Comment on this story
comment
SANTIAGO, Chile — Chileans on Sunday pronounced a resounding rejection of a new leftist constitution that sought to transform the country into a more egalitarian society.
In a referendum, Chilean voters were asked to approve or reject a proposal to replace the country’s 1980 dictatorship-era constitution — considered one of the most pro-market in the world — with one of the most inclusive of the world
The new charter envisioned a dramatic leftward shift in the South American nation, expanding the role of government and calling for an economic model that would reduce inequality and help uplift the poor.
But for many Chileans, the proposed changes were too drastic. With more than 95 percent of ballots counted by Sunday night, about 62 percent of voters rejected the letter, while 38 percent approved it, according to Chile’s electoral authority.
The results of the vote it ended an ambitious democratic experiment that began as an attempt to unify a country in crisis. In 2019, the streets of Chile erupted in protest, driven by working- and middle-class people struggling with high prices and low wages. In a society long considered a symbol of prosperity in the region, thousands of Chileans poured their anger against a government they believed had forgotten them.
Politicians negotiated a solution to ease the unrest: They pledged to write a new constitution, replacing the version written under the brutal military regime of General Augusto Pinochet. The following year, Chileans voted overwhelmingly in favor of drafting a new charter.
But instead of uniting the nation, the process ended up dividing it once again.
The wide margin of defeat dealt a painful blow to the country’s young leftist president, Gabriel Boric, Chile’s most leftist leader since Salvador Allende, who killed himself in the 1973 military coup that ousted the his socialist government.
Boric, a 36-year-old former lawmaker who helped broker the deal to draft the constitution, promised voters last year that “if Chile was the cradle of neoliberalism, it will also be its grave.” But the failure of the proposed constitution will make it difficult for the president to carry out his bold agenda.
Now he and his country will be left to start from scratch, it seemed on Sunday night. To write a new charter, constitutional experts say, Chileans will likely have to take the matter to Congress, call new elections for a new assembly and start the drafting process all over again.
A renewal was exactly the result many Chileans were hoping for. On Sunday night, in a hotel in Santiago, a group of opponents of the letter celebrated by waving Chilean flags in the air and chanting: “Chile is, and will be, a free country!”
Chileans voted on September 4th for a new progressive constitution that would drastically transform a country previously seen as a free market model. (Video: Reuters)
The 388-article document faced intense criticism for being too long, too left-wing and too radical in its economic, judicial and political proposals. Like other closely followed referendums around the world, from the Colombia peace agreement to Brexit, the debate was marred by misinformation, disinformation and confusion over the interpretation of such a comprehensive document.
However, many of the concerns focused on a central issue of national identity. The proposal described Chile as a “plurinational” country made up of autonomous indigenous nations and communities.
“It divides Chile, and Chile is one nation,” said María Yefe, a 65-year-old homemaker who voted to reject the constitution in the capital Santiago on Sunday. “We are even more divided than we are now.”
At the same polling station, María Barros, 42, a mother of two, captured the sentiments of many across the country: “We Chileans agree that we must change the constitution,” she said. “But not like this.”
After voting Sunday from his hometown of Punta Arenas, a city near the southern tip of Chile’s Patagonia region, Boric was asked by reporters if, should he vote against the proposed constitution , would ask for a political agreement to start a rewrite. . The president pledged to “convene broad national unity … and move forward with this process.”
“This is a historic moment, for which I think it is very important that all of us, regardless of our choice, feel deeply proud,” Boric said. “In the difficult times we went through as a country, we chose as a path, as a way to resolve our differences, an advance in more democracy and never in less.”
Chile’s bold experiment: A divided country votes on a new constitution
The The proposal would have enshrined certain civil rights that had never before been included in a constitution, emphasizing many of the priorities of leftist social movements led by younger Chileans: gender equality, environmental protections, indigenous and LGBTQ rights and legal access to abortion.
It would have guaranteed access to quality education, healthcare and water. It would have given rights to nature and animals and required the government to address the effects of climate change. It was thought to be the first constitution to have required gender parity between government and public and private enterprises.
For Nel González, a 36-year-old woman who votes in the city center, the proposal raised the possibility of a new type of government that prioritizes the social rights of its people.
“Today is a very hopeful day for Chile,” he said. “A constitution for a much more democratic and much more equal country is at stake.”
It was written by an unusual elected assembly that attracted participants and political newcomers from across the country who had rarely felt represented in national politics. The 155-member constitutional assembly was composed equally of men and women, and 17 seats were reserved for the country’s 10 indigenous communities.
But it was made up mostly of independent and left-wing members, and faced criticism from those who felt the assembly neglected to incorporate the views of conservatives.
The convention was also plagued with controversy that helped fuel a campaign to discredit it. A prominent delegate was elected to the assembly with promises of free, high-quality health care, citing his own experiences with leukemia. But he resigned after it emerged he was faking his illness.
Chile writes an awakened constitution. Are Chileans ready for this?
Still, the convention marked the first time that a group of democratically elected people sat down—in a transparent and open process—to draft a constitution for the country.
“This constitution was written by elected people, ordinary and common people. This gives it enormous value,” said Mario Opazo, a 59-year-old man who voted in favor of the proposal in downtown Santiago on Sunday. “It may have some imperfections, but most of it was built on the wishes and by the people of this country.”
Alberto Lyon, a lawyer who voted in the affluent neighborhood of Las Condes, said he voted to write a new constitution. “But I thought they would write a constitution that was Western,” the 66-year-old said. He described the proposed version as “indigenist” and “Venezuelan-style.”
“It’s a disaster,” Lyon said. “It changes the whole political system.”
For Bárbara Sepúlveda, Sunday’s vote was a vote for a document she helped write. Despite his defeat, the 37-year-old left-wing constitutional delegate said: “I can’t help but feel part of a breakthrough, a triumph.”
“In a country where it seemed nothing could change,” he said, “now we see that anything is possible.”
John Bartlett contributed to this report.