Including the amendment of the Constitution .. The gains of a month of demonstrations in Chile Do you convince the protesters?

Hassan Massoud-Santiago

A month has passed since the largest and most violent protests in Chile's history, and Chileans continue to descend daily to Santiago's main sit-in square, which they call the "Square of Dignity".

Severe security grip and violent confrontation for angry protesters after the decision to raise the price of a metro ticket 30 cents Chilean President Sebastian Pinera faced the beginning of the protests, and then resort to declare a state of emergency and take the army to the streets of the capital.

Steps increased the anger of Chileans and led them to march millions, defying the curfew and measures of power, which forced the president to retreat from his steps and apologize to the people, and even the amendment of the entire government and the promise of reform and improve the standard of living, which the protesters responded with more demonstrations and protest in the capital and various cities.

After nearly 20 people were killed and more than 1,000 wounded, the Chilean movement continued to push the country's various political forces to agree in mid-April to call a referendum on amending the constitution in April.

This historic agreement, according to observers' description, was one of the most prominent demands of the demonstrators, but it did not deter them from continuing to protest, questioning the fact that the elite intended to give it up, and raised other social and political demands.

Collapse an era
The return of the army's mechanisms and soldiers to the streets, even for a few days, revived painful memories in the minds of Chileans dating back to the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, who ruled the country for 17 years with an iron security grip, which was described as one of the harshest dictatorships in Latin America's history.

Pinochet's rule followed a coup against then-president-elect Salvador Allende, who was seen by the United States as a threat to its project on the continent, supporting Pinochet in his reign, known as oppression, gagging and the abolition of all dissenting voices opposed to his coup.

Although the people can restore democracy to the country and end Pinochet's rule in 1990, the most notable remnants of his reign, the 1980 Constitution, set up by a committee chosen by his regime without election, continued to control the lives of Chileans, whom they see as the main source of inequality and the absence of social justice in the country.

During their protests, Chileans demanded the replacement of the constitution, and more than 20 days after their protests, the main political forces of the opposition and power parties reached an agreement to hold a referendum on the amendment of the constitution, and the nature of the ad hoc committee to amend it on April 4.

The agreement calls on the people to call a compulsory referendum, which includes two questions, the first on their position on the amendment of the Constitution and their answer by agreement or not, and the second on the committee that should be chosen to draft the constitution, and this question has three options, either a committee of the currently elected parliament, or a committee Mixed between parliamentarians and new representatives of the people chosen specifically for the drafting of the Constitution, or to be a whole new committee composed of newly elected representatives only to form the body of the Constitution of Chile.

This agreement, while regarded as a major achievement for Chileans, wraps up 30 years of life under the weight of the "military constitution", but it was met with skepticism and public fear as a result of a crisis of confidence between the street and politicians first, and because of the unclear manner of the election of these candidates.

Al-Jazeera Net polled the Chilean street on the subject, and in this context, says Cristobal that "the amendment of the Constitution is one of our demands and we want it to be achieved without doubt, but what is talking about is the election of representatives of the people to the constitution writing body with the same electoral law based on party lists, which is what It will prevent us from choosing independent representatives far from the parties we are bored of. "

"The next constitution must guarantee our social rights and abolish all inequalities. That's what concerns me above all. Chile is at worst because of these class principles. We want to get rid of all Pinochet's legacy."

Solution scenarios
At a time when all the concessions of the PA have not succeeded in stopping the protests and persuading the people to get out of the arena, questions are open about the future of the country and how to get out of the crisis.

On this issue, Chilean professor of political science Lucia de Mart presents to Al Jazeera Net possible scenarios of the current crisis, summarizing that "violence and counter-violence in the street between protesters and security forces will continue, which is a candidate but not the strongest possibility given the exhaustion felt by both sides. , As well as the exhaustion of the state and society as a whole. "

The second scenario is that, in the opinion of De Mart, the PA will go to more violence and pressure to intimidate the demonstrators from going down to the streets and notify them that their protest is costly for them, something that the police started to implement, but it proved that it increases the anger of the protesters and does not relieve tension. Solution. "

"The most likely scenario for me is that the debate in the street will shift from demonstrating only to political dialogue and thinking about how to take advantage of the opportunity to write a new constitution for the country to completely change reality and build the state on values ​​that the people want to reach," she said.

Social demands
The amendment of the Constitution has been one of the most important demands of Chileans since the protests spread, but other demands that the people are still trying to achieve are social justice, the provision of medicine at affordable prices, strengthening the government health system, raising the level of education and support, in addition to improving wages and reducing the cost of living, especially in Santiago.

"These demands, while right, will not be fulfilled quickly because they are the result of years of previous rule, coupled with a global economic crisis in which Chile is strongly affected, and to achieve them requires sound government economic measures that establish a sound economic path that reduces the burden on people and gives them life," de Mart said. As dignified as they want. "