The Irish Times view on Chile’s draft constitution: a democratic experiment

Chilean voters have rejected by 62 per cent to 38 per cent a proposed new radical constitution drafted by a directly elected constituent assembly over the last year. The turnout was 86 per cent of the country’s voters, and more of them rejected the new draft than participated in the 2021 vote for the assembly elected to redraft the constitution drawn up in 1980 during the Pinochet right-wing dictatorship.

The decision is a major setback for the young left-wing president Gabriel Boric. He came to power earlier this year, having emerged as a student leader during the country’s popular rebellion against austerity and inequalities in 2019. That crisis was resolved in large part by inter-party agreement on constitutional change. But the resulting constituent assembly proved to be less representative of voters and public opinion. It was dominated by left-wing parties and independents elected in a 38 per cent turnout of voters.

The output from their year-long deliberations contains 388 clauses and many lengthy but legally vague commitments to new social, environmental, ethnic and gender rights. Chile is defined as a plurinational and radically decentred state. Property and mining rights were left uncertain, according to companies involved in the world’s largest copper producer and second biggest lithium exporter. The right-wing and centre-left parties which dominate Chile’s parliament say the document does not properly represent their views. Together with opposition from liberal and other media their criticisms struck a chord with public opinion over the three-month campaign.

Alongside that debate, mounting economic difficulties added to the government’s problems, as the referendum gave an opportunity for protest votes. Chileans are still committed to a new constitution and political leaders must now decide whether to entrust the task to the parliament or another constituent assembly. Many of the progressive values in the rejected one are likely to survive, since most voters want a more equal and democratic country to emerge from this fascinating but frustrating experiment in constitutional renewal.