Chile History Politics Regions Geography Economy Demographics

1 History

In 1531 the Spanish conquered Peru from the Incas. One of the Conquistadors in that voyage was Diego de Almagro. He left in 1535 to the South of Peru after territorial disputes. He is credited with being the first European to explore the coast of Chile. However he did not leave any lasting marks on the territory. It was not until the voyage of Pedro de Valdivia 1540-41 that a permanent Spanish presence was established. Valdivia founded a string of villages on his way south. Finally, on 12 February 1541 he founded Santiago.

Although under the control of the Spanish crown until the late 1810s. Since gaining its independence, Chile has had a remarkably stable institutional life considering the Latin American context, with only a handful of interruptions. In 1970, however, the Marxist Popular Unity Party candidate Salvador Allende Gossens won popular election and began initiating sweeping socialist reforms. These reforms, along with lack of food, employment, and consumer goods, brought about general unrest in the country. Armed forces, with United States support, staged a coup in 1973 which ousted Allende and instated Gen. Augusto Pinochet Ugarte. Human rights and civil rights problems, unemployment, and recession resulted in continued unrest through the late 80s, until a popular election was held in 1989. Patricio Aylwin Azócar, a member of the Christian Democratic Party of Chile was voted into office.

2 Politics

Main article: Politics of Chile

The country's current constitution was adopted in 1980 during the military government led by Augusto Pinochet and increased the power of the president and institutionalized the participation of the commanders in chief of the armed forced. After Pinochet's defeat on the 1988 referendum, several amendments were made, decreasing the power of the president and reducing the influence of the armed forces. As of 2004, discussions about further reforms continue, but have a low priority.

The Executive Branch is headed by the president of the republic. Since March 11, 2000, the President is Ricardo Lagos of the Socialist Party. The President also appoints the cabinet members. The President is chosen for a 6-year term and cannot be immediately re-elected (A recently passed constitutional reform has modified the presidential term in office to 4 years).

The Judicial Branch has the Supreme court as its highest institution. For questions related to the constitution there is the Constitutional Court, which also has the right to veto laws that it considers go against the constitution.

The Legislative Branch is made up of 2 chambers.

The Senate has 38 members elected by popular vote, nine appointed from various institutions such as the National Security Council and the judicial system and the President of the Republic, and the former presidents of the republic. The elected Senators are chosen for eight year terms in a bi-nominal election system that favors the two largest political blocks.
The Chamber of Deputies has 120 members, all of whom are universally chosen. Deputies serve 4-year terms.

For any law to be passed, it must pass through both chambers and be approved by the president of the republic (who has a limited veto right). The chambers and the president can all propose new laws, but there are certain matters which only the president can initiate.

Although there are some known cases of corruption in Chile, there is no rampant abuse of power by public officials. It is considered the least corrupt place in Latin America - ranked during the last decade consistently among the top 30 more transparent countries of the world - and not coincidentally, one with a relatively strong rule of law.

3 Regions

Main article: Regions of Chile

Chile is divided into 13 regions, each of which is headed by an intendente. Every region is further divided into provinces with a Gobernador provincial. Finally each province is divided into various Comunas each with its own mayor. Intendentes and gobernadores are appointed by the president, mayors are elected by popular vote.

Each region is designated by a name and a Roman numeral. Numbers are assigned from north to south. In general the Roman numeral is used, rather than the name. The only exception is the region where Santiago is situated, which is designated RM, that stands for Región Metropolitana, Metropolitan Region.

4 Geography

Main article: Geography of Chile

A long and narrow coastal region on the west side of the Andes Mountains, Chile stretches over 4,630 km (2,880 miles) north to south, but only 430 km (265 mi) at its widest point east to west.

The climate varies greatly, with subtropical conditions in Rapa Nui Island ( Easter Island); extremely arid conditions in the Atacama desert in the northern third of the territory; fertile conditions in middle region valleys; and cold and damp in the south, originally covered by forest. The Mediterranean quality of the central valley made it ideal for the cultivation of table fruits, which are one of Chile's main exports, and the production of wine, also a growing export.

Two interesting geographical facts are that Chile is the longest (N-S) country in the world (over 4,200km), and that it claims a section of Antarctica that is on the same longitudinal lines as itself.

5 Economy

Main article: Economy of Chile

The economy is mostly export driven. Its main export product still continues to be copper, followed by agribusiness products. However this is not nearly as important (40% of total value exported) as it was 30 years ago (70% of exports). Recently Chile has also started exporting products such as fine wines from various regions, salmon and wood pulp. Though the country is not as industrialized as developed countries, it is one of the most industrialized nations in Latin America.

While the main industry of the northern part of Chile is mostly mining related, the southern half has quite an extensive agricultural and dairy industry. The central zone is dedicated mostly to services and industry, with the main harbor, Valparaíso, also situated in this part of the country.

Chile has a large service sector and has one of the world's most liberalized and modern telecommunications infrastructures. Tourism is also still expanding in Chile. People are attracted to the rugged beauty of the southern woodlands, the emptiness of the northern desert plains and the skiing season in the Andes mountains (May to September).

In the boom years of the 1990s, annual economic growth was in the 7 to 12% range. After the Asian financial crisis in 1997, economic growth has slowed to a steady 3% per year.

Recently, Chile has signed Free Trade Agreements with many countries and trade blocks like the European Union, USA, Canada, Mexico and South Korea and is currently negotiating more FTA's with countries like New Zealand and Singapore. During the APEC 2004 Summit held in Santiago this past 20 and 21 November, Chile has signed memoranda of understanding with the People's Republic of China and Japan to begin trade talks leading to Free Trade Agreements.

6 Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Chile

The population of Chile is mostly white and mestizo, with Pre-Columbian indigenous groups remaining in the south, on Easter Island, and in the mountains in the north. European immigration soared in the 1800's—although not as much as regional neighbors Argentina and Brazil—from mostly Spain, Croatia, Italy, Germany, Palestine and smaller numbers from Eastern Europe and Ireland.

The level of education is high, and Chileans are proud of having two winners of the Nobel Prize in Literature: Gabriela Mistral and Pablo Neruda (both being poets).

7 Culture

Main article: Culture of Chile

See also: Music of Chile

8 National symbols

The national flower is the copihue (Lapageria rosea, Chilean bellflower), which grows in the woods of southern Chile.

The coat of arms depicts the two national animals: the condor (Vultur gryphus, a very large bird that lives in the mountains) and the huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus, an endangered white tail deer). It also has the legend Por la razón o la fuerza (By the reason or by the force).

9 Miscellaneous topics

10 International rankings

The Economist: The World in 2005: The world's best country, Rank 31 of 111 countries (first in Latin America)
Save the Children: State of the World’s Mothers 2004, Rank 15 out of 119 countries (third in Latin America after Costa Rica and Cuba)
Transparency International: Corruption Perceptions Index 2004, Rank 20 out of 146 countries (first in Latin America)
World Economic Forum: Global Competitiveness Report 2004-2005 - Growth Competitiveness Index Ranking, Rank 22 out of 104 countries (first in Latin America)
IMD International: World Competitiveness Yearbook 2004, Rank 26 out of 60 economies (countries and regions) (first in Latin America)
UNDP: Human Development Index 2004, Rank 43 out of 177 countries (second in Latin America after Argentina)
Reporters without borders: Third annual worldwide press freedom index (2004), Rank 42 out of 167 countries (tied with Japan, Namibia and Uruguay) (fourth in Latin America after El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Costa Rica)

11 Reference

Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.

12 External links

Countries in South America
Argentina \| Bolivia \| Brazil \| Chile \| Colombia \| Ecuador \| Guyana \| Paraguay \| Peru \| Suriname \| Uruguay \| Venezuela
Dependencies: Falkland Islands \| French Guiana

Chile South American countries

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