Political History
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1964-Eduardo Frei is elected president with backing of the United
States. A centrist politician from the Christian Democratic party,
Frei’s campaign promises including building thousands of housing
units for Santiago’s inadequately sheltered population, partially
nationalizing copper mining, and instituting new land reforms.
When his program Operacion Sitia, which was to provide city services
to plots of subsidized land, did not meet expectations, popular support
for the president waned.
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1970-Salvador Allende becomes the world’s first popularly elected
Socialist candidate. He campaigns on promises of increased nationalization
and increased efforts at housing the poor. Although his reforms were
socially beneficial, Chile’s economy suffered, leading to unrest. |
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1973-A military coup overthrows the Socialist government. Allende
is killed when the military begins to bomb La Moneda, the presidential
residence. The military junta arrests thousands of politically active
Chileans and begins a long period of human rights abuses. After the
coup, it is revealed that the United States Central Intelligence Agency was
involved in the coup. |
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1973-1988-Augusto Pinochet steps up as leader of the military
junta. He continues the practice of arresting political subversives
and journalists who write negatively about the regime. Many
of these people are never seen again. Interestingly, journalists
who have contempt for authority can still be arrested and jailed for
up to five years, if convicted of desacato. Pinochet writes
a new constitution in 1980, increasing the dictatorship’s power,
but guaranteeing free elections in 1988. |
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1988-Responding to political pressure from international and local authorities,
as well as a clause in his 1980 constitution, Pinochet declares the first
democratic elections since 1970. He loses to Christian Democrat Patricio
Aylwin. Pinochet remains lifetime leader of the military. |
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1993- Eduardo Frei, the son of the 1964 president, is elected as a Christian
Democrat. |
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1998-Pinochet vacations in England after retiring from his military
post. During his absence Spain indicts the former dictator for human rights
abuses that occurred during his dictatorship. |
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2000- Ricardo Escobar elected president. |
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2001-Although Pinochet suffers from dementia, courts agree that he is fit to stand trial for the abuses that occurred during his reign. A trial date has yet to be set. |