This article and video are in Swedish. I addressed the riots in Chile 2019
The recent riots in Chile have deeper roots than I fully grasp. Even though Chile has had one of the strongest and most stable economies in Latin America, corruption has permeated society for a long time. Here are some loose thoughts about it all. At the end of the video I mention “oppression”; the word I was looking for was actually “injustice.”
Transcript (English)
Hello, this is Cristian Herrera. This is something I wouldn’t normally want to talk about, but things are happening in the country where I was born. I want to explain a bit for those who don’t understand what’s going on. Media often says it’s just about higher public transport fares, but it isn’t that simple—it’s decades of mistreatment of the people.
This isn’t really a left–right issue. Even if the left has done a bit better for people lately, both left and right have been corrupt in Chile for a long time and have failed the people. The constitution was written under the dictatorship and contains rules that make it hard to govern democratically—so the flaw is in the foundation.
People are reacting to long-running problems: water shortages after dry summers; water taken by avocado plantations and eucalyptus forests owned by big landowners, leaving small farmers’ animals and crops without water; minimum wages around 300,000 CLP (I mistakenly said “about a thousand SEK”; roughly 3,500 SEK) and rising living costs. Healthcare is privatized; prices are extremely high, and those using public care are stuck in hospital corridors—nothing new. Water and electricity are expensive. With six-day work weeks, many can’t make ends meet.
The pension system (AFP) is seen as theft from the people; the uniformed services have separate systems and rules. Chile is a classist society; you’re treated according to your class. The fare hike was just the drop that made the cup run over.
As a child of exiled Chileans, it hurts to see the same images as during the military dictatorship. My father was in a concentration camp; our family’s history is tragic. Many say the constitution must change and that both the people and the ruling class need a change in mentality. There are no easy answers.
Another point: many blame “la delincuencia” (crime)—looted stores, burned state buildings and banks. But leaked videos and info claim the police (Carabineros, very militarized) and even the military have organized or taken part in some of it. Maybe crime is being used as a pretext to justify violence against the people; many have been shot in the streets.
I don’t believe everything I see or hear; information is always twisted, and the truth is somewhere in the middle. But this is far deeper than metro fares—it’s a reaction to long-term exploitation and oppression. I hope this clears up a few questions. If you have more, reach out and I’ll answer when I can. Thanks—bye.