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Dirty War in Chile

Dirty War in Chile. 2/17/2010. Ending the Dirty War. The failure of the FMLN The “hearts and minds” strategy The decline of U.S. support End of the Cold War 16 Nov 1989 Jesuit killings The 1991 Peace Agreement Reconciliation, Amnesty, Reintegration

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Dirty War in Chile

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  1. Dirty War in Chile 2/17/2010

  2. Ending the Dirty War • The failure of the FMLN • The “hearts and minds” strategy • The decline of U.S. support • End of the Cold War • 16 Nov 1989 Jesuit killings • The 1991 Peace Agreement • Reconciliation, Amnesty, Reintegration • 1992 the peace agreement takes effect, UN verifies weapons decommissioning • 1993 Peace and Reconciliation Commission • 1994 Presidential elections

  3. Ending the Dirty War • The Civil War lasted for 12 years: 1980-1992 • Roughly 70,000 people died • State-related forces were responsible for 80% of all deaths • four-fifths or more of these deaths were peasants and workers • 1979 population 4.5 million • 500,000 – 750,000 people fled the country • 500,000 – 1,000,000 IDPs • 10% reduction in per capita economic production

  4. El Salvador Today • Social Indicators • Median age: 22 years • Education: average of 5.5 years of schooling • Religion: 55% Catholic • Underemployment: 40-50% • Homicide rate: 55.3 per 100,000 • Higher than during the war • Gangs • Eighteenth Street • Mara Salvatrucha

  5. Before the War • Salvador Allende • Elected: 1970 • Socialist leader of the Popular Unity coalition • Social unrest • March, 1973 Parliamentary Elections • The Popular Unity gained seats • 11 September, 1973 Military Coup "One improbable fact must be grasped about South America at the time of our story: radical social revolution was a real possibility for millions of people, coloring everyday life with hope or dread depending upon the circumstances and political views of each individual.” –Dinges, 2004

  6. Dirty War in Chile: Statistical Picture • 1,300 detention centers • 6 concentration camps • 29,000 people tortured • 2,279 political killings • Another 1,598 killings under unclear circumstances • National Trauma • 200,000 situations of extreme trauma

  7. Dirty War in Chile Ideology • Anti-Communism • Traditional Christian Values Players • Pinochet • National Intelligence Directorate (DINA) • Gen. Manuel Contreras Sepulveda • Col. Pedro Espinoza Strategies • Suspension of politics as normal • Shock and Awe • Detention • Torture • Executions

  8. Dirty War in Chile Operation Condor • Organized in response to the formation of the JCR • Operational Structures • Intelligence sharing network • Communications • Networking and trust • Stationing personnel • Cross-Border Activities • tracking, surveillance, kidnappings, rendition, torture, interrogation, and assassination of opponents. • Opponents were not only leftist militants, but also opposition political and social figures. Participants: Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil

  9. Dirty War in Chile Exploiting the Crisis: the role of the US and neolibearlism • Milton Freedman and The Chicago Boys Pinochet’s Market Reforms • Removal of trade barriers • Return to export-led growth • Privatization, including social security • Creation of an independent Central Bank • Wage reductions Economic growth was accompanied by growing inequality 1972: 5% of population receives 25% of national income 1975: 5% of population receives 50% of national income

  10. Ending the War Negotiated Transition • 1980: a new Constitution is written and put in place by Pinochet in a shift towards managed democracy • 1988: Plebiscite refuses to allow Pinochet to run for another term as President • 1989: Pinochet’s man is defeated in the Presidential election; Patricio Aylwin, a centrist Christian Democrat, is elected. • 1990: Aylwin establishes the National Commission on Truth and Reconciliation • 1991: Pinochet stages military maneuvers

  11. Ending the War: the price of impunity Benefits • End of violence • Democratic transition Costs • the continuation or reactivation of repressive networks and institutions • the distortion of political culture • the destruction of social capital • the ultimate delegitimation of the democratic institutions that reconciliation is designed to stabilize

  12. Chile Today • 1998: Pinochet resigns as Commander in Chief; becomes Senator for life. • 1998: Pinochet is arrested in London • 2000: Pinochet is released by the UK government • 2000: criminal proceedings begin in Chile • 10 Dec. 2006: Pinochet dies • 2006: Michelle Bachelet elected President • 2010: President-elect Sebastian Piñera • Today • 3,000 remain disappeared • The military has been reduced to 40,000 and is all volunteer

  13. Questions • Why do states engage in “Dirty War”? • Which Dirty War do you feel had more profound impact • Political • Social • Economic • What role does the global political context play?

  14. Policy Papers • Issue: The state faces a rise in leftist political opposition seeking the violent overthrow of the state. • Alternatives: to engage in dirty war or not. • MUST be written to decision-makers within the state.

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