Chilean street to be named after Pinochet

SANTIAGO, Dec 19 (Reuters) Former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet is to have a street, square or public space named after him in the district where he lived during his 1973-1990 rule.

The local council of Las Condes in the Chilean capital Santiago approved a proposal from the district's right-wing mayor Francisco de la Maza by a 6-2 vote, a council source told Reuters today.

The council will now decide where to honor the dictator, who died on December 10 aged 91.

Nearly 3,200 people were killed in political violence in Chile during Pinochet's rule, the vast majority by his police and secret agents. Some 28,000 were tortured.

While supporters of the general say his 1973 coup saved their country from possible civil war, others view him as a mass murderer who should have been tried for human rights abuses.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who was held in one of Pinochet's torture centers, also lives in Las Condes.

Reuters SY GC2328