The political crisis in Chile and the role of direct democracy in rebuilding democratic trust and institutionality. An essay to broaden the perspective on the democratic experiences of Chile and Uruguay and contribute to the direction of the current Chile

Abstract

The Social Outbreak that begins in October 2019, marks a milestone in our history. If the arrival of the pandemic is added to this, the country's condition is complex, especially because there are multiple elements to consider in directing an institutional solution to the current crisis, such as poverty, the feeling of inequality and injustice together the mistrust in the institutionality. These elements crystallize with the Outbreak and in the exercise of understanding them, they are organized around the idea thatthere is a general feeling of unease and a high level of democratic dissatisfaction present in Chile for at least 25 years, which has increased in time. In the search for elements to consider for the solution to the current crisis, some economic and social aspects present in the post-dictatorship processes in Chile and Uruguay are reviewed. The review of these comparative experiences concludes in the need to direct political actions towards the assurance of binding mechanisms to deepen democracy and regenerate citizen trust, advance in structural aspects of poverty and various expressions of inequality and incorporate institutional spaces to alternative organizations to the traditional ones.