MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Pinochet hospitalized in Santiago

Former Chilean President Augusto Pinochet, who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, remained at the Santiago military hospital on Thursday, after being admitted the day before with a bad cold and a foot injury, family and medical sources said.

"Gen. Pinochet was hospitalized and will be released Friday. He has a bad cold and could suffer complications, since a few weeks ago he underwent surgery to have his pacemaker replaced," retired Gen.

Although media reports attributed Pinochet's hospitalization to an injured rib after a fall in the bathroom, Garin only said the former general, 87, had "a foot injury." "I think that stories are alarmist, my general is well and at the hospital, he was subjected to all necessary tests for people his age because he suffers from several ailments," he added.

On March 12, Pinochet underwent surgery to have his pacemaker replaced, staying at the hospital for 48 hours.

Pinochet suffers from diabetes and other ailments which served to forestall court action against him. He had been indicted on 57 counts of homicide and in 18 disappearances linked to the "Caravan of Death" but never had to stand trial because of his allegedly poor health.

The Santiago court of appeals ruled that the former dictator was unfit to stand trial in July last year, on the grounds that he was (and is) suffering from irreversible vascular dementia.

The ruling enabled the general to elude other court actions, even though there are still dozens of outstanding lawsuits against him.

Since court proceedings were stymied, Pinochet spends most of his time at his Santiago residence or at his weekend estate in Bucalemu, 130 kilometers (80 miles) west of Santiago.