In 1809, the Chilean writer, José Camilo Henríquez, responding to South America's first shudders of independence in Quito, christened that city "Luz de America" (the light of America), correctly predicting the forces of self-determination unleashed in Quito would quickly be imitated in other colonies. Two hundred years later, however, it is Chile that is proving a beacon to the rest of Latin America.This week, the world's eyes were firmly on Chile's stunning rescue of 33 trapped miners. This comes as a welcome break from the world attention usually lavished on Brazil for its economic "miracle" or the near universal opprobrium directed at Mexico or Venezuela. But here in Latin America, Chile has been top of mind for some time now thanks to a string of successes that have gone largely unheralded outside the region. The world did note Chile's construction codes prevented much of the country from being totally flattened by the powe
rful earthquake in February but attention quickly faded; the wonder, however, was not the existence of such building codes--many countries in the region have them on the books--but that the codes were actually followed.
It is this respect for laws and regulations, and the social cohesion evidenced in the way the country rallied behind the rescue of the miners, that fascinates Chile's neighbors. Again and again, I hear phrases like, "Why can't we be more like Chile?" or, "This type of thing doesn't happen in Chile." Here in Ecuador--where last month the country was nearly brought to its knees by striking police--the lamentations are particularly pointed. Comparisons between the two countries are rife these days, particularly in the way the governments responded to their respective crises. For example, in Chile: full media freedom to cover the mine crisis, warts and all; in Ecuador: complete black-out of independent media during the strike and an ongoing state-of-emergency a full two weeks afterwards.
This year--which incidentally is the bicentennial of Chile's independence--has been particularly revealing as the country has racked up one success after another. In January, all Latin America
marveled when Chile became the first country from the region to join the OECD (Organization for Economic Development and Co-operation), the grouping of the world's 31 wealthiest nations. This means Chile can no longer be referred to as a developing nation and grouped among "third-world" states. Chile's economic development has far outstripped its neighbors. As today's Washington Post notes, Chile has grown twice as fast as Brazil and reduced poverty to a much greater extent than even oil-rich Venezuela, with its wealth redistribution programs.
Another example of the country's success that hasn't gone unnoticed in neighboring countries is the relative strength of its financial sector. While much of the world reviles banks and bankers, laying the blame of the economic downturn at their feet, in Chile banks are respected. This is because the bankers have long worked collaboratively with government--Chile, for example, has a fully-privatized national pension program--and conservative lending policies and strong banking regulations meant banks in Chile largely escaped the financial crisis. Even the most liberal locals are grudgingly proud of the performance of their banks in the face of near-global financial collapse elsewhere.
Politically, too, Chile's successes make the rest of Latin America appear lacking. This year, Sebastian Piñera, a wealthy entrepreneur, coasted to victory in Chile's presidential elections (see Piñera below, with a miner). What was remarkable was that Piñera is a member of the right-wing party associated with the military dictatorship of the 70s and 80s while the majority of Chileans self-identify as liberals (more than 60%, according to one source). What is even more remarkable is his election comes only 20 years after the end of General Augusto Pinochet's brutal reign. Before Piñera's election, it was not uncommon to hear Chileans comment they would never vote to allow the right-wing party to return to power. And yet, this year they did just that because in Piñera they saw a technocrat who could continue to manage Chile's growth and bring needed reforms to government. They also saw in him a man whose pragmatism could further the country's internal cohesion and whose extensive international experience would further integrate Chile internationally; both qualities were on display as he led the response (much of it dependent on international firms) to the mine rescue.
Almost all of the countries in Latin America suffered under right-wing, military rule during the later years of the Cold War, but few suffered for as long, and with as much brutality, as Chile which saw Pinochet rule with an iron fist from 1973 until 1990.
The military coup that brought him to power was particularly bloody and left the presidential palace (right) a smoking ruin. Chileans will be the first to say that the scars are numerous and internal divisions within the country remain, but to the outside world they are practically invisible.
Chile isn't paradise, as any Chilean will be quick to point out. Poverty is still a problem and political and economic power is overwhelmingly concentrated in Santiago at the expense of the provinces. But, increasingly, Chile's neighbors are seeing in the country's success an example to follow as they deal with the same, seemingly intractable issues Chile has slowly, persistently begun to surmount.
Of the many vignettes from the miner rescue that has been given large play in the South American media was the reaction of the one non-Chilean to be rescued. Carlos Mamani, a Bolivian citizen, was met upon arriving at the surface by Bolivia's president, Evo Morales, a follower of the Venezuela-model of populist government and state-controlled economy (the opposite of the public-private partnership approach followed by Chile). The Bolivian leader offered to fly the miner home in the presidential jet and to give the man a house. But the miner had other ideas. "Thank you, Mr. President," he replied, "but I'm doing better here."
