Chile Rejects Pinochet - Plebiscite Result
In 1973, a coup led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet overthrew the socialist government of President Salvador Allende in a violent and bloody coup. President Allende was killed in the presidential palace and thousands his of supporters were executed.
Pinochet’s reign of terror would be remembered globally for years to come and serve as a template for the CIA in their attempts to overthrow democratically elected governments in any state that didn’t comply with the interests of the USA’s corporations.
In 1980, Pinochet created an exclusive commission to write a new constitution that would protect big business and establish a free market neo-liberal model of economy into Chilean society. While also ensuring that laws impacting on health, education and other public spending would have to pass through the congress and then further regulatory bodies making it almost impossible to pass laws that would benefit the working class and serially protected the private sector and big business. This constitution was born out of bloodshed following the coup of September 1973.
When the people of the Chile rose up last year in response to a hike in bus fares, the protest developed into an organized social movement against the austerity and the neo-liberal economy that benefitted the elites of Chile and their backers in the West. 25% of income goes to the richest 1% in Chile while, 75% of household income and costs goes towards the payment of debts. It is clear therefore that the boom and bust nature of free market economics has significantly impacted the political sphere in Chile and people have turned to the left in order to combat this
“Chile’s Constitution is neoliberal in nature, and its basic role is to guarantee conditions for the free market, even in traditional social areas such as education, health and social security,” said Fernando Atria, a law professor specializing in constitutional matters. “What we need is a Constitution that guarantees social rights more than market conditions.” (NY Times)
It is clear that the legacy of the Pinochet Regime has been significantly damaged by the momentous result of the 2020 Chilean National Plebiscite. The days of state terror orchestrated by Pinochet and the Junta paramilitaries are shown in the brutal execution of Victor Jara. He was a member of the Chilean New Song Movement, a social movement of artists, whose music was rooted in traditional Chilean culture and promoted the plight of the factory workers and peasant farmers. They campaigned for Allende and Victor Jara’s music played at many of the protests last year.
The business elites opposing the constitutional changes have inherited the freedom to exploit workers for their own interests. Latin America has had a long history of opposing US dominance and their proxies. The exploitation of copper mines and other natural resources has been a cash cow for Chile’s elites and their fears at a restructuring of the economy is apparent in the campaign to resist constitutional change. The current constitution has been condemned by Chile’s capitalist class.
“It guarantees freedom, protects individuals from the excesses of the state, ensures the protection of property and guarantees social rights,” said Gerardo Jofré, a businessman and one of the directors of the Independents for Rejection campaign. “Those who are rebelling in Chile don’t want to change the Constitution, they want to change the model, and that is a monumental mistake.” (NY Times)
The model he refers to is the economic model enshrined and protected in the constitution by the Pinochet regime; a regime that slaughtered and imprisoned tens of thousands in order to seize and consolidate power. Once again, the blood of the worker is oiling the wheels of the worker, in this case, literally.
The result of the Chilean national plebiscite paves the way for a new constitution to be agreed that could vastly contribute the Chilean lives being vastly improved. The opportunity is now there protect Chileans against the excesses of capitalism and the destruction of public services such as health, transport and education. The legacy of Pinochet is one of oppression, death brutality imprisonment and poverty. The people of Chile are now eradicating the last vestiges of his constitution. The destruction of Pinochet era economics is the first step to realizing the vision of Salvador Allende, a Chile built by its people, for its people.
Le Jasmine Shaw