Premiering OCDT's in Latin America

Chile is a Latin American country with more than 19.6 million inhabitants. Currently, the country is a democratic republic with a presidential system, led since March 2022 by Gabriel Boric. Despite its characterization as a stable democracy in recent decades, Chile was subject to a dictatorship as of 1973 with the military coup led by General Agusto Pincohet. In 1980, a commission ordered by General Pinochet redacted a constitution establishing the legal parameters for the military regime, amplifying and protecting the powers of the president (and the military). In 1990, following an electoral plebiscite, the country voted to end Pinochet’s leadership and subsequently returned to democracy.

The recent social and political history in Chile has proven tumultuous, starting with significant protests in 2019, culminating in a plebiscite to rewrite the constitution via constitutional assembly (which was later voted down at the following plebiscite). The plans to rewrite the constitution continue, but the political fatigue is palpable. Despite over 3 million people participating in the social protests in October of 2019 (known as the “Estallido Social”), in the last 30 years in Chile, the discourse regarding democracy has remained relatively undiscussed in
daily life.

In July of 2023, we had the pleasure of launching the IYTT’s first Latin American Open Chair Democracy Talk with a sample of Chileans at a public park in the capital city of Santiago. While most gave wary looks upon being approached, all were open to sharing their perspectives and opinions on democracy in this day and age. As such, we gathered insights from an even sample of men and women of all ages and stages of life.

In general terms, we observed that the recent flux of plebiscites and discussions regarding rewriting the Constitution of 1980 via constitutional assembly have led people to be more open to voicing their opinions in this discourse. We predict that the population has likely spent more time engaging in discussions, reflections, and learning about the subject as participation in the plebiscites were mandatory. The opinions shared, much like the political structure of the country, appeared quite varied. Nonetheless, those interviewed mostly agreed that freedom of expression was a critical aspect of democracy, and while there were varying views of the efficacy and representativeness of their government, they mostly agreed that now (especially in comparison to
before) they had that freedom. Among the younger respondents, access to education was a recurring theme, particularly in association with democracy and the freedom to determine their own futures. Socioeconomic limitations and high levels of inequality also arose as pertinent issues. Interestingly, many respondents drew links between welfare states, social rights, and inequality. In this capacity, greater levels of democracy were associated with improvements in health, education, and decreased socioeconomic inequality.

Problems of representativity, corruption, and nepotism were important and recurring themes in responses regarding perceptions of democracy in Chile. Despite the fact that many recognized the importance of their individual vote and collective participation in an era of change, a sentiment of frustration was evident. The apparent disconnect between high-level political decision-making and the interests of the people led respondents to prioritize better representation and inclusion in their visions of democracy.

In the discussions regarding Artificial Intelligence (AI), the majority of those interviewed communicated a positive perception regarding the effect it may have on democracy. Artificial Intelligence was associated with improvements in the processes of information analysis and political decision making. However, concerns regarding misuse, inequality of access, and the disappearance of critical (human) thought emerged as salient issues.

Promoting opportunities for dialogue (as is the case for this initiative) is fundamental to amplifying the global discussion regarding democracy. Accessing the perspective of diverse citizens from various countries can greatly enrich our understanding in this respect, and it was an immense pleasure to bring the IYTT’s OCDTs to Latin America, starting with Chile.

See a presentation of the OCDT answers here.