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Chile

Chile’s Proposed New Constitution Threatens Women’s Rights

October 28, 2023 Alejandra Hayon, Orinoco Tribune. , , ,
Chilean society is once again at the culmination of a transformative constitutional process. This pivotal juncture will decide whether the constitution drafted by a legislature dominated by conservative and right-wing parties will replace the current constitution which was established during Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship. After a first failed attempt to establish a new constitution, this new draft introduces stricter measures concerning irregular migration, firmly entrenches the existing pension and healthcare systems—both subjects of substantial critique. It additionally introduces provisions that pose significant threats to sexual and reproductive rights, specifically through the establishment of “rights for those who are about to be born” and the legalization of “conscientious objection” regarding the provision of goods and services.

The Far Right Has Hijacked Chile’s New Constitutional Process

September 20, 2023 Nick MacWilliam, The Real News Network. , , , , ,
In 2019 the nation of Chile was shaken by a mass protest movement that has come to be known as the Social Explosion. A central demand of the Social Explosion was the abolition of the current constitution drafted in 1980 under US-backed fascist dictator Augusto Pinochet. In 2020, Chileans overwhelmingly voted for a new constitutional process in a referendum. However, just two years later, a plebiscite overwhelmingly rejected a new proposed constitution. Since then, the far right has hijacked the process by stacking the constituents to create another constitutional draft with their own representatives.

Chile 50 Years: US Scars From 9/11/73

September 12, 2023 Brad Evans, Consortium News. , , ,
For the few remaining women of Calama in Chile’s Atacama desert, September 11 holds a terrifying meaning. They understand the pain of watching forensic investigators meticulously scour through particles of dust, seeking to retrieve the tiniest fragments of lives brutally taken from the world. They know what it means to face devastating absence, knowing the bodies of loved ones will never be returned. But their loss has nothing to do with the attack on New York’s twin towers. Fifty years ago, in the early morning of Sept. 11 1973, a U.S.-backed coup led by General Augusto Pinochet began with Chile’s military taking control of strategic locations in the capital city Santiago, including the main radio and television networks.

Puebla Group Demands Formal Apology From The US For Chile Coup

September 12, 2023 Saheli Chowdhury, Orinoco Tribune. , , , , , , ,
The Puebla Group has demanded that the United States present a formal apology for its role in the 1973 coup d’état against President Salvador Allende of Chile as part of the commemoration events for 50 years since one of the bloodiest coups in the world. On Sunday, September 10, the Puebla Group and the Latin American Council for Justice and Democracy (CLAJUD) released a joint declaration highlighting that “it is essential to recognize the responsibility of foreign actors in the events that led to the coup” that overthrew the elected government of Salvador Allende on September 11, 1973, and ushered in the 17-year dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, who led the coup.

Learning From Chile: Navigating Complexities Of Political Crises

September 11, 2023 Pauline Lipman and Rico Gutstein, Convergence. , , ,
Twenty years of grassroots organizing by Black and Latinx community organizations, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), and the broad Left propelled CTU organizer Brandon Johnson to victory in the April 2023 Chicago mayoral race. Similarly, across the country, progressive and left organizations are focusing on electoral politics as a central arena of struggle. These campaigns are part of a larger motion—a new generation of social movements, union organizing, and Black-led uprisings against racist state violence—provoked by intertwined political, economic, social, and ecological crises in the US and globally. Yet our movements and campaigns lack political cohesion.

Chile: ‘I Have The President On The Line’; Allende’s Last Message

September 11, 2023 Alexis Polo Gonzalez, Resumen English. , , ,
In the early hours of September 11, 1973, the coup forces carried out Operation Silence, in order to silence the media supporting Salvador Allende’s government. The military’s mission was a complete success. However, before they managed to bomb all the transmitting antennas, Allende was able to address the country for the last time. The president’s last speech to the country was through Radio Magallanes in the midst of the shooting in the vicinity of La Moneda Palace, the seat of the executive. Journalist Leonardo Cáceres informed the microphone that Allende would speak to the country. It was 09:20 in the morning of September 11, 1973, the day of the coup d’état.

What If There Had Been No Coup In Chile In 1973?

September 8, 2023 Vijay Prashad, Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. , , , , ,
Imagine this scenario. On 11 September 1973, the reactionary sections of the Chilean army, led by General Augusto Pinochet and given a green light by the US government, did not leave their barracks. President Salvador Allende, who led the Popular Unity government, went to his office in La Moneda in Santiago to announce a plebiscite on his government and to ask for the resignation of several senior generals. Then, Allende continued his fight to bring down inflation and to realise his government’s programme to advance the socialist agenda in Chile. Until the moment when the Chilean Army descended upon La Moneda in 1973, Allende and the Popular Unity government were in a pitched fight to defend Chile’s sovereignty.

Imperialism Has Nothing To Offer Us, Only Threats

September 5, 2023 Zoe Alexandra, People's Dispatch. , , ,
The event, which has brought together over 230 representatives of social movements, trade unions, and left parties from 23 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, takes place amid tectonic geopolitical shifts. In the last year, tensions between imperialist powers of the Global North and emerging Global South economies have intensified significantly. This was evident in the context of the recent BRICS Summit, which was met with significant skepticism and alarm from Washington and the European Union, which continue their campaign of aggression and encirclement against Russia and China, and all those that work with them.

Commemorating 50th Anniversary Of AFL-CIO Supported Chile Coup

September 3, 2023 Labor Education Project on AFL-CIO International Operations. , , ,
The Labor Education Project on AFL-CIO International Operations (LEPAIO), an international group of labor activists, scholars, and journalists will hold two actions to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the horrific 1973 military coup in Chile.  September 11, 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the coup that overthrew the democratically elected coalition government of Salvador Allende and ushered in a military dictatorship led by Army General Augusto Pinochet. The coup and subsequent brutal dictatorship were aided and supported by the US government of Richard Nixon and the AFL-CIO of George Meany.

Movements, Intellectuals To Discuss Building Socialism In Latin America

September 2, 2023 Zoe Alexandra, People's Dispatch. , , , , ,
Movement leaders and intellectuals from across Latin America and the Caribbean will meet in Santiago, Chile, from September 2-4 for the Regional Dilemmas of Humanity Conference. The conference seeks to provoke debate and discussion about building socialism and finding solutions to address the major crises generated by capitalism. The conference, organized by the regional social movement platform ALBA Movimientos and the International Peoples’ Assembly (IPA), will be held in the Open University of Recoleta. It will take place alongside a series of historical commemorations to be held in the Chilean capital to mark the 50th anniversary of the coup d’état against the Popular Unity government of Salvador Allende and the 53rd anniversary of the victory of Popular Unity.

Undefeated Revolutions And The Peculiar Character Of Gabriel Boric

February 26, 2023 Kawsachun News, Orinoco Tribune. , , ,
The United States was able to actually overthrow, oust and defeat electorally, as a result of this pressure, several countries in the region, several left-wing governments, starting from the one in Honduras in 2009, then Fernando Lugo in Paraguay in 2012. Tried, nearly successfully, a coup d’etat in Ecuador in 2010 and then everybody knows who was behind the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff in 2016 and obviously was training, Sergio Moro, the judge that managed to imprison Lula and even was involved in many ways in the 2019 coup d’etat against Evo Morales in Bolivia. So by 2019-2020, it looked like the United States had recovered the region. The only problem was that Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela were still standing.

SOUTHCOM Chief Aims To Increase Imperialist Plunder Of Latin America

January 27, 2023 Luigi Morris, Left Voice. , , , ,
Laura Richardson, the Chief of the U.S. Southern Command, which oversees military operations in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, spoke about the importance of Latin America’s resources for U.S. foreign policy in an interview with the U.S. think tank Atlantic Council. “Why is this region important?” Richardson asked. “With all its rich resources and rare earth elements, there is the lithium triangle, which today is necessary for technology. Sixty percent of the world’s lithium is found in the lithium triangle: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile.” She also pointed out that “the largest oil reserves, including light and sweet crude, [were] discovered off Guyana more than a year ago.” The general also mentioned Venezuela’s rich oil, copper, and gold resources. She highlighted the importance of the Amazon as “the lungs of the world,” and added that “we have 31 percent of the world’s fresh water in this region.”

Chilean Congress Approves Bill To Launch New Constituent Process

January 16, 2023 People's Dispatch. , ,
The Chilean Chamber of Deputies, on Wednesday, January 11, with 109 votes in favor, 37 against and two abstentions, approved a bill that launches a new constituent process to replace the country’s dictatorship-era constitution. The bill had already been approved in the Senate. On January 3, the upper house of Congress had passed it with 42 votes in favor, seven against and one abstention. Now, it must be promulgated by President Gabriel Boric in order to take effect. After it is published in the Official Gazette, the process to draft a new constitution, one of the fundamental demands of the October 2019 social uprising against inequality, will begin. The bill calls for the creation of a Commission of Experts of 24 members, a Constitutional Council of 55 members, and a Technical Admissibility Committee for redrafting Chile’s new Magna Carta.

Analyzing The Defeat Of The Plebiscite In Chile

September 12, 2022 Gustavo A. Maranges, Resumen English. , ,
Just one week ago, people went to the polls in Chile for the historic  constitutional referendum, where the social forces supporting the idea of a new constitution were swept away. The negative vote exceeded 61%, while the draft constitution go just a little more than 38%. Many may think such a result speaks for itself, but it goes deeper than that. Understanding what happened in Chile is not only an exercise for politicians and analysts, but an obligation for progressive movements throughout the region. Just the day before the vote, we analyzed the situation and concluded the new Constitution could pass. We based our analysis on two studies elaborated by two recognized teams, which contradicted all the opinion polls spread by Chile’s mainstream media.

Predictions On Chile’s Constitutional Referendum

September 3, 2022 Gustavo A. Maranges, Struggle La Lucha. , , ,
Sept. 1 was the last day to campaign for the Constitutional referendum to be held on Sept. 4 in Chile. In this vote, Chileans will decide whether to approve the country’s new Constitution, closing over a decade of social struggles, whose final stage began with 2019 people’s massive protests in the subways and streets. The first step of this constitutional process was the entry (first) referendum, in which 78.28% of voters decided it was necessary to overrule the Pinochet Constitution from 1980. In only 72 hours, this process will end, but tension and uncertainty grow as time goes by. Many opinion polls point out that the Constitution won’t be passed. It has been something repeated to exhaustion. This prediction never withstood any analysis of the Chilean political context.
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