Half a century later, the military junta still haunts Chile

[Judi Lynn]

Published: January 11, 2024 4:37pm EST

Chileans recently voted to reject a proposed new constitution which critics said was even more authoritarian and conservative than the 1980 dictatorship-era constitution it sought to replace.

Most notably, the rejected changes sought to strengthen property rights and uphold free-market principles. Roughly 56 per cent of voters rejected the new constitution while around 44 per cent were in favour. Debates about the constitution highlight the political challenges that have plagued Chile since the violent days of the military junta.

Hosted in Santiago, the 2023 Pan and Parapan American Games, were seen as an opportunity to signal a new Chile. For Toronto-born Olympian Melissa Humaña-Paredes, daughter of Chilean political refugees, entering the Estadio Nacional (National Stadium) as a flag-bearer for the Canadian team, conjured up simultaneous feelings of pride, and the images of the atrocities from 50 years ago.

Under the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet which ruled Chile from 1970 to 1990, many sport stadiums, especially the Estadio Nacional, were used as open-air prisons, where many Chileans were tortured and killed.

More:
https://theconversation.com/half-a-century-later-the-military-junta-still-haunts-chile-219790