PLOT TO BEAT ALLENDE LAID TO CIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP09T00207R001000020117-4
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 9, 2011
• Sequence Number: 117
• Publication Date: September 12, 1974
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Approved For Release 2011/08/09: CIA-RDP09T00207R001000020117-4
WASHINGTON STAR
12 SEP 1974
tt
By Jeremiah O'Leary
Star-News Staff Writer
Rep. Michael J. Harring-
ton, D-Mass., has charged
that CIA activities in Chile
against the government of
President Salvadore Al-
lende were viewed by the
'agency as a "prototype or
laboratory experiment" to
test techniques of heavy
financial investment to dis-
credit and bring down a I
government.
The charge is contained
in a letter to Chairman J.
William Fulbright of the
Senate Foreign Relations
committee two months aga
and which was released
today by Harrington.
In a press conference
Harrington made public ex-
changes on correspondence
between himself, Fulbright
and other members of Con-
gress about his concern
over activities of-CIA and
the U.S. Treasury Depart-
ment in Chile and the "quite
limited" congressional re-
view of CIA activities. liar-
rington charged these
reviews are perfunctory
and conic after the fact.
IN INS LETTER to Ful-
bright, Harrington de-
scribed how the "40 Com-
mittee" headed by Henry A.
Kissinger authorized expen-
diture of $11 million from
1962 to 1973 to help. prevent
the election of Allende. He
said CIA Director William
Colby's words in. testimony
before a House Armed Serv-
ices subcommittee on the
CIA disclose- the CIA's
intention was to
"destabilize" the Allende
government so as to pre-
cipitate its downfall.
Harrington wrote that.
"funding was provided to
individuals, political parties
and media outlets in Chite
through channels in other
countries and in both Latin
America and Europe. Mr.
Colby's description of these
operations was direct,
though not to the point of
ilende L
identifying actual contacts
and conduits."
Harrington charged the
Colby testimony indicated
the agency role in 1970 was
viewed as that of the "spoil-
er involving general at-
tempts to politically
destabilize the country and
discredit Allende to im-
prove the likelihood that an
opposition candidate would
win. Following the election
of Allende,'$5 million was
authorized by the 40 com-
mittee for more destabiliza-
tion efforts from 1971 to
1973. An additional $1.S mil-
lion was spent for the 1973
(Chilean) municipal elec-
tions. Some of these funds
were used to support an un-%
named but influential anti-
Allende newspaper." (The
Star-News has learned that
this newspaper was Eli
Mercurio, largest daily in~
Chile and the property of!
wealthy businessman
Augustin Edwards.)
IN A SEPARATE letter)
to Chairman Lucien Nedzi
of the House Armed Serv-
ices subcommittee on intel-
ligence, Harrington chaged
that Colby indicated in
testimony last April that the
CIA "counselled the White
House to rebuff attempts of
President Allende to settle
his differences with the
United States. These and
other related activities sug-
gest that the agency depart-
ed from its proper role of
intelligence gathering and,
instead, participated in for-
mulation of policies and
events both in the United
States and Chile which it
was supposed to objectively:
analyze and report."
Fulbright responded on:
July 26, with a letter to Har-
rington in which the Arkan-
sas Democrat said he
shared Harrington's frus-
tration.
"This has been going on
in places other than Chile
for many years," Fulbright
wrote. "The Senate at least
has been unwilling to exer-
cise serious control of the
CIA and apparently ap-
proves of the activities to
which you refer in Chile and
which I belive to be a proce-
dure which the CIA has fol-
lowed in other countreis."
FULBRIGHT wrote that
he believed creation of a
Joint Committee with full
authority to examine the
CIA and control it is the
only practical answer.
"The Foreign Relations
Committee," Fulbright
wrote." in a showdown
never has sufficient votes to
overcome the opposition of
the forces led by the Armed
Services Committee in the
Sneate but a Joi t Commit-
tee I think would have suffi-
cient prestige to exercise
control."
Fulbright said he would,
be glad to join Harrington':
in sponsoring a renewed of-i
id to CI
fort to create a Joint Com-
mittee on the Intellignece
Community.
Harrington said it Is
indicative of his frustra-
tions that in five meetings
of the House subcommittee
on inter-American affairs
this year on human rights in
Chile, only one government
witness with knowledge of
U.S. activities in Chile
ppeared.
That witness, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of State
Harry Shlaudeman indicat-'
ed. Harrington said "some
knowledge on his part of.
CIA activities that he was
unwilling to discuss before
a duly-constituted commit
tee of the House."
Harrington added there'
are inherent limitations for
members of Congress in
trying to uncover covert ac-
tivities such as those in
Chile and he said the exist-
ing oversight machinery is
illusory.
00845
Approved For Release 2011/08/09: CIA-RDP09T00207R001000020117-4