Search

How do salaried workers respond to unfair situations in their workplaces? This article examines different repertoires of action deployed by workers in the Chilean labor context, characterized by high levels of wage inequality and a weak union structure. Eight focus groups are analyzed in which workers discussed how to respond to perceived injustices in the workplace. The article identifies five repertoires that have varying degrees of legitimacy according to the socioeconomic level of the group: neoliberal, managerial, trade union, fatalistic, and resilient. It argues that the neoliberal repertoire offers professional groups a greater capacity to respond to distributive and procedural injustices, while the resilient repertoire would offer unskilled workers a set of cultural tools to deal with grievances in the workplace. A greater adoption of a managerial repertoire among supervisors is driven by their motivation to manage the work environment in contexts of low union legitimacy and fear of conflict. The article concludes that in highly deregulated labor contexts, such as the Chilean case, a differentiated appropriation of repertoires could contribute to reinforcing existing inequalities at work. Keywords: repertoires of action; organizational justice; labor context; inequalities; Chile ?Que hacen los trabajadores asalariados para responder a situaciones de injusticia en sus lugares de trabajo? Este articulo examina distintos repertorios de accion desplegados por trabajadores en el contexto laboral chileno, caracterizado por altos niveles de desigualdad salarial y una debil estructura sindical. Se analizan ocho grupos focales en los cuales trabajadores conversaron acerca de como responder a injusticias percibidas en el mundo laboral. Se identifican cinco repertorios que cuentan con diversos grados de legitimidad segun el nivel socioeconomico del grupo: neoliberal, managerial, sindical, fatalista y resiliente. Se argumenta que el repertorio neoliberal ofrece a los grupos profesionales una mayor capacidad de respuesta ante injusticias distributivas y procedimentales, mientras que el repertorio resiliente ofreceria a trabajadores no calificados un set de herramientas culturales para hacer frente a los agravios a la dignidad en los lugares de trabajo. Los grupos de supervisores adoptarian en mayor medida un repertorio managerial, impulsados por gestionar el clima laboral en contextos de baja legitimidad de los sindicatos y miedo al conflicto. Se concluye que en contextos laborales fuertemente desregulados, como el caso chileno, una apropiacion diferenciada de repertorios podria contribuir a reforzar las desigualdades existentes en el trabajo. Palabras clave: repertorios de accion; justicia organizacional; mundo del trabajo; desigualdades; Chile, En las ultimas decadas, las ciencias sociales han estudiado distintas formas de configuracion de las desigualdades sociales y sus efectos estructurantes para la vida social (Reygadas 2008). Los lugares de [...]

In Chile, since the beginning of the republic, amnesties after civil wars and violent conflicts have been the basis for political reconciliation. The political transition that began in 1990 aimed to establish the truth about the human rights violations committed during the dictatorship, to recognize and make reparations to the victims, and to provide justice as far as possible, despite the 1978 amnesty. This article analyzes the evolution of several instances of the transitional justice process and the fight against impunity of the victims of torture. The case of Haydee Oberreuter allows us to examine the possibilities, results, and limitations of judicial processes concerning the demands for justice and reparations for torture victims. En Chile, desde los inicios de la republica, las amnistias despues de guerras civiles y conflictos violentos fueron el fundamento de la reconciliacion politica. La transicion politica iniciada en 1990 se propuso establecer la verdad sobre las violaciones de los derechos humanos cometidas durante la dictadura, reconocer y reparar a las victimas y hacer justicia en la medida de lo posible, a pesar de la vigencia de la amnistia de 1978. En este articulo se analiza la evolucion de diversas instancias del proceso de justicia transicional y la lucha contra la impunidad que es la experiencia de las victimas de la tortura y sus familias. El caso de Haydee Oberreuter nos permite examinar las posibilidades, resultados y limitaciones de los procesos judiciales en relacion con las demandas de justicia y reparacion de las victimas de tortura., Chile: El legado de las violaciones a los derechos humanos La represion politica ejercida por la dictadura en Chile (1973-1990) afligio a miles de personas. La detencion, la tortura, la [...]

Although the study of populism has traditionally been the domain of Latin Americanists, research here has become increasingly comparative. One of the most important payoffs of this comparative work is conceptual. Rather than defining populism in structuralist, economic, or political-strategic terms, a growing number of scholars around the world are using an ideational conceptualization that draws heavily from earlier discursive theories. By employing the ideational approach, scholars have been able to provide empirical measures of populist discourse. In this article we explain and show the advantages of this ideational approach to a Latin American audience by presenting a new historical dataset measuring the discourse of Argentine, Chilean, and Peruvian presidents across the twentieth century. Our main intent is to clarify the ideational approach as well as to enliven the conceptual debate. While we are critical of alternative definitions, we acknowledge and reassess their theoretical insights. Aun cuando el estudio del populismo ha sido tradicionalmente un campo de los latinoamericanistas, la investigacion al respecto se ha vuelto cada vez mas comparativa. Uno de los beneficios mas importantes de los trabajos comparados es conceptual. En vez de definir al populismo en terminos estructurales, economicos o politico-estrategicos, un creciente numero de academicos alrededor del mundo utilizan una conceptualizacion ideacional vinculada con previas teorias discursivas. Mediante el uso del enfoque ideacional academicos han sido capaces de proveer mediciones empiricas de discurso populista. En este articulo explicamos y mostramos las ventajas del enfoque ideacional mediante la discusion de una nueva base de datos que mide el discurso de los presidentes de Argentina, Chile y Peru durante el siglo veinte. Nuestra principal intension es clarificar el enfoque ideacional y a su vez avivar el debate conceptual. Si bien es cierto que somos criticos de definiciones alternativas, reconocemos y reconsideramos sus aportes teoricos., For decades the study of populism was the domain of Latin Americanists. Aside from the frequently cited volume edited by Ionescu and Gellner (1969), most of the conceptual, theoretical, and [...]

Coalitions have been critical for the reemergence of democracy and stability in Uruguay and Chile. Where do they come from? Why are they successful? To explore the role of history and ideologies in the formation and successes of two leftwing coalitions, Uruguay'sFrenteAmplio(Broad Front) (FA) and Chile's Concertacion por la Demcracia (Concertacion), the author traveled to South America. In Montevideo and Santiago, she spoke with professors and politicians, government officials and former Presidents. This essay will introduce the Uruguayan and Chilean political party systems, discuss how they have dealt with crimes committed by the dictatorships (1973-1990), and highlight the significance of the two coalitions. It will use the term 'left' to designate parties which favor egalitarianism and statism, and claim to speak for the people, especially the underprivileged; the term 'right' for those which favor liberty, individual initiative, equality of opportunity, and limited government. Keywords Coalitions * Left * Right * Caudillismo * Batllismo * Herrerismo * Populism * Cold War * Operation Condor * Transition * Amnesty * Runoffs * Frente Amplio * Concertacion por la Democracia * Gender Quotas, All's flux? Yet continuities! Ring by ring Through generations, through all too-human wrong, Continuities are the human way of flowering. They're linking the cycles; they're consecrating The beads of pair [...]

The opinions of a law school dean, a university president, a scholarly judge, and the head of the Foreign Ministry division regarding Chile's transition from autocracy to pluralism, are presented. They all believe that the Constitution of 1980 was the initial turning point in the country's transition. The other details of this political change are also presented.

The effects of religion on Chileans' ideological self-positioning and electoral choices are discussed. It is observed that religion continues to mold political affiliations based on religiosity, Catholicism versus Protestantism and progressive versus traditional forms of religiosity.

The dictatorship of Pinochet ended with his death, but the central policies implemented by him still control the matters of state and the reform system in Chile.

Forced exile was important to Chilean politics both during the military regime and after the dictatorship's end in 1990 and exile was central to Pinochet's strategy for eliminating the left in Chile and consolidating and retaining absolute political power.

This article explains why legislators in a centralized polity support decentralizing laws. Using Chile as a case study, it assesses two standard explanations for this support: party nomination procedures, which is disregarded; and electoral strategies, which is accepted. A novel finding is that party ideology is also a predictor of support for decentralization, with parties of the Right less likely to offer it. The author also argues that a legislator with a subnational rather than national background is more likely to back such reforms in an attempt to enhance his or her reputation within the constituency. The author tests these and other hypotheses by combining qualitative arguments and regression analysis. The latter is performed on an original database of legislator biographical information, party electoral performance, regional GDP figures, and individual legislator support for 46 decentralizing laws approved in Chile between 1990 and 2006. Keywords: decentralization; legislative politics; political parties; Latin America; Chile

"If the Bachelet government is to usher in a new, more truly representative democracy, Chile will need to leave behind not just the trappings of Pinochet's institutional legacy, but also the model of elitist politics that it spawned."

A discussion focuses on the question of a past history of political reconciliation in Latin America that perhaps informed the events of the 1980s and 1990s, namely, the processes of 'national reconciliation' that became important elements in ending civil wars and framing the transitions from military/authoritarian governments to elected civilian governments. It uses the major political crises in Chile from 1818 to 2006, and a distinct Chilean way of political reconciliation, as a point of reference for the more general historical problem of political violence and reconciliation.

An account of how Salvador Allende, President of Chile, destroyed the country's democracy through outranges of his administration against the resolutions of Congress, the Judiciary, the Comptroller General, the right of citizens, and even, in some cases, personal liberties, is given. The account reflects the historic truth about the breakdown of Chile's democracy in the sixties which had been distorted beyond recognition for the world to know about it.

The relations between the Chilean Moviemiento Nacional Socialista and the German-Chilean community, and the attitude of the former towards the Third Reich are explored. Analysis goes beyond stereotypes, generalized, and myths about the Chileans fascists, the German-Chilean community and German National Socialism to provide different picture of Nacistas linkage.

The political situation in Chile after the 1932 election season, and the possibilities and limitations of the second Alesssandri administration are discussed.

In Chile, not long after Pinochet stepped down, many shantytown women who had fought hard in the pro-democracy movement felt very bitter. What explains this despondence, despite the positive outcome of their movement? This article addresses a question the social movement literature neglects: the question of how people feel when a movement ends. In doing so, it contributes to the literatures on movement decline and emotions in movements. I use ethnographic data from a year's fieldwork in Chile to suggest that at the end of a movement, even when it has succeeded in terms of achieving its goals, activists can feel disillusioned, disconnected, and abandoned.

On May 8 of this year, an unusually warm fall day in Santiago, Chile's capital, I found myself seated in the chambers of Appellate Court Judge-Magistrate Juan Guzman Tapia. I [...]

Cruce de caminos Por este camino Vinieron los perseguidos. Por este otro Vinieron los perseguidores. Aqui, aqui, donde tus pies Muerden el polvo Ocurrio el encuentro. Debemos callar: un minuto [...]

In spite of the comedy all this is true, mistress; for they are pretending to pretend. Marivaux, Les acteurs de bonne roi (The actors of good faith). The scene takes [...]

This article examines the party system in Chile from the 1973 assassination of Socialist President Salvador Allende and the coup that placed dictator Augusto Pinochet in power to the 2000 election of Socialist President Ricardo Lagos, suggesting a change in the socialist party system since the years of Allende, focusing on the transformations of the Chilean coalition party system. Issues include the history of the party system and electoral reform, the flexibility and pragmaticism of coalition formation, and an analysis of the electoral party system.

Theater was an important form of political expression during the regime of Ernesto Pinochet in Chile between 1973 and 1990. Chilean producers, actors and playwrights talk about how they were able to influence the public against the regime without getting killed.

This article examines political influence over the environmental movement in Chile. The author argues that even though Chile has peacefully transformed from a military dictatorship to a democracy the environmental institutions are heavily influenced by the legacy of the military dictatorship, and remains elitist and exclusionary.

Studies of government agencies for women identify a series of factors necessary for a high level of commitment to feminist policy. These include strong grassroots pressure, a highly statist political culture, an organizational structure that facilitates cooperation with other government agencies, international norms, and political will on behalf of government leaders (Friedman 2000; Stetson and Mazur 1995). In Chile on the eve of democratic transition in 1989, all of these factors were in place. Since then, however, Chile's government agency for women, the National Women's Service (Servicio Nacional de la Mujer, SERNAM), has not proven to be a strong advocate of feminist policies. This study turns to the literature on coalition theory to explain why this is the case. The level of commitment to feminist policy within a women's agency varies depending on whether a government is controlled by a single party or a multiparty coalition. In a single-party government, the agenda of a particular ministry will closely match the platform of the governing party. In a coalition government--whether in a presidential or parliamentary system--the party controlling a particular ministry is in a position to exercise disproportionate control over policy within that jurisdiction, such that the policy may vary from the platform agreed upon by the coalition. In Chile from 1990 to 1999, SERNAM's policies reflected the agenda of the Christian Democrats who served as ministers of the agency. Under their leadership, SERNAM pursued policies that demobilized the women's movement, limited the movement's impact on policy, and helped to build an alternative base of support among women.

This article discusses Chile's inability to cope with social inequity despite its good macroeconomic indicators. The author presents a critical analysis of a government speech regarding social policy, focusing on politcal imagery and discourse startegies used to persuade international organizations of the attainability of social equity in Chile.

This article discusses the influence of former dictator Augusto Pinochet over Chilean politics since he was removed from government in 1990, particularly through his control over the armed forces. Pinochet apparently views his role as being similar to the Roman emperor Cincinnatus, who had twice saved Rome; his intimate ties to the military, however, has been viewed by detractors as a serious obstacle to democratization.

The relationship between structural state-society linkages created under military rule in Brazil and Chile and rural political mobilization in the post-authoritarian period is discussed. Topics include an institutional approach to popular mobilization; developmentalism and popular mobilization in Brazil, including military rule and agrarian developmentalism from 1964 to 1985, organization under authoritarian rule, rural mobilization in the democratic regime from 1985 to 1995; and neoliberalism and demobilization in Chile, including authoritarianism in relation to neoliberalism and demobilization from 1973-1989, and rural politics in relation to the democratic regime from 1989 to 1995.

Issues concerning the re-emergence of political will in Chile and the strong support for right-wing and center parties is discussed.

At 9 pm on Friday 16 October 1998, a London stipendiary magistrate, Nicholas Evans, issued a provisional warrant for the arrest and extradition to Spain of Augusto Pinochet Ugarte, senator-for-life, [...]