PANEL TO PROBE CIA ROLE IN CHILE

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CIA-RDP09T00207R001000020078-8
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RIFPUB
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U
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1
Document Creation Date: 
December 22, 2016
Document Release Date: 
August 9, 2011
Sequence Number: 
78
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Approved For Release 2011/08/09: CIA-RDP09TOO207RO01000020078-8 WASHINGTON YUS"1- ~aaael to 'robe CIA i'tole in Chile By Laurence Stern' of the Kennedy administration to come from Washington Post Staff Writer -starting in 1962-to August partment. Stung by recent revelations) of last year. A total of $1 mil- At the State Department. -of covert U.S. political inter- lion was authorized for desta- vention in Chile, the Senate bilization of the Allende gov- Foreign Relations Committee iernment during August, 1973. to investigate the matter. The action was taken in a climate of rising pressure on Capitol Hill for tighter con- gressional control over oper- ations of the Central Intelli- gence Agency. The committee's inquiry will go into the question of whether high-ranking adminis- tration officials may have per- jured tluunselves or commit- ted contempt. of Congress in sworn testimony on the U:S. clandestine role in opposing the election of the late Salva- dor Allende in Chile and then hi d i l'1 t soe o un efm ne 3ig s govI !T ,,,.r rc' T r ernment. was obtained by i n~ fi a n tir?- g r ',`i ni^ft Rep. Thomas Morgan (D- ton Post from a Senate office; Mr. }-lord ha .i d h tustifica- to Which it had been distrib-~ t.ion of the t cover t actions IaJ, Chairman of the House tar;eted a a n5t :11t .nde, uted. i Aff itt i C ee a rs omm Fore gn said he would take up the Se n` Frank Church (D- nRS n. \V, lteF F. \Iondale (D- Chile issue this week with the observation that "this is our one chance to get oversight of the CIA and we're going to grab it." military coup that toppled the Allende government and led to the death of the Chilean president. At a closed session of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday, Minor- ity Leader Hugh, Scott (R-Pa.) expressed concern over the leakage of a staff report re- Mont.) said he intends to call for a joint committee to over- spokesman Robert Anderson see covert CIA operations told reporters that President abroad. Ford's statement "speaks fore "We have not asked enough itself" and that he had noth- questions, we have been too ing to add. At the CIA there prone to take what they tell us was no comment on the presi- on faith and not probe too dential allegation. 1 deeply," Mansfield said. His One State Department pub- proposal was endorsed by Sen- lie affairs officer lunched yes- ate Foreign Relations Commit- terday with a member of the I tee. chairman J. William Ful- Chilean embassy staff, Chi-;bright (t)-Ark.), who ;ill pre- lean right wing Radical Party side over the investigat;cn of journalist Rafael Otera, in an thA special programs in C.iile. effort to gather evidence to Because of Fulbrihitt's close support the President's charge relationship with Kis,in,,et', resided over the ti;ition- against the Allende govern- who p commending contempt andlperjury investigations of gov-1ment. al security council nie ings White House officials de- that chartered the pro;_ram of i ernment witnesses, according to informed sources. dined to discuss what sort of covert action against Allende, A Copy of the report, pre- briefing was provided the there was some skepticism on 1 resident as the basis for his) Capitol Hill and elsewhere pared by Jerome I?evittt n yc,i of n effort by the A',- I about how far the Forei> n Ile- chief counsel to the hcrei lcndc over r.rneit to destroy lations Committee inquiry Relations Subcorrin lire iin LU,tosi.tinn nres and parties. would go. But Fulbright has national subcommittee, said that the Levinson report has been set aside but that the full committee investigation will go into its findings and reconv Traditionally the CIA has; mendations. reported to oversight subcom- ~Meanwhile, spokesman for mittees comprised of thelithe White House and State House and Senate Armed Department still were unable Services committees. :1'lembers to elaborate on the basis for of both oversight panels have; President Ford's assertion at said in the past week that they his ;Monday night press con- were unaware of the scope; Terence that the Allende gov- and details of the interven- i ernment three or four years terday, said he found the Pres- ident's statement on the CIA's role in Chile "unbelievable" and announced he is introduc- ing legislation that would es- tablish a Senate select com- t r f omme rm 'tt~ t e - m r c complainers against clandes- tine activities carried out by executive mandate targeted against governments, political movements and leaders of, 'which the United States has disapproved. Rep. John Anderson (ft-Ili.). chairman of the Ilou.;e Repub- lican Conference, wa: one of the few congressional Republi- cans to criticize openly Presi- t e o 1.r o s c in control of foreign intelli-i don', Ford's defense of covert operations in Chile a ainst the genet operations. I about the existence of opposi- tion elements and the preser- vation of democracy in Chile, do we now have a program to tions, going back over an 11- ago sought to destroy opposi- help support the democratic 11 he did not know why the year period and costing some ti on parties, newspapers and politicians and journalists who President assumed responsibil- $1.1 million, until the recent! electronic media, have now been muzzled, ban-' itv for activities undertaken surfacing of testimony by CIAAt a White house briefing, nod and jailed?" Mondale in-I,bv the Nixon administration. Director William B. Colby. acting press secretary John W.I quired. Sen. Hubert Humphrey (D.- The clandestine programs in' llushen said he stood on the'; In addition to the Alondale !Alin n.), in a television inter- Chile, as covered in the Colby President's statement and that (l statement, Senate Majority I view, called for the termina- testimony, ran from the period l anything further would have 'I tion of covert action. 00747 voted unanimously yesterday This was a month before the "I ain surprised by Presi- dent Ford's defense of covert operations," said Anderson. He predicted an outcry Approved For Release 2011/08/09: CIA-RDP09TOO207RO01000020078-8