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E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON KMDR KPAO PGOV PREL SNAR EFIN CI
SUBJECT: Santiago Oct. 10-13 Media Report 
 
Lead Story 
 
-------------- 
 
¶1.            Chile played Colombia in Medellin and won 4-2, 
therefore qualifying for the World Cup (All dailies, 10/11). 
 
 
 
U.S.-Related News 
 
----------------------- 
 
¶2.      After almost a month and a half of controversy over the 
"Salitre" exercise, the U.S. Embassy in Santiago commended the 
transparency in the organization of the exercise to avoid 
misunderstandings.  "In preparing the exercise, military officers 
of our countries clarified the scenario to assure that all 
audiences clearly understood the nature of the event- which is not 
offensive-- and to give greater transparency to neighbor countries 
in the region," said an embassy spokesperson.  "The government of 
Chile has worked hard to promote goodwill," he added.  Chilean 
defense sources said that U.S. Ambassador to Chile Paul Simons was 
one of the main supporters of modifying the hypothetical scenario 
of the exercise.  Defense Minister Francisco Vidal admitted there 
had been talks among the Air Forces, but "never an official 
suggestion" from the USG to the Foreign Ministry to change the 
scenario.  Foreign Minister Mariano Fernandez said that "If I had 
any information it is not for me to provide it to the public 
opinion."  The initial scenario, and which upset Peru, involved a 
fictitious country in the north invading another in the south, 
prompting the intervention of a U.N. peace force. The new scenario 
is of a dictator on an island (Conservative, independent La 
Tercera, 10/10). 
 
 
 
¶3.      Chilean sources said the U.S. suggestion to change the 
scenario of the exercise was a result of Peru's complaints in 
Washington.  Sources in Lima said that Foreign Minister Jose Garcia 
Belaunde and Defense Minister Rafael Rey conducted a strong lobby 
with the countries participating in "Salitre" to either to cancel 
the exercise or modify the hypothetical scenario (Conservative, 
influential El Mercurio, 10/10). 
 
 
 
¶4.      The tension over "Salitre" has decreased since Chile 
announced it would make a "minor technical adjustment" to the 
exercise. Political scientist Guillermo Holzmann says that Peru's 
stance on this matter has to do with its strategy to establish in 
the international community that Chile is preparing military and 
offensively.  The end goal, he says, is to put pressure on the 
court of The Hague which has to rule on Peru's maritime claim 
against Chile (Government-owned, La Nacion, 10/13). 
 
 
 
¶5.      Columnist Hernan Felipe Errazuriz: "Chile and Peru seem 
unaware of the poor state of their relationship. ... As if they had 
no experience, both governments practice diplomacy through the 
press in a spiral of absurd bragging.  The latest Peruvian 
complaint - and in which Chile got caught in - was a military 
exercise organized by the Air Force.... Due to Peru's 
incomprehensible complaint, the hypothetical location of the 
exercise was changed....  It is likely that more conflicts and 
incidents will occur, perhaps even coarser, since lately that has 
been the tone of the relationship .... Alan Garcia wrapped himself 
in the Peruvian flag some time ago to improve his declining 
popularity and to attract nationalists by portraying Chile in The 
Hague as an aggressor and usurper. But nothing will change if the 
foreign ministries of both countries to not carry out a 
professional and calm work to lead bilateral ties along a 
constructive path" (El Mercurio, 10/10). 
 
¶6.      President Bachelet congratulated President Obama on the 
Nobel Peace Prize:  "I am truly content with this great award that 
President Obama has received as a great leader in the fight for 
peace... This is a new opportunity to state new challenges. It is 
also a call on all international political actors to make that 
goodwill come true" (El Mercurio, 10/10). 
 
 
 
¶7.      Craig Kelly, former U.S. Ambassador to Chile and current 
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, met recently in Santiago with 
the Eduardo Frei and Sebastian Pinera's presidential campaign heads 
Rodrigo Hinzpeter, Cristina Bitar, Enrique Correa and 
BelisarioVelasco to talk about the presidential race and the 
political situation in Latin America, among other topics (La 
Tercera, 10/11). 
 
 
 
¶8.      Hispanic organizations The Cuban-American National 
Foundation, The National Race Council, and the Latin American 
United Cities League urged the Senate to confirm Arturo Valenzuela 
as Assistant Secretary for Latin American stating that the delay in 
his confirmation is hurting Washington's policy in Latin America 
(El Mercurio, 10/10). 
 
 
 
¶9.      Secretary Clinton's spokesperson Philip Crowley assured 
that the Obama administration and the Secretary of State stand 
strongly behind Arturo Valenzuela's nomination (El Mercurio, 
10/11). 
 
 
 
¶10.    Minister Laura Albornoz, head of Chile's National Women's 
Service, met with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and other U.S. 
officials at the opening of the Women's Entrepreneurial Leaders 
Conference in Washington as president of the OAS Inter-American 
Women's Commission (Government-owned La Nacion, 10/12). 
 
 
 
¶11.    Minister Laura Albornoz met in Washington with Tina Tchen, 
White House Council on Women and Girls; Melanne Verveer, 
responsible for women's issues in the Department of State, and Lynn 
Rosenthal, White House advisor on the same issue, to discuss 
logistics about women's centers and trafficking in women in Latin 
America (El Mercurio, 10/10). 
 
 
 
¶12.    A team of NASA scientists will arrive in Punta Arenas 
tomorrow to launch Operation Ice Bridge, a six-week project to 
measure and study the ice sheets over Antarctica and the effects of 
the increase in sea level (Popular leading circulation Las Ultimas 
Noticias, 10/11). 
 
 
 
Indigenous Affairs 
 
---------------------- 
 
¶13.    Yesterday night at 10:30 p.m., hooded individuals attacked a 
toll booth, burned a truck, and fired at five vehicles including a 
police car on the international Ruta 5 highway in the Ninth Region 
in Victoria. The truck driver and his assistant said they had 
encountered a barricade on the road and had phoned the police when 
a group of individuals held them at gunpoint, threatening to kill 
them.  Just a few kilometers from Victoria earlier in the evening 
Giselle Martinez was driving her car with her 13-year old daughter. 
She saw a barricade ahead and started to turn back.   Hooded 
individuals fired at her car, stopped two other vehicles and tried 
to rob them.  No one was injured.  At about 2 a.m. another group of 
 
15 individuals also armed fired at the toll booth just two 
kilometers from the highway.  The toll operator ran and hid as the 
individuals destroyed the booth and spray painted, "This is Mapuche 
territory." The incidents occur just two days after the government 
announced it would complete land acquisitions to satisfy the 
demands of 115 Mapuche communities (El Mercurio, 10/10). 
 
 
 
Local Politics 
 
--------------- 
 
¶14.    Results of a telephone poll conducted by "La Tercera" in 
cities of more than 20,000 inhabitants: Pinera leads with 39%, 
Marco Enriquez Ominami 24%, and Frei 20%.  In a runoff between the 
following candidates: Pinera 48% and Frei 39%; Pinera 44% (5 less 
than in July) and M.Enriquez 43%, which is 21 % more than in July 
(La Tercera, 10/10). 
SIMONS