Chilean Transition Completed? Questions about Youth, Human Rights, and the Super-Rich Remain

Wrapping up news and opinions after Chile’s runoff presidential election Sunday, the Economist begins its reporting by quoting a “jubilant supporter” of the victor, business tycoon Sebastian Pinera. “This change of power represents the final completion of Chile’s transition back to democracy,” the unnamed chileno tells the magazine. This is indeed the way in which many analysts are interpreting the victory of Mr. Pinera after a somewhat uneventful campaign in which few significant differences arose between the last two candidates standing (Pinera and Christian Democrat and one-time president, Eduardo Frei). Chilean political analyst, Patricio Navia—a strong supporter of Marco Enriquez-Ominami in round one but a Pinera voter in the runoff—echoed the “end of transition” opinion in Chile’s La Tercera after the election, arguing that the center-left coalition, Concertación, which “led the transition” has been called into retirement. The reshaping of the Chilean political landscape, particularly the internal politics of the Chilean left/center-left, Navia argues, should now finally occur.

Shannon O’Neil at the Council on Foreign Relations expresses a similar sentiment, calling Sunday’s election “one of the transformative political moments in Latin America in recent years.” She writes:

“[The election of Mr. Pinera] signifies that the right has finally emerged from the shadow of Pinochet's military dictatorship to become a viable electoral alternative once more, able to lead an open and dynamic country without a fear of backsliding into the past. It is the end of the pro/anti Pinochet political divide--the guiding cleavage of Chile's politics since the 1970s.”

But, interestingly, such a transformation has occurred without the significant participation of one important segment of Chilean society: the country’s youth (only 10% of those between the ages of 18 and 29 are even registered to vote in Chile, says O’Neil). That raises questions about how deep Sunday’s vote resonates with Chilean society as a whole. It may be that one chapter is closing with Mr. Pinera’s victory, but it seems less clear if a new chapter in Chilean politics has actually begun.

In thinking about the future, two additional questions, beyond youth apathy, may also be worth thinking about in Chilean (and regional) politics moving forward. One, writes Alexander Wilde of the Wilson Center, is how Pinera negotiates his relationship with the right-wing of his party—many of whom remain at loggerheads with the human rights agenda and “moral legacy” that united the Concertación over the last two decades. Second, as journalist Benjamin Gedan writes at Small State, is the “Bloomberg effect” (Gedan’s term). That is, the possible trend in Latin America (of which Chile now seems to be a part, along with Martinelli in Panama, and perhaps Macri in Argentina next?) that sees the super-rich moving back and forth between the private sector and public politics.

Next to a Haiti round-up:

--UN Special Envoy to Haiti, Bill Clinton, made his first visit to the country Monday, “blinking back tears,” according to Washington Post, as he surveyed the devastation. Speaking with officials and quake survivors, Clinton said, “The earthquake was an equal-opportunity destroyer, and as tragic as it is, we have the chance to rebuild the nation together, into a stronger, most just society, with more clean energy and many, many more jobs.”

--Reuters is reporting this morning an uptick in aid delivery, including food and medical supplies. But doctors in the country warn that a serious disease problem is likely to now begin, including tetanus and gangrene as well as the spread of measles, meningitis and other infections. Death tolls remain imprecise but are settling in somewhere between 100,000 and 200,000 early this week.

--Sec. of Defense Bob Gates and Sec. of State Hillary Clinton continue to respond to criticisms that the U.S. is overly militarizing its aid to Haiti. Gates said Monday that U.S. forces would not play a police role but would defend themselves and “have the right to defend innocent Haitians and members of the international community if they see something happen.” Ms. Clinton, meanwhile, signed a communiqué with Haitian President Rene Preval to give some details about the U.S. role in the country. Laura Rozen calls it an attempt to “avoid the appearance of U.S. military occupation.” The Wall Street Journal notes that 10,000 U.S. troops are expected to be in the country by week’s end to “help transport emergency supplies, provide security and clear debris.” And, on the Haitian government itself, the LA Times writes today that, “The government, weak in the best of circumstances, was trying to function from a yard outside a police station near the airport.”

--the New York Times reports this morning on the exodus of displaced Haitians from the city to the countryside. More from Haiti expert, Bob Maguire at the USIP, on migration, via Tom Ricks’ Foreign Policy blog. Maguire writes:

“The displaced are going to a countryside that is ravaged by poverty, joblessness, environmental degradation, with very few resources. Yet, this defacto decentralization offers an opportunity to provide assistance to begin to re-build Haiti. Rather than stacking displaced people in relief camps, it is possible that the displaced, reuniting with families in the countryside, can be transformed into resources to rebuild Haiti. Think New Deal, CCC, WPA. Tent cities can be work camps. Public works and environmental rehabilitation projects can begin.”

--the Times also writes that of the $103 million in Haiti donations collected thus far, an astounding $22 million has come from the now famous text messaging donation program alone!

--Jubilee USA, the coalition active in getting $1.2 billion of Haiti’s external debt relieved in 2009, now has out its latest demands for Haitian recovery and reconstruction. Among its calls: that grants be given to Haiti instead of loans and that the country’s remaining $641 million in debt to be cancelled.

--Some Haiti opinions today include UN Sec. Gen. Ban Ki Moon, recently back from a short trip to Haiti, in the Post. Conservative columnist Bret Stephens in the Wall Street Journal with a provocative piece arguing against a massive infusion of foreign aid to Haiti. Patrick Cockburn at the Independent, on some parallels with the U.S. response to Hurricane Katrina. And George Packer in the New Yorker on the international community’s need to support “state-building” in Haiti as the country’s reconstruction begins.

In other news today:

· In El Salvador, President Mauricio Funes made an historic speech this weekend, asking for forgiveness for the state’s violation of human rights during the recent civil/dirty war. He also called for the creation of a commission to seek “moral and material reparation” for the victims of those crimes but said there would be no investigation or trials.

· The Economist discusses the troubles now plaguing Ecuador’s Rafael Correa, whose approval rating has fallen from 72% to 42% in just one year.

· The Miami Herald (via Times’ reporting) reports on security crackdowns in Rio in preparation for the World Cup in Brazil. This includes police “incursions,” part of a “pacification program” begun in 2008, and covering some 600 slums in the city. It “could get ugly,” says the report.

· EFE reports from Honduras where de facto president Roberto Micheletti was honored by the civic organization, the Democratic Civic Union (UCD). Supporters said goodbye to the controversial coup leader by bringing out “thousands” to one of Tegucigalpa’s main plazas. Micheletti supporters then began to shout “Micheletti!, ¡Micheletti!” and “¡Gracias!, ¡Gracias!,” reports the news Spanish news agency. Don’t worry, though, Micheletti isn’t going far. He’ll soon be settling into retirement in the Honduran Congress.