A judge in Chile has ordered an investigation¹ into the death, in 1973, of the Nobel prize-winning poet, Pablo Neruda, following allegations he may have been poisoned.

一位智利法官要求对1973年诺贝尔获奖诗人巴勃罗·聂鲁达之死展开调查，有消息称他是被毒死的。

Pablo Neruda, seen here on a visit to the BBC's Latin American service in 1965, was fiercely critical of the military
Neruda - a Communist and a friend of President Salvador Allende - died in the immediate² aftermath of the military coup³ that brought General Augusto Pinochet to power.

The poet's family has always maintained that he died in a Santiago clinic of advanced prostate（前列腺） cancer, aged⁴ 69.

The foundation that guards his legacy⁵ has said in a statement there is "no proof whatsoever⁶ that suggests Pablo Neruda died of causes other than cancer".

But, pressed by Chile's Communist Party, a judge has now ordered a murder investigation.

This follows allegations from his former driver, Manuel Araya Osorio, that agents injected Neruda with poison at the clinic on the orders of General Pinochet, twelve days after the coup.

Neruda had severely⁷ criticised the military for what he saw as a betrayal（背叛，辜负） of his country.

His death is not the only one from that turbulent（骚乱的） time to be re-examined recently.

The remains⁸ of President Allende were exhumed⁹ last month on the orders of the same judge, in an effort to clarify whether he committed suicide - as is widely believed - or was killed by soldiers who stormed the presidential palace during the coup.