. Although he was unable to vote, he actively participated in the "No" campaign. Ten years later he testified before Spanish judge Manuel García Castellón, who was investigating the crimes committed in Chile during the Military Regime. Poblete identified Augusto Pinochet as the chief person responsible for the deaths and disappearances that occurred during the dictatorship. He also blamed Gustavo Leigh, pointing out that Leigh was the one who ordered his torture. He visited Chile again in 2006 for the ceremony of change of command of Michelle Bachelet. Poblete died on 25 November 2011 in Liège, Belgium, at 93 years of age. After being diagnosed with a generalized cancer, Poblete decided to undergo euthanasia, a procedure that was approved by a group of doctors and a psychologist. Link to Wikipedia biography (Spanish)