Nobody in Chile talks about the dictatorship, it's as if people just want to forget the atrocities of the past and move on without ackowleding the scar the period has left. When I've tried to talk to young people they claim they are too young to remember, while older people just won't go there. Ex-pats I've met (some of whom have lived here for years) say the same thing; you just can't talk about Pinochet.
A few people have said that although Pinochet did some terrible things the country would be in ruins economically were it not for him. They point to the 'failures' of Allende's reforms: the lack of coordination in land reform (which became land grabs in some places) and the negative impact of nationalization, as justification.
Chile has had a 'Socialist' government for most of the last decade - although it has as much in common with socialism as Tony Blair's New Labour. The government has made no real attempt to launch any investigation into the period or hold a South African-style Truth and Reconcilation Commission. However, Pinochet is no longer a Senator for life - all such positions have been abolished - making it possible to prosecute him through the courts.
The military still appears to be very strong here. New President Michelle Bachelet's first act was to increase military spending. (To keep them on side?).
Although Chile loves it's 'big men of history' (almost all the streets are named after independence heroes (O'Higgins, San Martin), former presidents or military figures), I have yet to see a Calle Pinochet. However, to my total surprise the main street of some dusty little desert town I passed through on a 24 hour bus ride from Santiago to San Pedro was called Calle Salvador Allende.
1 comment:
the las condes mayor already proposed that a street should be named after pinochet, the same one where bachelet lives in
Post a Comment