Third World Quarterly

Environmental Politics in Chile: Legacies of Dictatorship and Democracy

Author(s): David Carruthers
Reviewed work(s):
Source: Third World Quarterly, Vol. 22, No. 3 (Jun., 2001), pp. 343-358
Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd.
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Third World Quarterly, Vol 22, No 3, pp 343-358, 2001
Environmental politic s in C hile:
leg ac ies of dic tators hip and
democ rac y
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
ABSTRAC T Standing at the f oref ront of LatinAmeric a's politic al and ec onomic
liberalis ation, C hile is held up as a model
f or the
developing
world. Firs t inthe
reg ionto embrac e a boldly neoliberal development s trateg y, C hile's military
dic tators hip als o peac ef ully g ave way to s table, c ivilianrule and
c omparative
ec onomic s uc c es s . However, the lens of environmental politic s reveals a
dis turbing unders ide to the C hileanmirac le. Environmental
polic y, ins titutions
and partic ipationare s haped and c ons trained by ominous leg ac ies of his tory,
dic tators hip, and anec onomic orthodoxy inimic al to
s us tainability. Democ ratic
rule has opened politic al s pac e, yet new environmental ins titutions and
proc edures exhibit inherited elitis t and exc lus ionary f eatures . C hile's environ-
mental movement likewis e demons trates promis e and innovation, but remains
g rounded ina c ivil s oc iety weakened and atomis ed by dic tators hip and
inc omplete trans ition. Still, as the environmental c os ts of C hile's res ourc e-
extrac tive, export-led development mount, environmental politic s may yet pres ent
a vital opportunity f or s oc ial c hang e.
Standing at the f oref ront of LatinAmeric a's politic al and ec onomic liberalis ation,
C hile is of tenheld up as a blueprint f or the reg ion's f uture. Military dic tators hip
has g ivenway to s table, c ivilianrule and extended s oc ial peac e. Its leaders
pioneered the neoliberal development s trateg ies that have s inc e s wept the reg ion,
produc ing C hile's c elebrated mac roec onomic s tability, non-inf lationary g rowth,
and s us tained inc reas es ins aving s , inves tments and exports .
If C hile is indeed a model f or LatinAmeric a, the c harac ter of its environmental
politic s , polic y and movements likewis e holds important les s ons . A f irs t g lanc e
mig ht be optimis tic . Similar periods of s us tained pros perity are as s oc iated with
the c ultural, educ ational and inf ras truc tural ac hievements that enabled f irs t-world
environmental protec tions and s tandards . Likewis e, a politic al c limate of c o-
operation, prag matis mand s tability s hould f os ter both the ef f ec tive politic al
ins titutions and the s trong c ivic traditions as s oc iated with s uc c es s f ul environ-
mental politic s everywhere.
This paper of f ers a s obering tes t of thes e hopef ul as s umptions . Rather than
f orec as ting animminently g reenf uture f or LatinAmeric a, the lens of environ-
David C arruthers is inthe Department of Politic al Sc ienc e, SanDieg o State Univers ity, 5500 C ampanile
Drive, SanDieg o, C A 92182-4427, USA. E-mail: davidc @mail.s ds u.edu.
ISSN 0143-6597 print; 1360-2241 online/01/030343-16
?
2001 Third World Quarterly
DOI: 10.1080/01436590120061642
343
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
mental politic s reveals a dis turbing unders ide to the C hileanmirac le. Environ-
mental polic y and ac tionare c ons trained by the leg ac ies of dic tators hip and tran-
s ition, and by anec onomic orthodoxy of tenovertly hos tile to s us tainability.
C hile's environmental laws and ins titutions reveal anuns ettled f us ionof partic i-
patory as pirations and vertic alis t traditions . Its nas c ent environmental movement
is likewis e a mixture of heady promis e g rounded ina c omparatively weak c ivil
s oc iety.
This analys is of C hileanenvironmental politic s c ons is ts of three s ec tions . The
f irs t lays the theoretic al and his toric al f oundation, exploring key politic al and
ec onomic leg ac ies of the c ountry's his tory. The s ec ond s ec tion c ritic ally
evaluates the leg al and ins titutional arc hitec ture of environmental politic s ,
revealing new s pac es opened by c ivilianrule, but ins titutions and proc edures
of ten
pre-emptive
and exc lus ionary innature. The third s ec tionas s es s es the
pros pec ts f or C hile's popular environmental movements , whic h likewis e demon-
s trate both f ormidable barriers and promis ing points of innovationand ins pira-
tion.
Politic s inC hile: leg ac ies of dic tators hip and trans ition
As everywhere, environmental politic s inC hile has developed ina larg er polit-
ic al, ec onomic and s oc ial c ontext. This s ec tionintroduc es es s ential elements of
C hileanhis tory and politic al ec onomy. Reg arding politic al his tory, we are
c onc erned es pec ially with leg ac ies of reg ime trans ition(f romdemoc rac y to
dic tators hip and bac k), and how thes e have s haped relations betweenthe s tate
and c ivil s oc iety. Reg arding politic al ec onomy, our c onc ernc entres onC hile's
neoliberal orthodoxy, both as development polic y and as a broader ideolog ic al
f orc e.
C hile inherits a long democ ratic tradition, but anelitis t one. At the dawnof
General Pinoc het's c oup of 11 September 1973, C hileans boas ted f our dec ades of
c ivilianrule and c ompetitive elec tions , uninterrupted by military c oup, as s as s ina-
tionor rebellion. Indeed, with only two brief exc eptions , they had experienc ed
140 years of inc reas ing ly democ ratic ins titutions . However, this s tability was
built ona c entralis ed s tate and a vertic alis t s tyle of politic s . Fromthe pres idenc y
to the parliament to the party s ys tem, politic al ins titutions developed a top-down
c harac ter, with mas s politic s tig htly c ontrolled f romabove. Eac h s oc ial s ec tor
was politic is ed and penetrated by s trong national parties , impeding the
emerg enc e of autonomous bas e org anis ations and s oc ial movements . C hilean
politic al his tory thus yielded a c omparatively 'overdeveloped' politic al s ys tem,
c orres ponding direc tly to a c omparatively 'underdeveloped' c ivil s oc iety.'
By the mid-twentieth c entury, elec toral politic s s ettled into a polaris ed 'three-
thirds ' c onf ig uration, with party allianc es c ons olidated into lef t, c entre and rig ht
wing s .2 C las s and ideolog ic al pos itions hardened, making c ons ens us dif f ic ult and
c oalitions les s f eas ible.3 Ins tability peaked under Salvador Allende, elec ted
pres ident in 1970. Allende s oug ht to inc reas e mas s s upport f or his s oc ialis t
projec t with anunprec edented ef f ort to opens pac e f or broad c itizenpartic ipation.
However, ina c limate of embedded vertic alis mand deepening c las s polaris ation,
his g es tures trig g ered radic alis mac ros s the s pec trum. Lef tis t land and f ac tory
344
ENVIRONMENTAL POLIrIC S IN C HILE
s eizures prompted c ounter-mobilis ationinthe c entre and the rig ht, plung ing the
c ountry into ec onomic dec ay, s trikes , protes ts , g uerrilla oppos ition, violenc e and
militaris ation.
Reac ting ag ains t this c haos , General Pinoc het c ame to power determined to
eliminate s oc ial c onf lic t. To f orec los e mas s politic is ation, the military g overn-
ment undertook a f orc ef ul and radic al res truc turing of the C hileanpolity,
ec onomy and s oc iety. Prac tis ing the c las s ic 'politic s of anti-politic s ', the reg ime
tig htly c los ed politic al s pac e and eliminated potential oppos ition, leg itimis ing
repres s ionas a nec es s ary def enc e ag ains t c ommunis t s ubvers ion.4 Labour unions ,
c ivic as s oc iations and oppos itionparties were weakened or des troyed, their
leaders killed, exiled or dis appeared.
Behind the repres s ionwas a dis tinc t vis ionof a new s oc ial order f or C hile,
built onthe prec epts of neoliberal polic y and ideolog y. Inpolic y terms C hilean
neoliberalis mf ound its rationale inthe f ormulas of 'C hic ag o Sc hool' ec onomis ts
like MiltonFriedmanand Arnold Harberg er. Its s mall-s tate, f ree-market priorities
were inf us ed into the s howc as e polic y ref orms of C hile's 'C hic ag o Boys ' in
s oc ial s ec urity, welf are, health and educ ation. C hile als o launc hed the Latin
Americ antrajec tory of privatis ation, dereg ulation, f is c al aus terity, c apital
mobility, export-promotionand anti-inf lationary s tabilis ation.5
Inideolog ic al terms , Pinoc het's neoliberalis mof f ered a c oherent f ormula f or
c omprehending relations betweens tate, market and s oc iety. Inf ormed by thinkers
s uc h as Friedric h Hayek and Robert Nozic , neoliberal ideolog y s eeks to res tric t
the s tate to a minimumand to maximis e the s c ope of individual f reedom.
Frus trated with exc es s ive g overnment and with the s tate's f ailure to s olve
problems , s tate s c hemes of dis tributive jus tic e are viewed as inappropriate f or
univers al applic ation. Politic al leaders s hould not impos e any s ing le utopia;
rather, individuals s hould be f ree to purs ue their own, mediated by exc hang e
relations hips inthe marketplac e. Politic s as a whole thus los es relevanc e as a
means of mediating c ontending values .
The military unleas hed a dec ade of f ierc e repres s ionto c rus h C hile's c ivic
c ulture and ref as hionland, c las s and labour relations inac c ordanc e with neo-
liberal priorities . However, the attempt to dis artic ulate c ollec tive mobilis ation
ultimately bac kf ired. Silenc ing the national parties lef t the terrainof protes t
empty, inadvertently opening s pac e f or new popular movements to emerg e.
Initiated under the protec tive umbrella of the c hurc h, s oc ial mobilis ation
advanc ed among the humanrig hts , women's , and pobladores (s hantytown
dwellers ) movements , eventually s pilling over to intellec tuals , f armers , environ-
mentalis ts and other g roups .6 The neoliberal s tate's withdrawal f rommultiple
s oc ial and ec onomic ac tivities f urther opened s pac e f or emerg ing c itizen's
g roups , as hundreds of g ras s roots org anis ations s oug ht to f ill the void with inde-
pendent initiatives ineduc ation, health c are, nutrition, mic roproduc tion, c redit,
and s o on.7
Inthe 1980s new mobilis ationf rombelow c las hed with vertic alis t pres s ures
f romabove. The 1981-82 ec onomic c ollaps e eroded middle-c las s s upport and
f urther emboldened s oc ial movements , f orc ing the reg ime to retreat to a
moderated, 'prag matic ' neoliberal s trateg y.8 Protes ts inMay 1983 launc hed a
three-year period of s us tained popular dis s ent, anirrevers ible leg itimac y c ris is
345
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
f or the reg ime.9 However, the new s oc ial movements were only a temporary
vehic le f or re-politic is ation. To c halleng e the dic tator ef f ec tively, the loc us of
oppos itions hif ted bac k to the national parties . Mas s protes ts helped opens pac e
f or parties to rec ons truc t thems elves , but the returnto democ rac y thenbec ame an
elec toral proc es s . By the time Pinoc het was ous ted inMarc h 1990, the parties
had returned to their his toric pos itionontop.'0
C hile's re-democ ratis ationprovokes s triking ly little s c holarly debate. There is
a g eneral c ons ens us onthe breakdownof democ rac y, the military's projec t, the
nature of the trans itionand the c harac ter of the pos t-dic tatorial 'protec ted
democ rac y'." For our purpos es , c ontemporary C hileanpolitic s is c harac teris ed
by three dominant, related trends : a dec line inpopular partic ipation, the re-
c ons olidationof elitis m, and embedded neoliberalis m. Let us c ons ider eac h in
turn.
Firs t, as renovated national parties c ompleted the res torationof c ivilianrule,
g ras s roots f orc es rapidly dec lined. Almos t overnig ht, movements los t relevanc e,
retreated to autonomy, or dis appeared. Party politic s evenreinc orporated the
c onc erns of pobladores , humanrig hts , and women's movements , onc e prominent
g ras s roots players inc halleng ing the dic tators hip.'2 The experienc e was s imilar
f or indig enous , labour, environmental, peas ant and other g roups . Inthe wake of
s uc h a pronounc ed dec line, 'f or better or wors e, politic al parties will ultimately
be the dec is ive inf luenc e onthe potential f or a popular s oc ial movement to
emerg e, inany f orm'.'3
Sec ond, C hileanpolitic s has retained its his toric elitis m. There is a delic ate
balanc e withinthe c entre-lef t C onc ertac ionc oalitionthat has g overned s inc e
1990.1' To make polic y, partic ipants broker c ompromis es ina c los ed, neg otiated
proc es s -a 'pac t making ' s tyle of g overnanc e dubbed c upulis mo (taking plac e in
the apex, or c upula) or democ rac ia de los ac uerdos .1' To be ef f ic ient and avoid
c onf lic t, potentially meddles ome outs ide inf luenc es are exc luded. 'Politic s in
C hile is extremely elitis t both ins truc ture and inprac tic e. A handf ul of leading
lig hts f romeac h party [c ontrols ] the politic al proc eeding s ..., s etting the ag enda
and paying only tac tic al heed to the oppos itionand evenles s to the humanrig hts
and other s oc ial movements .' 16
Third, neoliberalis mremains deeply embedded inC hileanpolitic s . Althoug h
the C onc ertac ionhas maintained a tempered vers ionof the military's ec onomic
s trateg y, the leg ac y of dic tators hip is more prof ound. Pinoc het's neoliberalis m
has moved beyond the ec onomic realmto penetrate and c olonis e the politic al and
c ultural realms as well.'7 Fromthe earlies t days of the dic tators hip, C hilean
c ulture endured anideolog ic al ons laug ht whic h 'deif ied the market and g lorif ied
the individual'."8 With the pos t-dic tatorial c ollaps e of g ras s roots movements , their
values of c ommunity and s olidarity bec ame anac hronis tic remnants of a s hattered
log ic . Intoday's individualis tic order, partic ipatory values and protes t s trateg ies
-noble and leg itimate under the dic tators hip-are now s eenas immature,
idealis tic or inappropriate. Pinoc het's vis ionof a depolitic is ed s oc iety is dis -
c ourag ing ly c los e to the mark. LatinAmeric a's typic ally vibrant mas s politic s are
almos t abs ent and ephemeral. Survey data c ons is tently demons trate hig h dis -
c onnec tionand apathy-about politic s , politic ians and parties .'9 As Interior
Minis ter Enrique Kraus s lamented in 1990: 'We have los t the c apac ity to
346
ENVIRONMENTAL POLITIC S IN C HILE
mobilis e people.'20
Thes e are the leg ac ies of his tory, dic tators hip and trans ition. Ins pite of C hile's
model politic al and ec onomic ac hievements , many c itizens are alienated or
exc luded f rompolitic s and power. Parties are elitis t and s oc ial movements
marg inal. Politic al partic ipationhas beenreduc ed mainly to the ac t of voting ,
c onc eptualis ed and c arried out inmarket terms . Privatis ationand radic al indi-
vidualis mhave s hif ted attentionto only the mos t immediate and pers onal
matters . Values of c ommunity, s olidarity and partic ipationhave g one out of s tyle,
replac ed by anunapolog etic materialis t c ons umeris m.2' C hile's his toric patterns
of elitis mand politic al exc lus ionhave beenf us ed with the imperatives of the
General's neoliberalis m, s etting a dif f ic ult s tag e f or the ques tions of environ-
mental polic y and ac tionto whic h we now turn.
Environmental politic s inpos t-dic tatorial C hile: law and ins titutions
The C hileanmirac le has more thanone dark s ide. The res truc turing that laid
today's ec onomic f oundationwas bas ed ona dec ade of repres s ionto ref as hion
the terms of popular partic ipation, land, labour and c las s . The C hileanec onomy
has s inc e made indis putable s trides inpoverty reduc tion, but a ris ing c onc entra-
tionof wealth, des truc tive c yc les of boomand bus t, pers is tent f oreig ndebt, over-
expos ure to c ommodity pric e f luc tuations , and the eros ionof ec onomic s ec urity
f or many have c ontinued to provide f uel f or c ritic is mof the model, evenonits
ownterms .22
However, the hardes t c ritic of C hileandevelopment is the land its elf . The
boomhas beenf ed by the wholes ale exploitationof anextraordinary natural
endowment. 'Inthe def ores ted hills around Puerto Montt, the f is hed-out s hore-
lines of the South, and the c hemic al-riddenf ields of the f ruit belt, evenC hile's
abundant ec os ys temis s tarting to protes t, and ... the res ults are horrif ic .'23
Beneath the hyperbole, the C hileans trateg y is the ag e-old, Third World f ormula
of raw material export. Evenwith divers if ic ationinto 'non-traditional' c om-
modities (s uc h as wine, s almon, woodc hips and luxury produc e), the over-
whelming bulk of the export platf orm(roug hly 80% ac ros s the pas t dozenyears )
is c ompris ed of minerals , ag ric ultural c ommodities and the produc ts of onc e-lus h
f ores ts and f is heries . C hile's f ierc ely unreg ulated ec onomy provides ample
reward f or produc ers who pus h neg ative s oc ial and environmental c os ts onto
f uture g enerations , vulnerable ec olog ic al s ys tems or the poores t and mos t
marg inalis ed populations . Fromthe s trip mines of the arid north to the s c arred
f ores ts of Patag onia, the export boomhas put the hard s queeze onnature.24
The s oc ial and ec olog ic al c ontradic tions of C hileandevelopment have roots
both s hallow and deep. Typic ally inLatinAmeric a and other developing reg ions ,
environmental c onc erns have s uf f ered a long leg ac y of neg lec t, mos t overtly
under the anti-politic s of dic tators hip. By today, however, both domes tic and
international pres s ures have f orc ed environmental is s ues onto the national polic y
ag enda.
Domes tic ally, democ ratis ationopens s pac e f or leg itimate politic al dis c ours e on
environmental threats and c onc erns . Environmental c os ts are by now ines -
c apable, palpably demons trated eac h day as nearly a quarter of the c ountry's
347
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
populationc hokes under a noxious c loud of pollutants inthe Santiag o airs hed.
Sc ientis ts and c ommunic ations media have beg unto tes t the waters of public
c ritic is m. Formal and inf ormal environmental educ ationhave inc reas ed environ-
mental c ons c ious nes s , behaviour and debate. Thoug h limited inpolitic al c lout, a
s ymbolic ally s ig nif ic ant 'g reenc auc us ' has emerg ed inthe C hileanparliament.
International pres s ures have c ome f romC hile's neig hbours and more dis tant
f orc es . Environmental awarenes s and ac tivis mare ris ing s harply throug hout
LatinAmeric a, no long er eas ily ig nored by national leaders . Inc reas ed touris m
and c ommunic ations tec hnolog ies have f os tered c ontac ts with European, North
Americ anand other f orms of environmental thoug ht and ac tion. More ins tru-
mentally, C hile's prag matic leaders are interes ted inthe expans ionof reg ional
trade reg imes , whic h, like the North Americ anFree Trade Ag reement (NAFTA),
are likely to take f ormwith nominal environmental requis ites , s ide ag reements or
ins titutions . C hile's 1997 f ree trade ag reement with C anada was inf ac t premis ed
onthe antic ipationof anenvironmental ac c ord.
Althoug h a c omprehens ive s urvey of C hile's leg al and ins titutional arc hitec ture
is beyond my s c ope, I of f er here anintroduc tionto and c ritic al analys is of the
environmental reg ime inprac tic e.25 As everywhere, new and exis ting ins titutions
at all levels of g overnment are enmes hed inenvironmental law, polic ies and
norms , inc luding thos e of trans portation, ec onomic development, health, s anita-
tion, public works , f oreig nrelations and natural res ourc es . However, f or our
purpos es the lands c ape of C hileanenvironmental law and ins titutions is remark-
ably s imple. The c entrepiec e leg is lationis Ley No 19.300, the 1994 g eneral
environmental 'f ramework' law. The as s oc iated ins titutionis the National
Environmental C ommis s ion(C ONAMA), a dec entralis ed body c ompris ed of a
c entral direc torate and a s et of reg ional c ommis s ions (the C OREMAS).26
Environmental law and ins titutions are thus as tonis hing ly new to C hile. Bef ore
the 1990s no c ons equential environmental reg ime exis ted. The returnof demo-
c ratic g overnanc e rais ed hopes f or at las t c onf ronting a leg ac y of s evere neg lec t.
The s uc c es s ive C onc ertac ion g overnments of Patric io Aylwin(1990-94) and
Eduardo Frei (1994-2000) projec ted a pos itive environmental dis c ours e, empha-
s is ing s us tainability and s tewards hip, as well as partic ipation, trans parenc y,
ac c ountability and ef f ic ac y. To their c redit, they pres ided over the rapid c reation
of animpres s ive and s ophis tic ated body of norms , proc edures and ins titutions ,
addres s ing virtually every major area of environmental c onc ern. The f ramework
law is inf us ed with idealis tic norms of prevention, partic ipation, g radualis mand
the 'polluter pays ' princ iple.27
Thes e princ iples , polic ies and entities will look f amiliar to s tudents of environ-
mental polic y f romEurope or North Americ a. Muc h of the arc hitec ture is
borrowed f roma f irs t-world model of 'adminis trative rationalis m' predic ated on
the reg ulatory c apac ity of the welf are s tate. Fromthe c ons ervationis t and
pres ervationis t impuls es of the early twentieth c entury, to the landmark environ-
mental leg is lationof the 1960s and 1970s , this model relies onthe f amiliar
s trateg ies of advoc ac y, educ ation, lobbying and litig ationthat c harac teris e main-
s treamenvironmental politic s and polic y throug hout the wealthy north.
However well intentioned, adminis trative rationalis mhas s o f ar beenof only
limited ef f ic ac y inC hile. Suc h ins titutions pres uppos e a healthy politic al
348
ENVIRONMENTAL POLITIC S IN C HILE
pluralis mand a viable, f irs t world reg ulatory s tate. However, they have been
c ons truc ted and put into prac tic e ina polity and s oc iety inwhic h elitis t and
neoliberal princ iples , prac tic es and priorities prevail. That c ontradic tiontends to
render their bes t intentions s tillborn. So of tenthe Third World pattern, an
immens e g ap appears betweenwhat is writtenonpaper and what is prac tis ed on
the g round.
Neoliberalis mleaves its mark ins everal ways . Globally, it inf orms environ-
mental dis c ours es rang ing f rom'f ree-market environmentalis m' at the libertarian
end of the s pec trumto the les s ideolog ic al 'ec olog ic al modernis ation'. Inthe
f ormer, environmental deg radationis unders tood as a s ide-ef f ec t of exc es s ive
g overnment and poorly s pec if ied property rig hts . The s olutionis not reg ulationor
manag ement, but ins tead the c reative expans ionof private property rig hts into the
remaining c ommons (land, air, water, s pec ies ).28 More prag matic models of
'g reenc apitalis m' harnes s market f orc es , but withina polic y c ontext es tablis hed
by anef f ec tive s tate. Pollutionpreventionand g reeng oods of f er opportunities f or
prof it. But rather thanrelying purely onthe invis ible hand, the s tate s ets the
parameters , introduc ing and c o-ordinating market-bas ed inc entives s uc h as g reen
taxes , c arbons eques tration, pollutionpermits , depletion quotas , emis s ions
trading , wetlands mitig ation, and the like.29
Suc h market s olutions f ac tor importantly into C hileanenvironmental polic y.
C ons is tent with Pinoc het's vis ion, the s tate role is to be minimis ed. Ins everal
polic y areas the f oc us has beenonproperty rig hts reg imes to 'g et the pric es rig ht'
and avert the 'trag edy of the c ommons '.
0
To their advoc ates , environmental
protec tionc anbes t be ac hieved throug h privatis ation, export promotionand the
maximis ation of ec onomic g rowth.3" But to their c ritic s , s uc h f ree-market
environmental polic y experiments have had dis as trous res ults f or urbanair
quality, waters heds , ag ric ulture, f ores ts and f is heries .32
More direc tly, the aus tere neoliberal s tate of f ers c hronic ally limited f unding to
environmental ins titutions , whos e leaders likewis e lac k politic al c lout. Govern-
ment of f ic ials c onc ede the pauc ity of the mos t bas ic environmental inf ras truc ture
-s c arc e water treatment, virtually no limits onthe dis c harg e of pollutants , no
limits ontoxic pes tic ides , no c ertif ied dumps f or indus trial or mining was te, no
'rig ht-to-know' laws , and s o f orth.33 Ina dereg ulated politic al c limate, mean-
ing f ul enf orc ement power is almos t non-exis tent-a f ar c ry f roms uc c es s f ul
European-s tyle ec olog ic al modernis ation. This lac k of s tate c apac ity and
autonomy is inf ac t a def ining f eature of the C hileanbus ines s c limate, prized by
developers and bus ines s interes ts unac c us tomed to c ons traint.34
The C ONAMA is thus c harg ed with a tas k f undamentally inc ontradic tionwith
the neoliberal model of development.35 The entire environmental f ramework is
runthroug h with powerf ul s truc tural inc entives that inc line the s tate to s ide
direc tly with bus ines s and development interes ts , to the detriment of environ-
mental protec tion. For example, to meet the neoliberal mandate that g overnment
ag enc ies be s elf -f inanc ing , the f ores try ag enc y (C orporac ionNac ional Fores tal
-C ONAF) f inanc es its elf by taking a portionof the revenue f romthe uns us tain-
able 'c hipping ' of s outhernC hile's s pec tac ular native f ores ts , des tined f or export
as paper pulp. 'The ins titutional s truc ture of C ONAMA ... ens ured that the ong oing
c ollaborationbetweenthe s tate and bus ines s would henc ef orth apply to environ-
349
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
mental is s ues as well. It privileg ed the interes ts of s oc io-politic al f orc es who
s oug ht to bloc k any innovationinenvironmental polic y out of f ear that it mig ht
have a neg ative ef f ec t onec onomic g rowth.'36
C hile thus s uf f ers f roma problemof 'ag enc y c apture' that f ar exc eeds
developed c ountry norms . This as s ertionis unc ontrovers ial, the doc umentation
almos t overwhelming . One c ompelling illus trationc omes f roms outhernC hile's
Mapuc he Indianterritory, where a s eries of c ontrovers ial hydroelec tric projec ts
onthe Bio Bio River threatens to inundate wild lands and dis plac e the reg ion's
indig enous people.37 The ex-direc tor of the f ederal indig enous ag enc y publis hed a
s c athing pers onal ac c ount c hronic ling direc t exec utive interventionby Pres ident
Eduardo Frei to manipulate the c ompos itionand votes of the ag enc y's direc torial
board, f iring projec t opponents to ens ure a vote f avourable to Endes a, the
Spanis h indus trial c ons ortiumbehind the RALC o dam.38
For every s uc h hig h prof ile c as e, res earc hers have c ollec ted dozens of les s
dramatic s tudies f romevery reg ion, doc umenting myriad environmental c onf lic ts
inhydropower, f ores try, f is heries , land development, mining , indus try and trans -
portation.39 Spec if ic c as es inc lude the downs treamhealth and environmental
damag e c aus ed by mining operations at Amayapampa and C apas irc a, the
ec olog ic al devas tationof c ommerc ial s almonf arming , unreg ulated pes tic ide us e
and as s oc iated health c os ts to f armworkers and c ommunities inthe C entral
Valley, the c las h over a major hig hway projec t that threatens Santiag o's his toric
Bellavis ta neig hbourhood, and the des truc tionof native f ores ts , partic ularly the
mis manag ement of C hile's s pec tac ular s outherntemperate rainf ores ts .'
Jus t as new environmental ins titutions are premis ed onas s umptions about
s tates and markets that c las h with the reality of entrenc hed neoliberalis m, s o too
does the ideal of c itizenpartic ipationc onf ront C hile's entrenc hed elitis m. Given
the narrownes s of C hile's g uardiandemoc rac y, the environmental f ramework law
demons trates animpres s ively democ ratic as piration. It is almos t unique among
C hileanlaws inas muc h as it s pec if ies and ins titutionalis es a reg ular means of
popular partic ipationinthe f ormationof public polic y.4" But ag ain, a wide g ulf
s eparates the de jure f romthe de f ac to. Bec aus e no meaning f ul mec hanis mexis ts
to enable the envis ag ed c itizenpartic ipation, environmental polic y making
ins tead demons trates the c las s ic elite c ons ens us s tyle of c upulis mo-c entralis t
and non-partic ipatory.42
This vertic alis mis mos t c learly demons trated inthe proc es s of environmental
impac t as s es s ment (EIA). The EIA iS the princ ipal opening that the f ramework law
provides f or c itizenpartic ipation. However, analys ts c harg e that inprac tic e the
EIA iS mos t of tenus ed pre-emptively, to avert c onf lic t. It g ives the s urf ac e appear-
anc e of partic ipation, but s erves ins tead to antic ipate, demobilis e, and def lec t
loc al oppos ition, thus attaining a meas ure of leg itimac y f or c ontrovers ial
'meg aprojec ts '. Ag ain, the f ramework law is inherently c autious and exc lus ion-
ary where environmental c onc erns mig ht c halleng e ec onomic priorities .
[The f ramework law] appears rather myopic inplac ing the burdenof g athering data
onthe environment, via the [EIA], inthe hands of the private s ec tor. The type and
timing of the data will depend onwhat the new inves tment projec ts c hoos e to
pres ent. Furthermore, the various f irms and indus trial s ec tors will have aninc entive
350
ENVIRONMENTAL POLITIC S IN C HILE
to mas s ag e the data and to manipulate the c hoic e of indic ators ... Ins hort, the data
c anquic kly bec ome c ontradic tory, c onf us ing , and/or unreliable.43
Failures of the environmental as s es s ment proc es s have provoked c ontentionin
the c as es of ag enc y c apture noted above, as well as inother hig hway develop-
ments (s uc h as the Temuc o bypas s ins outhernC hile); inf ores t manag ement,
wood c hipping and c ellulos e paints ; and inhydroelec tric f ac ilities like RALC O.
Sabatini and Sepuilveda c hronic le the def ic ienc ies of c itizenpartic ipationina
number of EiA c as es , inc luding the Gas Andes pipeline projec t, the GoldenSpring
c ellulos e plant onthe is land of C hiloe, the Puc hanc avi c opper s melter and ther-
moelec tric plant, and the Es c ondido mine near Antof ag as ta."4
The les s ons f roms uc h analys es are mixed. Onthe one hand, they demons trate
that threatened c ommunities have beenable to res us c itate a s ens e of partic ipa-
tion, ins pite of a depolitic is ed politic al c limate. The environment is now a
leg itimate is s ue of public debate, f irmly onthe polic y ag enda. However, the law's
partic ipatory mec hanis ms tend to exc lude prec is ely the g roups mos t direc tly
af f ec ted by propos ed developments . Inprac tic e, it remains larg ely a c los ed,
neg otiated proc es s betweenthe private s ec tor and the ruling elite. The problemof
ag enc y c apture is mag nif ied by the abs enc e of democ ratic c hannels and authentic
pluralis m. Environmental partic ipationinC hile's democ rac ia de ac uerdos has
bec ome ins tead anempty promis e, mas king inc es tuous c o-operationbetweenthe
s tate and the entrepreneurial interes ts , who typic ally s ee their projec ts approved
along f avoured lines .
The C hileanenvironmental movement
Inadditionto ins titutions , laws and polic y, our unders tanding of c ontemporary
environmental politic s mus t take into ac c ount the view f romthe bottomup. We
now s hif t our attentionto c ivil s oc iety, to c ons ider the his tory, c harac ter, promis e
and limits of C hile's environmental movement as it navig ates a politic al land-
s c ape s haped by the leg ac ies and ins titutions explored above.
Environmental NGOS are relatively rec ent players inC hile. A s mall, northern-
s tyled c ons ervationis t impuls e f irs t s urf ac ed inthe 1960s and 1970s , as environ-
mental c ons c ious nes s es c alated g lobally. A s ec ond g enerationof s c ientis ts and
ac tivis ts emerg ed inthe early 1980s , c ompris ed of ac ademic s purg ed f romthe
univers ities by the military. As with other popular movements , environmentalis ts
g ained a f oothold and expanded by taking advantag e of oppos itions pac es g ener-
ated during the era of popular dis s ent. But the military's near-total neg lec t of
environmental c onc erns , c ombined with the c autious popular politic s of the time,
releg ated environmentalis mto the marg ins both c ulturally and politic ally.
Animportant prec urs ory moment inC hileanenvironmentalis mwas the 1983
'Sc ientif ic C ong res s of the Environment', org anis ed by the environmental NGO
the C entre f or Environmental Res earc h and Planning (C IPMA). Ins pite of tig ht
media c ontrol, the event g arnered s ubs tantial public ity. The military reg ime
res ponded to ris ing environmental c onc ernby c reating the National C ommis s ion
f or Ec olog y in1984. However, environmental protec tionremained a low priority,
and the c ommis s ion's g oals went unf ulf illed. The modernenvironmental move-
351
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
ment c ould not take meaning f ul s hape until the returnto c ivilianrule, whenit
was s purred onby a larg er and hig her-prof ile g athering , the 1989 'Firs t National
Meeting of Environmental Ac tionOrg anis ations '.
The immediate pos t-Pinoc het c limate of optimis m, opennes s and opportunity
prompted anexhilarating s urg e of energ y. The C onc ertac io'n g overnment's
ins piring environmental dis c ours e and c reative leg al initiatives rais ed the hopes
of environmental ac tivis ts . They s treng thened ties with educ ational, women's ,
indig enous , workers and peas ant org anis ations . Taking advantag e of hig h prof ile
g lobal is s ues (c limate c hang e, the ozone hole, ac id rain, s pec ies extinc tion, def or-
es tation, des ertif ic ation), they als o f org ed allianc es with s ympathetic parlia-
mentarians and politic al parties . Their c onc eptual inf luenc e lef t a notable imprint
onthe Aylwing overnment's pres entations at the 1992 Earth Summit inRio de
Janeiro.45
However, the c limate f or C hileanpopular politic s quic kly turned inhos pitable.
Like all s oc ial movement org anis ations , the g reens s uf f ered f romthe rapid
c ollaps e of popular partic ipation. Ac c ording to Luc y Taylor, the dis integ rationof
s oc ial movements inthe 1990s f ollowed a g eneral patternof breakdowninto
three s ec tors : the c o-operators -willing to c ompromis e and work c los ely with the
C onc ertac io'n; the intrans ig ent-taking princ ipled, non-neg otiable pos itions ; and
the c ritic s -c aug ht inthe middle, taking varied and independent pos itions , henc e
prone to c ritic is mf romboth s ides .46 Althoug h C hile's environmentalis ts def ine
thems elves s imilarly, the lines betweenc o-operationand c ritic is mare blurrier,
and the nomenc lature is dis tinc tive, alig ned ona s pec trumof environmental
vis ion. Intheir ownlang uag e and c onc eptual s c hema, there are three mains ec tors
of popular environmentalis m: the c ons ervationis ts , the environmentalis ts and the
ec olog is ts .47
The 'c ons ervationis ts ' prac tic e ac c ommodationand moderate c ritic is m, repre-
s ented by g roups like the National C ommittee f or the Def enc e of Flora and Fauna
(C ODEF) and the Def enders of the C hileanFores t.48 They are pres tig ious and well
es tablis hed; C ODEF dates bac k to 1963. Their interes ts , s trateg ies and s tyle of
operations are f amiliar to obs ervers of the North Americ anc ons ervationis t/
pres ervationis t tradition, emphas is ing habitat protec tionand def enc e of wild
areas , throug h res earc h, advoc ac y and educ ation. The c ommitment to ec os ys tem
pres ervationc anbe militant, althoug h c ons ervationis ts typic ally avoid ideo-
log ic al battles . Like their f irs t world c ounterparts , they have a s c ientif ic and
biolog ic al orientation, s eldomf oc us ed overtly ons truc tural c aus es of deg radation
or s trateg ies of national development.
The 'environmentalis ts ' inc lude org anis ations like the C as a de Paz (c wMA) and
Fundac ionTerram. As a g roup they are more explic itly polic y oriented, s ome
ref ormis t, others more c ritic al. They c ons ider a broader array of environmental
problems (energ y, ag ric ulture, pollution, hazardous was tes , indig enous people,
trans port and planning , etc ), s ituated ina larg er s oc ial, ec onomic and politic al
c ontext. Operational s trateg ies emphas is e res earc h, educ ation, advoc ac y,
c oalitionbuilding , lobbying and litig ation. Some readily eng ag e c onf lic tual
is s ues , of f er c ontrovers ial analys es , and s take out hig hly c ritic al g round. Others
tend towards c ompromis e, attempting to rec onc ile tens ions betweenc ommunities
and elite interes ts . This divers ity ref lec ts a mixture of adminis trative rationalis m,
352
ENVIRONMENTAL POLITIC S IN C HILE
ec olog ic al modernis ationand partic ipatory g reenpolic ies and values .
The 'ec olog is ts ' are the s o-c alled 'duros ' (hard-liners ), repres ented by g roups
like the Ins titute of Politic al Ec olog y (IEP), National Ec olog ic al Ac tionNetwork
(RENAC E) and C hile Sus tentable. Formed by ref ug ees of univers ity repres s ionin
the 1980s , they c arry f orward a traditionof c ritic is m. They c onc eive the environ-
mentalis t c ris is broadly, to enc ompas s is s ues of s oc ial and ec olog ic al jus tic e.
They f ind the roots of c ris is inthe priorities of neoliberal development, rein-
f orc ed by anexc lus ionary politic al s ys tem. Sus tainability and environmental
res torationc anonly be reac hed throug h g reater equity and a more res pons ive
democ rac y. Thes e inturndemand not ac c ommodation, but dramatic c hang es in
the politic al s ys temand ec onomic development s trateg y. Invis ionand tac tic s ,
they do not s hrink f romc onf rontation, hoping that s harpening environmental
c onf lic ts mig ht herald the reg enerationof a more vibrant c ivil s oc iety.
While thes e divis ions ins tyle and s ubs tanc e s ometimes produc e tens ions and
rivalries , other f ac tors have more s erious ly underc ut the potential of the environ-
mental movement.49 As with all s oc ial movements , lac k of f unding is a c hronic
s ourc e of weaknes s . Whenthe over-arc hing g oal of ous ting the dic tator evapo-
rated, s o did the money. Soc ial org anis ations have als o s uf f ered a braindrain, as
the talented and hig hly motivated NGO ac tivis ts of the 1970s and 1980s have been
drawnto attrac tive opportunities ing overnment s ervic e or the private s ec tor.
Finally, the C onc ertac io'n's environmental ins titutions have f os tered a 'wait and
s ee' attitude that has takens ome of the wind f romthe s ails of environmental
urg enc y.
The hardes t blows c ome f romthe res urg enc e and c ons olidationof C hilean
elitis mand neoliberalis m. Moderate c ons ervationis t g roups have s trug g led to
adapt a North-Americ anf oc us , s tyle and s trateg y to the C hileanc ontext. But the
f irs t-world c ons ervationis t traditionpres uppos es viable pluralis mand anef f ec tive
s tate, both s everely underc ut inC hile. It is dif f ic ult to make a pers uas ive c as e f or
a reg ulatory s tate ina radic ally dereg ulated c ountry, partic ularly whenouts ide
voic es are exc luded f romes s ential dec is ions . As a c ons equenc e, ref ormis t
org anis ations of tenf all prey to c upulis mo, s eeking c ompromis e with elite mili-
tary and bus ines s interes ts , neither of whic h has demons trated s ens itivity to
ec olog ic al c onc erns . For example, C IPMA has beenc ritic is ed f or working with
mining and other private interes ts , a his tory of c ollaborationblamed f or weak-
ening environmental ins titutions .50 To their c ritic s , moderate org anis ations
'remainc hained to the log ic of c ons ens us , trying to rec onc ile anunrec onc ilable
pos itionbetweenenvironmentalis mand the interes ts of the bus ines s world'."
Neoliberalis mand elitis mals o pres ent broader c ultural barriers . To penetrate
the c omplac enc y of depolitic is ation, environmentalis ts may rais e polemic al
voic es , yet protes t and c onf rontationhave f allenout of f avour. Statements like
'they s hould s top f ig hting and work thing s out' or 'they s houldn't interf ere with
the experts ' are c ommonplac e. Loc al environmental c onf lic ts are f requently
perc eived as unnec es s arily radic alis ed, or dis mis s ed as NIMBYis m.52 Environ-
mentalis ts c aneas ily be s eenas neg ative, def ens ive and unable to deliver a
res onant or pos itive vis ion. InPinoc het's marketplac e politic al c ulture, where
every individual c ompetes to realis e his or her ownutopia, the vis ionof a jus t
and ec olog ic ally s us tainable f uture is a hard s ell-a produc t rooted inunf as hion-
353
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
able values .
Nevertheles s , ins pite of the leg ac ies that pres ent s uc h s obering c halleng es , we
mus t als o rec og nis e that popular environmental politic s pres ents nas c ent but
noteworthy points of ins pirationand innovation. Indeed, the very pers is tenc e and
expans ionof a s ig nif ic ant c ounter-heg emonic movement is its elf animpres s ive
tes timony to the tenac ity and c reativity of C hileans c holars , c itizens and ac tivis ts .
It implies f uture opportunities f or thos e who will s tand indef enc e of values of
trans parenc y, partic ipation, s olidarity, equity and s us tainability.
Likewis e, rec ent years have witnes s ed inc reas ing politic is ation, ina number of
ac ute environmental c onf lic ts . The mos t innovative, c reative and partic ipatory
environmentalis monthe planet is of tenf org ed injus t s uc h loc al c onf lic ts .53 For
C hileanac tivis ts , the learning c urve has beens teep. Environmentalis ts are
working with a new g enerationof dedic ated attorneys , pus hing levers into the
c rac ks of C hile's f ramework law, determined that it one day f unc tioninprac tic e
the way it appears inprint.54 Loc al c onf lic ts have thrus t dozens of new g ras s roots
and c ommunity g roups into the limelig ht, attrac ting attentionboth domes tic ally
and internationally.
New international allianc es likewis e bring f res h energ y, pers pec tive and
res ourc es to the reinvig orationof C hileanc ivil s oc iety. One s uc h moment was in
April 1998, when34 heads of s tate g athered inSantiag o f or the s ec ond Summit
of the Americ as . The leaders of hundreds of environmental, labour, humanrig hts ,
women's , indig enous and other g ras s roots and popular movements f romac ros s
the Americ as held their ownparallel 'Summit of the Peoples of the Americ as ', to
artic ulate a more democ ratic and s us tainable model f or inter-Americ anec onomic
integ ration.55 Sinc e then, burg eoning international linkag es have enhanc ed the
work of C hileanac tivis ts involved inc onf lic t over def ores tation, land titles ,
dis plac ement of c ampes inos and indig enous people, workplac e hazards , loc al
toxic expos ures and s o f orth.
Ina politic al c ulture that emphas is es c ons ens us and c onf lic t avoidanc e, the
s harpening environmental c onf lic ts now s haking the c ountry f romnorth to s outh
are inc reas ing ly dif f ic ult to ig nore. Inthat s pac e, C hile's environmental NGOs and
ac tivis ts are explic it intheir c all f or a revitalis ationof c ivic lif e. They s trive to
res c ue and build uponwhatever f rag ments of C hile's partic ipatory experienc e
remain, having s urvived the brutality of dic tators hip, and pers is ting s till amid the
apathy and vertic alis mof c ivilianrule.
C onc lus ion
We s ee the leg ac ies of dic tators hip and trans itionimprinted indelibly onC hile's
environmental laws , ins titutions , polic y proc es s es and popular partic ipation.
Thes e leg ac ies c onf ront the f uture inanindeterminate mixture of promis e and
peril. Onthe downs ide C hile maintains a politic al ec onomy of teninimic al to
s us tainability, with pas t and c urrent rewards g eared to thos e who mos t ef f ec tively
externalis e the neg ative environmental and s oc ial c os ts of produc tion. The
neoliberal s tate of tenlac ks the autonomy and c apac ity to c orrec t market f ailures ,
and its leg al and polic y arc hitec ture tends to maintainanexc lus ionary s tanc e
towards rival priorities . Pers is tent elitis m, alienationand depolitic is ationweaken
354
ENVIRONMENTAL POLMIIC S IN C HILE
c ivil s oc iety, underc utting the vibrant c ivic partic ipationthat has els ewhere made
the emerg enc e of environmental politic s one of his tory's mos t trans f ormative
s oc ial experienc es .
Still, evenC hile's narrow democ rac y has opened s ig nif ic ant s pac e f or environ-
mental polic y, dis c ours e, educ ationand ac tion. Althoug h its impres s ive leg al and
ins titutional arc hitec ture has f allenf ar s hort of its orig inal democ ratic as pirations ,
f orc es are at work to narrow the g ap betweenideal and prac tic e. Environmental
movements have s urvived and endured ina hars h politic al lands c ape. Their
mes s ag e c anonly inc reas e inres onanc e, as C hileans are daily reminded that
Pinoc het's marketplac e is neither perf ec t nor neutral-the utopias of s ome have
c ome at the c os t of dys topias f or many others , inc luding nature its elf . Pois oned
water, s mog -c hoked air, eroded s lopes , lif eles s s oils and mountains of toxic
was tes and tailing s all bear ines c apable witnes s to anominous environmental
debt and to the uns us tainability of the c urrent path.
Environmental c onc erns are g aining a s trong er f oothold inpopular c ons c ious -
nes s and politic al prac tic e. The elec tion of Soc ialis t Ric ardo Lag os to the
pres idenc y ins pires c autious optimis m. Eveng iventhe vertic alis t heritag e of the
C onc ertac ion, Lag os repres ents a party, dis c ours e and politic al traditionof
prag matis mand broadened partic ipation. Symbolic ally, his appointment of
Adriana Hof f manto head the C ONAMA, over the c lamorous protes t of bus ines s
and military leaders , plac es one of C hile's mos t res pec ted environmental voic es
ina s ig nif ic ant and vis ible pos ition. The adminis trationhas als o s oug ht to honour
and reinvig orate C hile's international c ommitments , as demons trated injoint
ef f orts to enhanc e c omplianc e and broadenpartic ipationinthe C anadiantrade
relations hip (the C anada-C hile Ag reement onEnvironmental C o-operation-
C C AEC ). Suc h ac tions lend c redenc e to the prominenc e of environmental is s ues in
the new adminis tration's polic y s tatements , whic h have indic ated a g reater
c ommitment to boos ting reg ulatory, enf orc ement and partic ipatory mec hanis ms .
For C hile and other nations inheriting leg ac ies of politic al exc lus ion, elitis m,
weak or c aptured s tates and atomis ed c ivil s oc ieties , we mus t remind ours elves
that his toric leg ac ies , however s obering , are not immutable. If C hile is indeed a
model f or the Third World, its environmental f uture has yet to be written. It will
be s haped inpart by the weig ht of his tory, but als o by the values and ac tions of
its c itizens , ac tivis ts , s c holars and polic y makers . Evenf or c ountries s hac kled
with leg ac ies of authoritarianis mand inc omplete trans ition, environmental
politic s may yet pres ent a vital opportunity f or s oc ial c hang e.
Notes
The author would like to thank BrianLoveman, Marc el C laude, and the many dedic ated C hileans c holars
and ac tivis ts who provided as s is tanc e inres earc hing and preparing this manus c ript. Inaddition, the
C enter f or LatinAmeric anStudies at SanDieg o State Univers ity and the Hewlett Foundationprovided
c ruc ial s upport and f unding .
This vertic alis mis attributed to territorial ac quis ition, power c onc entrationinSantiag o, rig id s oc ial
s tratif ic ation, and the mining ec onomy and indus trial drives of the pas t two c enturies . See B
Loveman, C hile: The Leg ac y of His panic C apitalis m, New York: Oxf ord Univers ity Pres s , 1979; and
M A Garreton, The C hileanPolitic al Proc es s , Bos ton, MA: Allenand Unwin, 1989.
2
B Burnett, Politic al Groups inC hile, Aus tin, TX: Univers ity of Texas Pres s , 1970.
355
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
L Oppenheim, Politic s inC hile: Democ rac y, Authoritarianis m, and the Searc h f or Development,
Boulder, C O: Wes tview, 1993.
B Loveman& T M Davies , The Politic s of Anti-Politic s , Wilming ton, DE: SR Books , 1996.
C hile was thus a s ig nif ic ant harbing er of broader trends inThird World politic al ec onomy. Thes e
neoliberal polic y priorities were s ubs equently impos ed onall debtor nations by c reditor c ountries and
international f inanc ial ins titutions , as requis ite c onditions f or reneg otiating f oreig ndebt inthe 1980s
and 1990s .
6 OnC hileanpopular movements and the trans ition, s ee: M A Garreton, 'Popular mobilizationand the
military reg ime inC hile', inS Ec ks tein (ed), Power and Popular Protes t: LatinAmeric anSoc ial
Movements , Berkeley, C A: Univers ity of C alif ornia Pres s , 1989, pp 259-277; B Loveman, 'The
politic al lef t inC hile 1973-1990', inB C arr & S Ellner (eds ), The LatinAmeric anLef t: Fromthe Fall
of Allende to Peres troika, Boulder, C O: Wes tview, 1993, pp 23-39; J M Puryear, Thinking Politic s :
Intellec tuals and Democ rac y inC hile 1973-1988, Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins Univers ity Pres s ,
1994; B Loveman, 'The trans itionto c iviliang overnment inC hile', inP Drake & I Jaks ic (eds ), The
Strug g le f or Democ rac y inC hile, Linc olnNB: Univers ity of Nebras ka Pres s , 1995, pp 305-338; P
Oxhorn, Org anizing C ivil Soc iety: The Popular Sec tors and the Strug g le f or Democ rac y inC hile,
Univers ity Park, PA: Penns ylvania State Univers ity Pres s , 1995; and P Guillaudat & P Mouterde, Los
Movimientos Soc iales inC hile 1973-1993, Santiag o: Edic iones LOM, 1998.
7 J A Abalos et al, Una Puerta Que Se Abre: Los Org anis mos No-g ubernamentales enla C ooperac i6n
al Des arrollo, Santiag o: Taller de C ooperac ional Des arrollo, 1989; and B Loveman, 'C hileanNGOS:
f org ing a role inthe trans itionto democ rac y', inC Reilly (ed), New Paths to Democ ratic Develop-
ment inLatinAmeric a, Boulder, C O: Lynne Rienner, 1995, pp 119-144.
8 ESilva, 'The politic al ec onomy of C hile's reg ime trans ition: f romradic al to "prag matic " neoliberal
polic ies ', inDrake & Jaks ic , The Strug g le f or Democ rac y inC hile, pp 98-127.
A Varas , 'The c ris is of leg itimac y of military rule inthe 1980s ', inDrake & Jaks ic , The Strug g le f or
Democ rac y inC hile, pp 73-97.
M A Garreton, 'The politic al oppos itionand the party s ys temunder the military reg ime', inDrake &
Jaks ic , The Strug g le f or Democ rac y inC hile, pp 211-250; and A Valenzuela & P C ons table, 'The
C hileanplebis c ite: def eat of a dic tator', C urrent His tory, Marc h 1989, pp 139-153.
P Oxhorn, 'Rec ent res earc h onC hile: the c halleng e of unders tanding "s uc c es s "', LatinAmeric a
Res earc h Review, 34 (1), 1999, pp 255-271.
12 Oxhom, Org anizing C ivil Soc iety; C Sc hneider, 'C hile: the unders ide of the mirac le', NAC LA Report on
the Americ as , 26 (4), 1993, pp 30-31; and J Petras & F I Leiva, Democ rac y and Poverty inC hile: The
Limits to Elec toral Politic s , Boulder, C O: Wes tview, 1994.
3 Oxhorn, Org anizing C ivil Soc iety, p 282.
4 The key C onc ertac ionparties are the C hris tianDemoc rats (PDC ), the Soc ialis t Party (Ps ) and the Party
f or Democ rac y (PPD).
5 This c anbe trans lated as 'c ons ens us democ rac y', 'democ rac y by ag reement' or 'pac ted democ rac y'.
See Petras & Leiva, Democ rac y and Poverty inC hile; Oxhorn, 'Rec ent res earc h onC hile'; and L
Taylor, C itizens hip, Partic ipationand Democ rac y: C hang ing Dynamic s inC hile and Arg entina, New
York: St Martin's , 1998.
16 Taylor, C itizens hip, Partic ipationand Democ rac y, p 81.
17 For example, the 1980 C ons titutiondef ines property, s oc ial and welf are rig hts and res pons ibilities in
libertarianterms , s eparates politic al partic ipationf roma more leg itimate s oc ial partic ipationand s o
f orth. See C hapter Four of Taylor, C itizens hip, Partic ipationand Democ rac y, f or a c omplete dis c us -
s ionof the inf us ionof neoliberal values into the C hileanC ons titution.
18 Taylor, C itizens hip, Partic ipationand Democ rac y, p 52.
Petras & Leiva, Democ rac y and Poverty inC hile; Taylor, C itizens hip, Partic ipationand Democ rac y;
Oxhorn, Org anizing C ivil Soc iety; J C ollins & J Lear, C hile's Free Market Mirac le: A Sec ond Look,
Oakland, C A: Food Firs t, 1995; M C ooper, 'Mc C hile: General Pinoc het s till rules : twenty-f ive years
af ter Allende', The Nation, 23 Marc h 1998, pp 10-23; and A Riquelme, 'Voting f or nobody inC hile's
new democ rac y', NAC LA Report onthe Americ as , 32 (6), 1999, pp 31-33.
20 Quoted inOxhorn, Org anizing C ivil Soc iety, p 271.
T Moulian, C hile Ac tual" Anatomia de unMito, Santiag o: Edic iones LOM, 1997.
22
For ec onomic c ritiques , s ee Sc hneider, 'C hile: the unders ide of the mirac le'; C ollins & Lear, C hile's
Free Market Mirac le; C ooper, 'Mc C hile'; D Green, Silent Revolution: The Ris e of Market Ec onomic s
inLatinAmeric a, London: LatinAmeric a Bureau, 1995; P Verg ara, 'Inpurs uit of "g rowth and
equity": the limits of C hile's f ree-market s oc ial ref orms ', NAC LA Report onthe Americ as , 29 (6), 1996,
pp 37-42; and H Fazio, Mapa Ac tual de la Extrema Riqueza enC hile, Santiag o: Edic iones LOM,
1997.
23 D Green, 'C hile: the f irs t LatinAmeric antig er', NAC LA Report onthe Americ as , 28 (1), 1994, p 15.
24
For data and des c riptions of the environmental c ris is , s ee C ollins & Lear, C hile's Free Market
356
ENVIRONMENTAL POLITIC S IN C HILE
Mirac le; R Quirog a, El Tig re Sin Selva: C ons ec uenc ias Ambientales de la Trans f ormac ion
Ec on6mic a de C hile 1974-1993, Santiag o: iEP, 1994; M Lowy, 'Shredding C hile's f ores ts ', Multi-
national Monitor, 16 (1), 1995, pp 16-19; R Quirog a & S VanHauwermeiren, Globalizac io'n e
Ins us tentabilidad: Una Mirada Des de la Ec onomia Ec ol6g ic a, Santiag o: IEP, 1996; M C laude, Una
Vez Mds la Mis eria:
iEs
C hile unPais Sus tentable?, Santiag o: Edic iones LOM, 1997; M C laude,
C uentas Pendientes , Quito: Fundac i6nFuturo Latinoameric ano, 1997; ESilva, 'Democ rac y, market
ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile', Journal of Interameric anStudies and World Af f airs ,
38 (4), 1996, pp 1-34; ESilva, 'The politic s of s us tainable development: native f ores t polic y in
C hile', Venezuela, C os ta Ric a and Mexic o', Journal of LatinAmeric anStudies , 29 (2), 1997,
pp 457-494; R A C lapp, 'Waiting f or the f ores t law: res ourc e-led development and environmental
politic s inC hile', LatinAmeric anRes earc h Review, 33 (2), 1998, pp 3-36; and M A Altieri & A
Rojas , 'La trag edia ec olog ic a el "milag ro" neoliberal c hileno', Pers ona y Soc iedad, 13 (1), 1999,
pp 127-141.
25 For thoroug h doc umentationof C hile's environmental reg ime s ee Silva, 'Democ rac y, market
ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile'; M C as tillo, Re'g imen, Juridic o de Protec c ionde Medio
Ambiente, Santiag o: Edic iones Bloc , 1994; M C as tillo, El Derec ho a la Inf ormac ionAmbiental: Un
Derec ho Humano Ba's ic o en C hile y enLas Americ as , Santiag o: Org anizac i6n Panameric ana de
Salud, 1996; C ONAMA, Perf il Ambiental de C hile, Santiag o: C ONAMA, 1994; and C ONAMA, Ges ti6n
Ambiental del Gobierno de C hile, Santiag o: C ONAMA, 1997; T Tomic & F Toledo, 'Modemizac i6n,
des arrollo, y medio ambiente', inC Toloza & ELahera (eds ), C hile enLos Noventa, Santiag o:
Dolmen, 1998, pp 253-282.
26 Law 19.300 inthe Ley s obre Bas es Generales del Medio Ambiente, C ONAMA is the C omis i6nNac ional
del Medio Ambiente, and the C OREMAS are C omis iones Reg ionales del Medio Ambiente.
27 Silva, 'Democ rac y, market ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile'; and C as tillo, Re'g imen
Juridic o de Protec c i6nde Medio Ambiente.
28
T Anders on& D Leal, Free Market Environmentalis m, Boulder, C O: Wes tview, 1991.
29
A Weale, The New Politic s of Pollution, Manc hes ter: Manc hes ter Univers ity Pres s , 1992.
30 F Sabatini, 'C onf lic tos ambientales enAmeric a Latina: ,Dis tribuc i6nde externalidades o def inic i6n
de derec hos de propiedad?', inF Sabatini & C Sepulveda (eds ), C onf lic tos Ambientales : Entre la
Globalizac iony la Soc iedad C ivil, Santiag o: C IPMA, 1997, pp 49-74.
31 Tomic & Toledo, 'Modemizac i6n, des arrollo, y medio ambiente'; and 0 Sunkel, Sus tentabilidad
Ambiental del C rec imiento Ec on6mic o C hileno, Santiag o: Univers idad de C hile, 1996.
32 C ollins & Lear, C hile's Free Market Mirac le; M C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria; and Silva,
'Democ rac y, market ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile'.
33 JuanEs c udero, s pokes pers onf or C ONAMA, interviewed by the author, 2 June 1998, Santiag o. See als o
Tomic & Toledo, 'Modemizac ion, des arrollo, y medio ambiente'.
3 C laude, Una Ves Mds la Mis eria; Altieri & Rojas , 'La trag edia ec ol6g ic a del "milag ro" neoliberal
c hileno'; and Quirog a, El Tig re SinSelva.
3 C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria, pp 198-199.
36 Silva, 'Democ rac y, market ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile', p 25.
37
R
U Morales et al, RALC O: Modernidad o Etnoc idio enTerritorio Mapuc he, Temuc o: Ins tituto de
Es tudios Indig enas , Univers idad de la Frontera, 1998.
38 Doming o Namunc ura's ac c ount is revealed inhis book, Ralc o:
iRepres a
o Pobreza?, Santiag o,
Edic iones , LOM: 1999.
39 Good repres entative c ollec tions inc lude Quirog a & VanHauwermeiren, Globalizac i6ne Ins us tenta-
bilidad; C Padilla & P SanMartin, C onf lic tos Ambientales : Una Oportunidad para la Democ rac ia,
Santiag o: iEp, 1995; and P SanMartin, C onf lic tos
Ambientales enC hile, Santiag o: iEP, 1997.
40 Onmining , s ee R Nuniez & C Jung wirth, Oro y Sang re de Amyapampa y C apas irc a, Santiag o: iEP,
1997. Ons almonf arming s ee M C laude & J Oporto, La Inef ic ienc ia de la Salmonic ultura enC hile,
Santiag o: Terram, 2000. Onpes tic ides s ee M ERozas , Plag uic idas enC hile: La Guerra Quimic a y
s us Vic timas , Santiag o: iEp, 1995. Onthe urbanhig hway s ee L Sag aris & R Araya, C os tanera Norte:
iQue'
C iudad Queremos ?, Santiag o: Obervatorio Latinoameric ano de C onf lic tos Ambientales , 1997.
Onf ores ts s ee M Lowy, 'Shredding C hile's f ores ts '; Silva, 'The politic s of s us tainable development';
and C lapp, 'Waiting f or the f ores t law'.
41 JuanEs c udero, s pokes pers onf or C ONAMA, interviewed by the author, 2 June 1998, Santiag o. See
s pec if ic s inC ONAMA, Perf il
Ambiental de C hile. I s ay 'almos t unique' bec aus e only one other body of
law provides any s uc h opening : the 1993 Indig enous Law (Ley No 19.253).
42
C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria; F Sabatini,
'W,Que
hac er f rente a los c onf lic tos ambientales ?', in
Sabatini & Sepuilveda, C onf lic tos Ambientales , pp 299-317.
43 Silva, 'Democ rac y, market ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile', p 14.
4 Sabatini & Sepuilveda, C onf lic tos Ambientales .
45 C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria, p 200.
357
DAVID C ARRUTHERS
46
Taylor, C itizens hip, Partic ipationand Democ rac y, p 116.
4 Manuel Baquedano, Direc tor of the Ins tituto de Ec olog ia Polf tic a (IEP), interviewed by the author, 28
May 1998, Santiag o. See als o C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria, pp 203-210. The c las s if ic ations I
pres ent here are s ubjec t to interpretation, and may not ref lec t the way s ome org anis ations mig ht def ine
thems elves .
48 C omite' Nac ional pro Def ens a de la Fauna y Flora, and Def ens ores del Bos que C hileno.
C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria, pp 201-203.
50 See Silva's c ritique of C IPMA in'Democ rac y, market ec onomic s and environmental polic y inC hile'.
51
C laude, Una Vez Mds la Mis eria, p 213.
52 Not InMy Bac k Yard.
53 D Ghai & J M Vivian, Gras s roots Environmental Ac tion: People's Partic ipation inSus tainable
Development, London: Routledg e, 1992; and B Taylor (ed), Ec olog ic al Res is tanc e Movements : The
Global Emerg enc e of Radic al and Popular Environmentalis m, Albany, NY: SUNY Pres s , 1995.
4 This is demons trated ins everal of the c as es of environmental c onf lic t noted above, partic ularly in
c ourt c halleng es to environmental impac t as s es s ments . Lake Sag aris , journalis t and c ommunity
ac tivis t, interviewed by the author, 29 May 1998, Santiag o; and Marc elo C as tilla Sanc hez, environ-
mental attorney, interviewed by the author, 2 June 1999, Santiag o.
55 F Ros en, 'People's s ummit inC hile bring s tog ether divers e org anizations ', Mexic anLabor News and
Analys is , 3 (1), 1998, pp 1-3; and Vic tor Menotti, 'Santiag o's other s ummit', SanFranc is c o Bay
Guardian, 29 April 1998.
Is lam and C hris tian-Mus lim
Relations
EDITORS
John L. Es pos ito, Georg etownUnivers ity, Was hing ton, DC , USA
David Thomas , Univers ity of Birming ham, UK
Is lamand C hris tian-Mus limRelations (IC MR) is edited jointly by the C entre f or the Study of Is lamand
C hris tianMus limRelations (C SIC ), Selly Oak C olleg es , Birming ham, UK, now part of the Univers ity
of
Birming ham, and the C enter f or Mus lim-C hris tianUnders tanding , Georg etownUnivers ity,
Was hing ton,
DC , USA
IC MR provides a f orumf or all thos e who wis h to enhanc e their c ritic al apprec iationof the two relig ious
traditions onhis toric al empiric al, and onideolog ic al theoretic al levels .
The Editors welc ome s c holarly c ontributions c onc erning Is laminits relations with other g roups and
ideolog ies , pas t and pres ent, as well as onC hris tian-Mus limrelations worldwide.
Artic les are als o welc omed whic h deal with the role of Is lamand the nature of C hris tian-Mus limrelations and
analys is of theolog ic al, s oc ial, politic al and c ultural res pons es to Mus liminterac tionwith C hris tianand other
s oc ieties and c ultures , both as minorities and as majorities .
This journal is als o available online.
Pleas e c onnec t to http: //www.tandf .c o.uk/online.html f or f urther inf ormation.
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