22-10-2015: Latin American Weekly Report

Chile’s constitution is 35 years old, a product of General Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990)’s military dictatorship in 1980. The country’s centre left has long wanted a document with a more democratic pedigree. By contrast, Chile’s Right has tended to argue that with a tweak here and there it is still a workable document and one worth soldiering on with. These positions are not new. Reforming the constitution was one of President Bachelet’s campaign promises in her successful presidential election campaign in late 2013. But a lot has changed since then.