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together.
Lagos and Ortiz did not intend to give Pinochet any excuses now to subvert the democratic process. They were aware, however, that extremists of the far left as well as the far right could do damage. The opposition would attempt to negotiate with the armed forces to bring forward the elections but, if they had to wait 17 months for these to take place, they would do so. He noted that Pinochet had said on television that there would be no negotiations. Mr Eggar said HMG awaited news of the opposition's considered views. We still needed to analyse the situation thoroughly. There was, however, a danger in pressing for changes in the Constitution just because the 'No' vote had won. If the Constitution were opened up, it was conceivable the armed forces or Pinochet could themselves seek changes which would suit them, and be detrimental to the opposition. Extreme care would be needed on this matter. Mr Foulkes agreed it would be going too far to expect to tear up the Constitution just because the 'No' had triumphed. He thought, however, that it would be legitimate for HMG to say that if mutual agreement could be reached between the opposition and the armed forces, this would be welcome. It would be important in this regard for the international community to give the armed forces some encouragement to negotiate. Mr Eggar replied that if an internal consensus evolved to move more quickly to elections then HMG would be the first to welcome it. But all political parties were really starting from scratch and they would probably need time to organise themselves. Mr Foulkes noted that some were already very well organised and very efficiently administered. Mr Eggar said he had himself been impressed by the professionalism of Chileans he had met.
Sponsored Visits
4. Mr Foulkes hoped the FCO would continue to invite opposition leaders to Britain. This was an important programme and a useful demonstration to the British people that HMG cared about democracy in Chile. Mr Eggar replied that it was certainly the intention to continue in this way. Mr Morgan commented that we had an outstanding invitation to Zaldivar (PDC) and were now actively considering others.
Pinochet's Candidature
5.
Mr Eggar asked for Mr Foulkes views on the rumours that Pinochet might stand in the open presidential election. There seemed to be a consensus that this would require constitutional change or that Pinochet would first have to resign. Mr Foulkes said Jaime Logas (MFA) had told him Pinochet would be precluded from standing though he was not quite sure of the facts. Mr Foulkes then asked about the press stories about Pinochet's wife (Lucia) as a possible contender. Mr Morgan commented that this hardly seemed credible. The particular journalist who was purveying the story was not very reliable. Mr Foulkes said it would be
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