LONDON (AP) -- Lawyers for former Chilean dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet are getting their first chance to try to convince a British judge that Pinochet's arrest on charges of genocide, torture and terrorism was illegal.
In a hearing today, the lawyers will argue that Pinochet's diplomatic immunity was violated when British police arrested him Oct. 16 at the behest of a Spanish magistrate seeking his extradition.
On Thursday, Lord Justice Konrad Schiemann refused to hear attorney arguments or rule on their motion, putting the proceedings off until today.
The Chilean government has urged Britain to release the 82-year-old Pinochet on humanitarian grounds, and argued that as a senator, he is entitled to diplomatic immunity. Britain says Pinochet does not have immunity and the government cannot intervene in the legal process.
The Spanish magistrate's warrant for Pinochet cites 94 victims but could be broadened to include some 3,000 people who were killed or disappeared during his 17-year-rule.
Pinochet remains under police guard at the London Clinic, where he has been recovering from an Oct. 9 back operation.
Britain's Ministry of Defense disclosed Sunday night that a Chilean military hospital aircraft landed Saturday at the Brize Norton Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire, 70 miles northwest of London, but said its arrival does not mean any decision has been made on Pinochet's fate.
A delegation of right-wing Chilean senators arrived in Britain on Sunday to warn that the arrest could destroy democracy in Chile and ``seriously imperil'' relations with Britain.
Outside the London Clinic, scuffles broke out when a visitor, reportedly Chilean Sen. Ignacio Perez Walker, left after seeing Pinochet and made taunting gestures toward protesters yelling for a trial.
``We have come to represent to the British authorities that as long as they keep their hands in Chilean affairs, they are seriously damaging the process of transition in Chile,'' said Chilean Sen. Carlos Bombal.
Pinochet ruled from 1973 until 1990 and remained army commander until last March as part of a compromise in Chile's transition to democracy.
AP-NY-10-26-98 0215EST
