Yesterday (September 7th) marked the 25th anniversary of the 1986 assassination attempt on Chilean Dictator aGUSto Pinochet. This was a dark day for Madrigal Electromotive's operation in Chile. With close family cultural ties, Chile was an early area of expansion for this young German Company. In the aftermath, several employees, contractors and clients of Madrigal Electromotive were kidnapped, tortured, and/or killed. We do not know what happened to several others who simply vanished.
Political unrest increases risks but also offers great potential rewards in overseas operations. At Madrigal Electromotive, we've always tried to use existing ties to a country be in enclaves of cultural ties. Family ties in far flung areas give an entree to the fringes of the globe. Past associates and clients who've immigrated to other countries offer great opportunities toward expansion.
Unfortunately, the aftermath of the assassination attempt was a large blow to our Chilean operations.
Herr Schilke,
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for your most excellent posting. Das deutsches Volk at home and abroad are greatly proud of the fine work of the Madirgal Electromotive GmbH industrial combine and recognize the contributions of the many smaller companies which were its forerunners before final consolidation. From the beginning of the 20th Century through to the early 1930's and then beyond into a new era, these companies demonstrated great technical innovation and subsequently contributed greatly to our homeland becoming a world leader, including in the areas of engineering and manufacturing. It is a fact that man would never had walked on the Moon had it not been for the early rocket prototypes that were designed and produced with the assistance of several Madigral related industrial concerns. These products were designed during crisis and assembled under the most difficult circumstances imaginable, but were nevertheless delivered on-time, as ordered and expected. Your reference to Chile brings a special note of joy to my heart as members of my own family arrived in South America in the mid-1940's and assisted Madigral along with other German interests in establishing themselves. My uncle was an innovative sort of techincal administrator who came to Chile via Argentina in the 1960's and was involved in numerous small ways in the development of these interests. Chile was a sanctuary to him and nothing or no-one could ever compell him to leave to go back to Germany. It is with sadness that I recall the events of September, 1986, but it is always for the best to leave the past in the past and look forward to the future!
vielen dank,
Karl R.
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DeleteHerr Schilke,
ReplyDeletePlease accept my profound and most humble apology for the mis-spelling of Madrigal in my previous post. I assure you that it is not because of myself. I am 95 years old and due to declining eyesight and trembling hands, must rely on my assistant Carlos to do much of the reading and writing for me. With great regret, he can at times be a "dumbkopf" and will easily ruin English and German words. He even managed to ruin my original correction to this post, which I regretably had to delete and write over again. Carlos is an auslander and as you know, Herr Schilke, some of these people at times can be as bright as an ox and require strict authority and guidance to complete their assigned work in a manner you and I would deem to be acceptable. Our imposition of order and discipline is really for their own good, but the auslanders don't necessarily see it in the same way as we do. When I was a young man, it seems that perhaps things were different in our homeland and we were granted the respect we deserved for our efforts on their behalf, but this old man does not want to further indulge himself at this time with more stories about the "good old days".
Vielen dank,
Karl R.