CHILE: War of the Roses

At 11 o’clock one morning last week, a formal procession of Peruvians turned into the broad, tree-lined Alameda of Chile’s capital city, Santiago. It was Peru’s Independence Day, and the procession, headed by well-groomed Ambassador Carlos Miró Quesada, drew up before the equestrian statues of Bernardo O’Higgins and José de San Martin,laid wreaths at the statues of Peru’s (and Chile’s) heroes.

Precisely at noon, another band of Peruvians—exiled Apristas headed by the outlawed APRA’s No. 2 man, handsome, greying Manuel Seoane—appeared at the statues. To make room for their floral tributes, they moved the ambassador’s wreaths about six inches.

That afternoon, still another Peruvian —Luis Elguera, chancellor of Peru’s Santiago consulate-general—visited the statues. Over the protests of the Chilean carabinero on duty, he boldly made off with the Apristas’ star-shaped wreaths. Discovering the theft shortly, the Apristas marched off to protest, first at the Ministry of National Defense, then to the office of Mayor Rafael Pacheco. Thundered the mayor, who had authorized their ceremonies: “An insult to O’Higgins and San Martin!”

Meanwhile, the Chilean Foreign Ministry had received an angry complaint from the Peruvian embassy over the moving of the ambassador’s wreaths. The chief of protocol had already donned his white gloves for a trip to the Alameda to correct this outrage when news of the stolen garlands reached him. He sensibly decided to await further developments.

Next day, they started to pour down. Santiago’s newspapers carried a long and bitter communiqué from the Apristas. Ambassador Miró Quesada renewed his protest to the Chilean Foreign Ministry, then replied to the Aprista communique with a 16-point message of his own, declaring no less than six times that the Apristas were obviously Reds, since their party symbol (like that of Communism) is a five-pointed star.

By week’s end, the Apristas appeared to have scored heavily. Seoane had lodged a complaint of criminal larceny against Elguera, who was expected to be recalled to Peru. And, as partial satisfaction, the mayor’s office had authorized the Apristas to lay another wreath at the O’Higgins statue on Aug. 20, the Liberator’s birthday.