During her senior year last fall, Michelle Hamilton, now a Norwich alum, traveled to Santiago, Chile to attend the Universidad Nacional Andres Bello, one of the largest, private universities in the country. In the following article, Hamilton gives a summary of the historical, political, and economic circumstances she encountered first-hand while studying in Chile.
September 11th holds significance beyond the United States. In 1973, a military coup in Chile overthrew the democratically elected government of Salvador Allende. As a member of the Socialist Party, Allende had been elected to office in 1970 with a plurality of the vote in a three-way contest. His leadership, however, was undermined by chronic economic depression marked by falling industrial production and rising unemployment. Inflation was out of control and social protest was a daily occurrence. On September 11, 1973, armed forces bombarded the presidential palace and a military government, led by General Augusto Pinochet, took control of the country.
The first years of the Pinochet regime were marked by serious human rights violations. At least a thousand people were executed during the first six months and at least two thousand more were killed during the next sixteen years. Another 30,000 were forced to flee the country. The events surrounding the military coup and its aftermath have been documented in several internationally acclaimed plays and films, including Ariel Dorfman’s Death and the Maiden, Patricio Guzman’s The Battle of Chile, and Andres Wood’s Machuca, as well as numerous additional literary works.
During my semester abroad, studying in Chile, one professor often spoke about Chilean political history, and particularly Villa Grimaldi - a place of imprisonment and torture. Villa Grimaldi was a complex of buildings used by the Chilean secret police during the Pinochet dictatorship. This detention center was in operation from 1973-1978 and during that period an estimated 5,000 men and women were brought there for interrogation.
Today, Villa Grimaldi, is one of Chile’s national historic monuments and a symbol promoting human rights. While going to school in Santiago, I visited the memorial, located in the outskirts of the city, and was fortunate to have a personal guided tour conducted by a Villa Grimaldi survivor. He spoke of how many of Villa Grimaldi's buildings were destroyed during the last days of the military dictatorship, most likely to destroy evidence of the crimes that were committed. Some structures from the detention center have been re-created, specifically the watchtower and several detention cells, to emphasize the atrocities that occurred.
The years 1990-2000 marked a period of transition and recovery in Chile. Once again, elections were held. From 2000-2006 Ricardo Lagos, of the Socialist Party, became president. His government proved that Chile could be ruled by a socialist government without falling into economic chaos. During the past sixteen years, under the rule of a democratically elected government, Chile has participated in the global economy. Free trade agreements have been signed with the European Union, the United States, and, most recently, South Korea. Michelle Bachelet, also of the Socialist Party of Chile, was inaugurated President in 2006, becoming the first woman president in the country’s history. By all indications she plans to continue the progressive movement started by her predecessors.
Although there is a great deal of excitement and optimism for Bachelet’s presidency, young Chileans seem to have little interest in the political process. Their indifference could be for a number of reasons. Many feel that their vote will not matter. In turn, given the low turn out of young voters, they are not a viable constituency. As a result, the political debate is skewed around issues more relative to the older citizenry - particularly health and social services (similar to the United States).
More importantly, Chileans for whom September 11th is an significant date – the day of the military coup that overthrew the democratic government - are now a minority. Every democracy depends on an engaged populace, but in Chile the tumultuous past is fading from popular consciousness. Younger Chileans may also deliberately choose to ignore their terrifying and heartbreaking history because of the pain it caused their parents.
Young Chileans often live at home with their parents much longer than they do in the United States. Households are frequently comprised of an extended family. While parental influence on children may last longer, young people may also see political and social concerns as their parents’ responsibility instead of their own. Even though the torture and political upheaval that occurred in Chile is very much a part of the country’s current social, economic and political landscape, young Chileans that are of voting age may not exercise this right because they have yet to comprehend the importance of political participation.
Michelle Hamilton graduated magna cum laude as a major in international studies with a minor in Spanish.
