Plebiscite for Constitutional Reform in Chile
Intense protests that started last year concluded in the approval of a plebiscite to endorse a constitutional reform in Chile. Source: Flickr.
Chile announced its plans on September 17 to carry out its previously scheduled October referendum on constitutional reform. The referendum had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The electoral campaign for the upcoming plebiscite restarted following the suspension of strict quarantine restrictions while officials work to ensure that polling places remain sanitary.
On October 25, Chileans will have the opportunity to decide whether or not to seize the opportunity to draft a new constitution to replace the one established in 1980 by former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. In addition, Chileans will have the option to choose the makeup of a constitutional convention: either an assembly composed only of elected citizens or a mixed committee including legislators.
The idea of a constitutional reform stems from the intense protests within Chile starting in September 2019, when thousands of protesters demanded a new constitution to better protect citizens’ rights. The protests concluded in a historic agreement to find a suitable answer to the protestors’ demands. A plebiscite was thus approved in December 2019 to determine the future of the constitution inherited from Chile’s last dictatorship.
However, the population is not entirely in support of the reform. Political parties following the “pinochetismo” doctrine and representing the most conservative sectors of the country—including the Independent Democratic Union (UDI) and the National Renewal (RN) parties—expressed their discontent over the possible reform. UDI General Secretary Felipe Salaberry stated, “[We] don’t need a new constitution to improve the lives of Chileans, we have shown that that is possible with good laws in the Congress.” The movement against the reform also holds support from religious groups and ultra-conservatives.
Those who support the reform are scattered across the political spectrum. Nearly all parties found between the center and left sides of the political continuum—including the parties governing Chile since the end of the dictatorship under the Concertación coalition— stated their opinions on the reform. Michelle Bachelet, former president and current High Commissioner of the UN Human Rights Council, has been a central figure in gathering support from the parties of the former Concertación and Frente Amplio (FA) coalitions.
Recent polls showed that 87 percent of the electorate intends to vote, and around 70 individuals support the reform. Nevertheless, questions remain on how the plebiscite will practically proceed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Chile awaits the upcoming plebiscite, its current political situation remains unstable. Truck drivers have been “strangling” Santiago’s main avenues, blocking most of the roads’ channels since August 27 as a protest against rising attacks on truckers in the south-central Araucania region and Congress’s slow response to calls for security reforms. Such insecurity in Araucania is a product of the long, heightened tensions with the Mapuches, an indigenous people in Chile with recent dissent against the government-led occupation of their land. The Mapuches support the plebiscite, viewing it as an opportunity to finally gain notable recognition and official inclusion in Chile’s social, political, and economic landscape.
The intense campaign for constitutional reform promises to shed light on several topics previously neglected in the country due to the coronavirus outbreak, especially the havoc caused by last year’s protests including, but not limited to the 31 deaths, thousands of injuries, and allegations concerning the police’s excessive use of force.