By Marcos Maranges on November 9, 2021
The lower chamber of the Chilean parliament just passed a resolution to impeach President Sebastian Piñera due to his involvement in the global corruption scandal of Pandora Papers. The president is accused of violating the Constitution and several laws, as well as harming the country’s honor. Piñera evaded taxes by placing part of his extensive wealth on the Virgin Islands, which is a tax haven. The fraudulent procedure involved a not-environmentally friendly mining project named Dominga, which throws light on the president’s real commitment to any climate change. Regardless of what he could say in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP-26), a fact is worth five theories.
The resolution was passed on November 9 in the early morning after a leftist delaying maneuver that lasted 15 hours. The purpose of this action was to secure the votes of two congressmen who could not be at the Congress building before midnight. In the end, the resolution was passed with 78 yes votes, 67 no, and 3 abstentions.
This is the second time Piñera has had to deal with an impeachment attempt. The first one was back in 2019, when the country witnessed the biggest social protests in decades. If he finally is impeached, he would be the second president who left the office before ending his period, after the coup against Salvador Allende in 1973.
Despite the impact on the world’s media, the chances of success of the resolution are limited because it has to be taken before the Senate, where it will probably fall short to the necessary votes. The political forces pushing for the impeachment only control 24 seats in the Senate and it is necessary to gather at least 29 votes to start an impeachment process.
However, the Prosecutor’s Office has an ongoing investigation against Piñera, who, after all, might face a court trial for his violations of the law. This is the first time in Chile’s history that the president is charged while in office. This is certainly not a record his government coalition would like to have, especially when there are only 11 days left for the presidential and legislative elections on November 21.
While all this is happening in Chile, mainstream media is turning a blind eye to another thing, which is even more shocking; the militarization of the southern region of the country, an issue where Piñera also comes up as the main protagonist.
Almost a month ago, on October 12, he declared a state of emergency in Biobio, Arauco, Malleco, and Cautin provinces, all four Mapuches’ lands. Piñera, not happy enough with the over 400 victims of eyes trauma during the 2019 protest, decided to send the Army to tackle Mapuches’ fair claims for their lands. During this time, the Army has fought the Mapuche People with real bullets and has deployed mechanic infantry during the operations. This kind of action violates the Constitution, which establishes that the Army’s role during a state of emergency is to back the police forces without taking part directly.
As of today, several social leaders, Human Rights activists, and the National Institute of Human Rights (INDH) have demanded the end of this measure, but the government has decided not to listen to them, and rather extended the measure for another 15 days, until November 11.
Piñera saw violence as the most suitable way to deal with a People that remains standing after centuries of colonization attempts by the Inca and the Spanish empires. Therefore, it is clear that the government’s main objective is not to achieve the cultural union of the country but to serve the capital’s interest. The government turned down any dialogue possibility to solve the Mapuche People’s demand since it threatens the economic interests of powerful forestry enterprises and landowners, which are responsible for 8 percent of the county’s exports. Loyal to his neoliberal traditions, Piñera’s top priority is money, while the country’s honor and laws, together with Mapuches’ lives, are at the bottom of the list.
After all this, we might ask how is it possible that the political elite of a country can think about electoral strategies instead of focusing on solving one of the oldest problems of the country? Well, that is the result of the political system ruled by Pinochet’s Constitution, something that should change next year if the new Constitution is passed. Today, the hopes of the Mapuche People lay on its representation in the Constituent Assembly, which is led by the Mapuche academic Elisa Loncon. This looks like their best chance to constitutionally force neoliberal sectors to listen to the demands that Piñera decided to shut up with gunfire.
Source: Resumen Latinoamericano – English