[Marxism] A leftward drift in Chile?

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

http://www.censaweb.org
Bachelets Presidential Victory: A Leftward Drift in Chile?
By Roger Burbach

Santiago. The resounding victory of Michelle Bachelet as Chiles first woman
president represents an important social advance in a country where women
are often treated as second class citizens. But few observers see the
Chilean elections as reflective of the leftward trend taking place in much
of Latin America. Cristian Cottet, the editor and owner of a book
publishing house that specializes in political titles, says: Bachelet is
nominally a Socialist, but it would have made little difference if her
conservative opponent had triumphed. The truth is Chiles political class is
beholden to business interests and the neo-liberal economic model imposed
on the country by the former dictator, Augusto Pinochet.

Bachelets closing campaign remarks at a huge political rally in Santiago
seemed to reinforce Cottets view as she did little more than sum up her
mundane stump speech by declaring: I will be the president of all
Chileans.  Many in the crowd were more hopeful as some chanted Allende,
esta presente, (Allende is present) referring to Salvador Allende, the
Socialist president who Pinochet overthrew because of his radical social
and economic policies.

To be sure there have been some modest reforms under the Christian
Democratic and Socialist governments that have ruled since Pinochets
downfall. During the current government of Ricardo Lagos public spending
has increased in health and education. As Regina Perez, a primary school
teacher at the Bachelet rally noted, our lives have gotten better, we have
more clinics for public health care, more educational opportunities for our
children, and there are more jobs.

Under Lagos the economy has improved and unemployment now stands at around
7.5%, down from the double digit figures of his early years of his
presidency. But this is due in large part to factors beyond his control, as
the price of Chiles main export, copper, has jumped while income from
Chiles high quality agricultural exports has also risen significantly.

Real wage levels remain largely frozen. The chant of flexible labor markets
is the economic engine of Chiles ruling class as workers have low wages and
few social benefits says Crisitian Cottet  The category of sub-contracted
workers is now a fine art of exploitation in Chile, he adds. Corporations
are free to subcontract as many workers as they please, with independent
labor contractors providing workers for the corporations who receive no
social benefits and can be fired at a moments notice. Even public employees
are subcontracted, with about half of the public work force employed under
these conditions.

A labor dispute in one of Chiles few public enterprises, Codelco,
underscores this reality. The countrys largest copper company, Pinochet
opted to keep Codelco in the public sphere as he decreed that 10% of its
revenue would flow directly into the countrys military coffers. Last month
28,000 of Codelcos subcontracted workers went on strike, demanding many of
the benefits that the regular work force receives. When the conservative
presidential candidate, Sebastian Pinera, suggested that the government
should make concessions to the subcontracted workers, Lagos initially
agreed, but then backtracked, saying Codelcos workers should not receive
special treatment in comparison to other subcontracted workers.

Bachelet has not commented on the labor dispute. There is perhaps some hope
she may take a more progressive stance, as she has incurred few political
debts according to El Mecurio, the countrys dominant conservative
newspaper. She may also take a more constructive position on the countrys
privatized social security system, which is in a state of crises as she
recognized in the campaign. Lauded by George Bush and neo-liberal
economists as a model for the United States, the sad reality is that only
about a third of Chiles workers have adequate coverage for their retirement
years under the private plans. Some of the private companies have gone
bankrupt, with the state picking up the tab.

Bachelet may also advance the cause of human rights in Chile more than her
predecessor. Her father Air Force General Alberto Bachelet died in
Pinochets prisons because he supported Allende. Michelle was briefly
detained and tortured in the mid 1980s.

Juan Guzman, the first Chilean judge to prosecute Pinochet for human rights
violations, was pressured by the Lagos government to end his pursuit of the
dictator because of Pinochets alleged dementia. After Guzmans retirement
from the bench in May, he went to work for Bachelets campaign. I believe
there will be a marked change with the new President, says Guzman. He is
one of the more hopeful Chileans as he adds, Bachelet is a resilient woman
whose victory will make a real difference for the lives of ordinary citizens.

Roger Burbach is director of the Center for the Study of the Americas based
in Berkeley, CA. His most recent books are The Pinochet Affair: State
Terrorism and Global Justice, and Imperial Overstretch: George W. Bush and
the Hubris of Empire (co-authored with Jim Tarbell).



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