Chile: President Pinera promulgates a law to dip into retirement savings
Chileans will be able to draw on their mandatory retirement savings again in the next few days.
AP - Esteban Felix
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
In Chile, right-wing President Sebastian Pinera promulgated a law on Tuesday April 27 that allows residents to draw on their mandatory retirement savings.
This is the third time that a measure of this type has been adopted in the country since the start of the pandemic, and under pressure from the Chileans, to face the economic consequences of the health crisis and containment.
However, the government in power was against the measure.
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With our correspondent in Santiago,
Justine Fontaine
Chileans will be able to draw on their mandatory retirement savings again in the next few days.
A measure requested by many residents, who consider that government aid has been too targeted, too late, too weak since the start of the second wave of Covid-19 here.
Second wave accompanied by strict confinement which has lasted since the end of March in most of the country.
The text was proposed by the left opposition and adopted by a large majority in Congress, with the votes of part of the right.
However, the president opposed it until the last minute, appealing to the Constitutional Court.
To everyone's surprise, the High Court on Tuesday rejected Sebastian Piñera's request.
► See also:
Covid-19 in Chile: anger at the lack of state aid
At the lowest in the polls, the president was forced to announce a few days ago additional aid for the inhabitants, in the face of the health and economic crisis.
The right to draw once again from compulsory retirement savings risks further weakening the system by individual capitalization imposed under the Pinochet dictatorship, and today very unpopular.
Chileans will be called to the polls on May 15 and 16, to elect a Constituent Assembly and replace the Constitution inherited from the dictatorship.
► To read also: Yet ahead of vaccinations, Chile forced to confine itself
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Chile
Sebastian pinera
Coronavirus