Reagan White House, rattled by anti-Pinochet protests, weighed giving dictator asylum

The government of US president Ronald Reagan was so worried left-wing opposition to General Augusto Pinochet might erupt into open civil war in Chile that in 1986 Washington considered offering the dictator political asylum.

Documents recently discovered in US archives reveal that a mission headed by US army general John Galvin went to the South American country in 1986 to assess the growing street protests and guerilla efforts to upend the unpopular regime.

As the US began to understand the depth and passion of the opposition, fears of civil war forced Reagan officials to look for alternatives including, as one document stated, "An honorable departure for President [Pinochet], who would be received as a guest of our [US] government."

The documents, unearthed by Chilean journalist Loreto Daza at the US national archives and records administration in Maryland, detail high-level Reagan administration debates on policy options to ease Pinochet out of power.

"One of the possibilities was to offer him [Pinochet] asylum. It was an offer to travel to the United States and leave power," said Daza, who is also heads the journalism faculty at the Universidad del Desarollo.

While the US had openly pushed for a military coup to overthrow the elected government of socialist Salvador Allende, by the mid-1980s Pinochet had become such a polarising figure that US officials feared his continuation in power might help the Chilean left regain public support, said Peter Kornbluh, author of The Pinochet File.