“Third Way”, an option that is growing in Chile if the new Constitution is rejected.

Neither approve the constitutional proposal nor stay with the current Magna Cartainherited from the dictatorship and partly transformed into a democracy: in Chile, the option of convening a new constitutional process, the so-called “third way”, is gaining momentum.

The issue has been in the debate for some time, but was finally settled last week when President Gabriel Boric said that if the new text is rejected, it will contribute to the drafting of a new constitution.

“win”Refusal’ (to the new Constitution), we will have to extend this process for another year and a half (…) Everything will have to be discussed again,” he said in Chilevisión.

Despite the fact that almost 80% of Chileans in the plebiscite in October 2020 decided to change the new ConstitutionPolls have been showing for several weeks now that the “Deviate” option seems to be in the majority.

AND MECHANISM?

The convention in charge of drafting the text, made up of 154 mostly progressive independents, started with high expectations but has been losing supporters due to internal friction, scandals spilling out of the 2019 outbreak-related group, and a few extreme proposals causing much controversy. even though they were not approved.

If he”Refusal“Eventually wins the September 4th plebiscite, the only clear scenario is that the current Magna Carta, promulgated in 1980 by Augusto Pinochet and criticized by parts of society for supporting the privatization of basic services, remains in effect.

However, everyone agrees that the experience of the founders cannot end there and that the social desires that sparked the protests three years ago remain unfulfilled.

“A third path is necessary because, while the new constitution has failed to garner widespread support, there is still a need for important changes,” Rodrigo Pérez of the Institute for Social Research told Efe.

The essence of the matter is in the mechanism. There are those who believe that the fastest way for Congress is to reform the current Magna Carta. Others, like Boric, are committed to electing a new constitutional assembly based on the ongoing process.

The possibility of convening another plebiscite to determine the type of constituent body or even the choice of a “committee of experts” was also raised.

“The reform that allowed this process is valid until September. I think a new pact, like the one that was made on November 15, should be achieved, which is not possible in the current political context,” Claudia Heiss of New York University. Chile.

Heiss was one of the experts involved in the November 2019 parliamentary agreement to kick-start the constitutional process as a way to calm mass protests.

Then, Chile mired in the worst crisis since the fall of the dictatorship. The situation today, according to Hayes, is different: “If the Rejection wins, the right will be stronger and try to minimize change and maintain the status quo of the 1980 law.”

For Claudio Elortegui-Gómez of the Catholic University of Valparaiso, “the most coherent path is a new convention that works on the basis of the proposal already presented, taking into account the most moderate proposals.”

BASHLET FOR, FREE AGAINST

The right and part of the centre-left will vote against the new text being “radical”, while the left tends to give it the green light, although many see it as flawed and in need of change.

This is the case of former President Michelle Bachelet, who on Wednesday quoted Pablo Milanes: “She’s not perfect, but she’s close to what I’ve always dreamed of,” the current High Commissioner said. UN on human rights at a conference in Peru.

Of the other former presidents, only Eduardo Frei said he would vote against. Ricardo Lagos was ambiguous, but in the letter he acknowledged that neither the current Magna Carta nor a new proposal to “create a consensus”, while Sebastian Piñera remains silent, although he is expected to reject it.

“The new process is not determined by the president or the results of 2020. It is determined by citizens in a new vote, and legislators should be experienced enough to propose it now,” said Mauricio Morales from the University of Talca.

According to Morales, the new process should not last more than half a year, because “it does not start from scratch”, and both aspects of the new text and the current Constitution should be included.

The new standard states Chile a welfare state of law, multinational, regional and ecological, and enshrining rights such as universal health care, free education, higher pensions and access to housing and water.

The right to voluntary abortion, the multi-ethnic nature of the state, and the abolition of the Senate are some of the issues included in the text that cause the most controversy.

José Cuzo of the University of Utrecht, however, believes that “Rejection” will create more uncertainty because “no one” “guarantees that negotiations to start a new process will not bog down and that public anger will explode again later.” .

“Adopting a constitution that many have specific objections to, but that can be reformed, is at least a more predictable path,” he added in an interview with Efe. EFE

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