Chile’s Constituent Assembly Brief (August 12, 2021)
Chile's constitutional convention (CC) approved an increase in assignments for delegates from extreme zones and those occupying spots reserved for Indigenous representation. The vote, which passed 111 to 37, was contentious, with right-wing Vamos Chile objecting. (More detailing on budgeting and spending in general at La Bot Constituyente)
Last week marked the CC's first month in action -- experts that the Convention's ability to function in these weeks is an achievement in itself, and that delegates are advancing towards a modus operandi and a regulatory framework. Parity, plurinationality and territorial participation have been central themes in the CC's work.
The Convention has an initial mandate for nine months, which can be extended for another three, meaning it has a maximum of 11 more months to finish the proposal for a new charter. The first articles could be drafted in September.
(AFP, Bio Bio, La Tercera, La Bot Constituyente)
Other News
Dozens of protesters arrested during the 2019 social unrest have spent more than a year in jail, which human rights activists argue reflects excessive sentences that discriminate against lower-income people who lack means for legal support. Now a motion to pardon those imprisoned during the protests has gained significant support among Chileans who credit the protests with achieving important changes, namely the independent-dominated Constituent Assembly, reports the Guardian.
Indeed, the violations of human rights that occurred during the 2019 protests, "increased awareness of civil and political rights" as did claims of Indigenous people, CC head Elisa Loncón told the United Nations human rights office, which offered technical assistance to the Convention. (Cooperativa, El Mostrador)
"We arrived here because of the detainees, the people who were mutilated, those who were tortured, because of all the comrades who suffered human rights violations since the unrest started until now," said delegate Alejandra Pérez. (Open Democracy)
Chilean lawmakers are advancing towards a water reform that will replace legislation that largely privatized water rights, in favor of laws prioritizing human consumption and the environment. However, many experts are looking to the Constitutional Convention for a final say on the issue, and some delegates have called for water to be enshrined in the new Magna Carta as a human right, reports Reuters.
Regionally the Constituent Assembly, with its focus on gender parity and minority rights, is a better reflection of Latin America's leftist youths than more traditional topics, like Cuba, argues Oliver Stuenkel in Americas Quarterly.