CHILE UPDATES #31
How Polarized is the Country Where You Currently Reside?
How Polarized is the Country Where You Currently Reside?
Last night at 10:30 PM (9:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time), ex-general Manuel Contreras was pronounced dead at Santiago's Military Hospital located on the city's eastern edge in the La Reina neighborhood.
Unless you're a South American history buff, lived in Chile in the 1970s, or happen to know someone who was affected by this ex-general's time in command though, the name Manuel Contreras might not mean much to you.
While we normally focus on more positive things in the CHILE UPDATES, today I think it's worth considering some history related to this man who was convicted of countless human rights abuses which were committed during one of the most tragic chapters of Chile's past.
Born in 1929, Contreras began his military career when he was just 18 years old. During the subsequent decades, he climbed the ranks from lieutenant to captain to major and enrolled at the US Army School of the Americas in 1967.
Contreras returned to Chile in 1969 and by 1973 was assisting with the coup d'état that put Augusto Pinchet in power and started Chile's dictatorship period.
Shortly after the coup, he was named director of the country's Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional or DINA (basically the local equivalent of the CIA at the time) and was responsible for the assassination and torture of thousands of Chilean citizens considered to be communist sympathizers both in Chile and abroad between 1973 and 1977.
He served a 14 month sentence in a Chilean prison in the late 1970s for his actions but then was a free man throughout the 1980s during which he ran a private security company and retired to a farm in Chile's 10th Region, about 20 miles outside of Puerto Varas.
In the 1990s, more of the human rights abuses which he was guilty of were exposed and he ended up spending most of the rest of his years either in prison or under house arrest until he finally passed away yesterday (here is a link to some BBC coverage of Contreras http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-33831527).
A number of local Chilean news outlets covered this story and broadcasted footage of some of those with family members who were affected by Contreras' actions celebrating outside of Santiago's Military Hospital last night.
As you can imagine, Chile's communist era, the 1973 coup d'état, and the years of the dictatorship (and human rights abuses that followed) can be touchy subjects for some Chileans.
One of the things that surprises me the most though about Chile's national psyche in regards to this part of the country's history is how matter of fact most people talk about these events today and how accepting people are of other's opinions.
Instead of living in the past and constantly getting worked up and aggressive over things that happened close to half a century ago, most Chileans (pretty close to all of the ones I've had contact with over the last five years of living here) would rather talk about things that affect their lives today or issues that might affect them or their country in the future.
Before coming to Chile, I traveled extensively thoughout Europe, Northern Africa, and Latin America. During these trips, I unfortunately noticed just how polarized and regressive so many cultures around the world can be.
In Western Europe, I heard extremely well educated friends of mine make absolutely atrocious comments about the “inferior” cultures of Northern Africa and the Middle East.
In Northern Africa, I saw first hand how the Arabs treated the “Sub-Saharan Africans” as if they were animals and maintained governing power over them through the use of fraud and intimidation.
Even in and around my native city of Chicago, tensions over the growing gap between the general public and the priviledged political class only seem to intensify with every passing year.
With 90% of nations around the world accumulating debilitating debts and the possibilty of a major global economic/financial calamity on the not so distant horizon, it really makes me glad I decided to make a new home for myself in this part of the world considering where things are at today.
I'm not saying Chile doesn't have any problems of it's own. Chilean college kids have caused some distrubances while demanding free (actually, state funded) eduction over the last few years and the country has been increasing taxes recently. Overall though, these issues are quite manageable when compared to the huge problems facing a good portion of the globe right now.
Chile continues to maintain an extremely low debt, allows thousands of talented, hardworking individuals to take up residence in the country every year, and has some of the strongest property rights in the Western Hemisphere.
Add in one of the most secure agricultural valley's on the planet and a population that's quite welcoming of foreigners and it's easy to see why this country is becoming increasingly popular among forward thinking individuals looking for a place to plant a flag or even put down roots.
How polarized is the country you currently call home? Do racial or social tensions seem to be on the rise in your community?
How do you think you and your country might fare in the event of a large scale economic downturn?
Unless you're a South American history buff, lived in Chile in the 1970s, or happen to know someone who was affected by this ex-general's time in command though, the name Manuel Contreras might not mean much to you.
While we normally focus on more positive things in the CHILE UPDATES, today I think it's worth considering some history related to this man who was convicted of countless human rights abuses which were committed during one of the most tragic chapters of Chile's past.
Born in 1929, Contreras began his military career when he was just 18 years old. During the subsequent decades, he climbed the ranks from lieutenant to captain to major and enrolled at the US Army School of the Americas in 1967.
Contreras returned to Chile in 1969 and by 1973 was assisting with the coup d'état that put Augusto Pinchet in power and started Chile's dictatorship period.
Shortly after the coup, he was named director of the country's Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional or DINA (basically the local equivalent of the CIA at the time) and was responsible for the assassination and torture of thousands of Chilean citizens considered to be communist sympathizers both in Chile and abroad between 1973 and 1977.
He served a 14 month sentence in a Chilean prison in the late 1970s for his actions but then was a free man throughout the 1980s during which he ran a private security company and retired to a farm in Chile's 10th Region, about 20 miles outside of Puerto Varas.
In the 1990s, more of the human rights abuses which he was guilty of were exposed and he ended up spending most of the rest of his years either in prison or under house arrest until he finally passed away yesterday (here is a link to some BBC coverage of Contreras http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-33831527).
A number of local Chilean news outlets covered this story and broadcasted footage of some of those with family members who were affected by Contreras' actions celebrating outside of Santiago's Military Hospital last night.
As you can imagine, Chile's communist era, the 1973 coup d'état, and the years of the dictatorship (and human rights abuses that followed) can be touchy subjects for some Chileans.
One of the things that surprises me the most though about Chile's national psyche in regards to this part of the country's history is how matter of fact most people talk about these events today and how accepting people are of other's opinions.
Instead of living in the past and constantly getting worked up and aggressive over things that happened close to half a century ago, most Chileans (pretty close to all of the ones I've had contact with over the last five years of living here) would rather talk about things that affect their lives today or issues that might affect them or their country in the future.
Before coming to Chile, I traveled extensively thoughout Europe, Northern Africa, and Latin America. During these trips, I unfortunately noticed just how polarized and regressive so many cultures around the world can be.
In Western Europe, I heard extremely well educated friends of mine make absolutely atrocious comments about the “inferior” cultures of Northern Africa and the Middle East.
In Northern Africa, I saw first hand how the Arabs treated the “Sub-Saharan Africans” as if they were animals and maintained governing power over them through the use of fraud and intimidation.
Even in and around my native city of Chicago, tensions over the growing gap between the general public and the priviledged political class only seem to intensify with every passing year.
With 90% of nations around the world accumulating debilitating debts and the possibilty of a major global economic/financial calamity on the not so distant horizon, it really makes me glad I decided to make a new home for myself in this part of the world considering where things are at today.
I'm not saying Chile doesn't have any problems of it's own. Chilean college kids have caused some distrubances while demanding free (actually, state funded) eduction over the last few years and the country has been increasing taxes recently. Overall though, these issues are quite manageable when compared to the huge problems facing a good portion of the globe right now.
Chile continues to maintain an extremely low debt, allows thousands of talented, hardworking individuals to take up residence in the country every year, and has some of the strongest property rights in the Western Hemisphere.
Add in one of the most secure agricultural valley's on the planet and a population that's quite welcoming of foreigners and it's easy to see why this country is becoming increasingly popular among forward thinking individuals looking for a place to plant a flag or even put down roots.
How polarized is the country you currently call home? Do racial or social tensions seem to be on the rise in your community?
How do you think you and your country might fare in the event of a large scale economic downturn?