The political turmoil plaguing Chilean Society since the fiery outbreak of violent protests in 2019 after a simple increase in ticket prices on the Santiago Metro will come to a head on September 4th. The localized protests spread into a national movement against the then-President Sebastian Piñera over high levels of inequality and the controversially conservative Constitution of 1980. The years-long protest movement mobilized millions of Chileans and resulted in 27,000 arrests and 36 deaths.
The Piñera government eventually negotiated a national plebiscite in October 2020, which saw Chileans in every province overwhelmingly approve a new constitutional convention. In the subsequent months, voters from across Chile picked delegates for the 2021-2022 Constitutional Convention resulting in major victories for center-left and socialist parties.
Finally, Chile held a Presidential election where issues such as inequality, language, the Catholic Church, history, and multinational corporations dominated the debate. 35-year-old leftist protest leader Gabriel Boric of the Apruebo Dignidad (Approve Dignity) Coalition faced off against far-right populist Jose Antonio Kast in a polarizing but riveting presidential election campaign. Eventually, Boric would win the presidency with 56% of the vote and assumed the office on March 11, 2022.
What was wrong with the 1980 Constitution?
The 1980 Constitution of Chile was adopted by former Dictator Augusto Pinochet, whose repressive military junta violently quashed any political dissent. Unlike most military dictatorships, Pinochet peacefully renounced his power in 1990 and lived the rest of his days under constitutional immunity despite being internationally denounced as an abuser of human rights. The Constitution also protected multinational mining conglomerates, who produce over 60% of the national exports. Additionally, the 1980 Constitution enshrined a highly unitary state with a powerful government bureaucracy which failed to recognize indigenous peoples and regional differences. Such a set-up has long been considered problematic, especially due to its conservative tone and difficulty to amend.
The New Constitution
The Plebiscite to ratify the new Constitution will be held on September 4th, invariably leading to a furious campaign to solidify public opinion. The major issues of the referendum are the social bill of rights, legislative reform, indigenous rights and federalism, and economic inequality included in the 388 Articles and 178 pages of text. The presence of disinformation and a violent history has made this plebiscite the most momentous vote since 1988’s shock rejection of Pinochet’s leadership, which directly led to the current democratic political system. Conservative elements crusade against excessive government power, the imposition of progressive social norms, and the possibility of two Chiles existing: White Chile and Indigenous Chile. Leftist “approve” leaders like President Boric have championed greater freedoms for women and minorities, more redistribution of wealth, and a codified rejection of Pinochet’s right-wing caudillismo, thereby creating a “new social contract”. Recently polls have favored a slim “rejection” victory as many voters hold concerns over what a complete overhaul of the Chilean government and reformation of Chilean society would look like.
In response to the likelihood of a “reject” victory, “approve” leaders in the current administration have lowered the threshold for a constitutional amendment to a simple majority in the Senate to pass their structural reforms without another Constitutional Plebiscite. Kast has spoken out against this move arguing that it only makes politicians stronger, rather than making Chile a freer democracy. It is worthwhile to note that Chile is presently considered a highly functioning democracy with a high allowance of civil liberties including same-sex marriage and strong anti-discrimination laws in the books. Chile also is one of the most developed countries in Latin America with a historically stable economy despite income inequality and a history with caudillismo.
The September 4th Referendum will decide if the social upheaval of the last three years will result in a fundamental alteration of the country’s trajectory or if the status quo will prevail in keeping multinational interests quite comfortable. Right now it looks like Chile will spurn the ideological turn to the Left, but Chilean politics have proven full of surprises more so than other democracies across the world.
