Chile


This country page describes, in brief, data that TJET has compiled on regime transitions, intrastate conflict episodes, and transitional justice mechanisms. For details on the data included on this page, view the FAQ.

For Chile, TJET has collected information on: two amnesties between 1971 and 1978; 483 domestic trials starting between 1973 and 2020; twelve foreign trials starting between 1987 and 2012; two reparations policies created between 1992 and 2004; and four truth commissions mandated between 1990 and 2009.

Select any transitional justice mechanism in the table below to view a timeline in the figure.


Country Background

Democratic Transition

Based on well-known democracy data, TJET records one democratic transition starting in 1989.

Chile has made significant democratic progress since its 17 years under the repressive military regime of General Augusto Pinochet. The country regularly holds free and fair elections in a multiparty system where power frequently changes hands between ruling and opposition parties. Until 2020, Chile continued to operate under Pinochet's 1980 constitution that formalized a “restricted” democracy.

In 1980, the country adopted a constitution that provided for a plebiscite regarding the regime in 1988. In the plebiscite, the Chilean people voted "no" to another presidential term for Pinochet. In 1989, general elections were held, ultimately resulting in an alternation of power to the administration of Patricio Aylwin in 1990. This transition marked a shift from military dictatorship to democratic rule.

In 2020 a plebiscite overwhelmingly supported a convention to draft a new charter, and this convention met for the first time in July 2021. Chileans have staged massive protests since 2019 over social inequality, and law enforcement agencies were widely criticized for responding with human rights violations.

Data up to 2020. Hover over column labels for definitions.

Violent Conflict

Based on the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, TJET records one violent intrastate conflict episode in 1973, involving one armed opposition group fighting against the government.

Pinochet took power in 1973 in a US-backed coup that toppled

the country’s socialist president. The regime declared a state of “internal war,” and waged a campaign of one-sided violence against its political opponents. The truth commission later recognized three distinct periods of violence. The first, and most acute, took place in the months immediately following the coup. The second phase began in 1974 and was marked by the institutionalization of repression through decree and the creation of the Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional (DINA) to oversee the program of forced disappearance and torture. The final phase began in 1977 when DINA was replaced with the Centro Nacional de Información (CNI) and an armed resistance emerged. In 1978, the regime passed a self-amnesty law, and human rights violations continued through the end of Pinochet's presidency in 1988.

Data up to 2020. Hover over column labels for definitions. Source: UCDP Dyadic Dataset version 23.1, https://ucdp.uu.se/downloads/index.html#dyadic.


Transitional Justice Data

As of 2020, Chile ranks 115th out of 174 on TJET’s legacy of violence index. For a full list of country rankings over time, view the index page, and for an explanation of the index, view the Methods & FAQs page.


Amnesties

Chile had two amnesties between 1971 and 1978. The first released political prisoners. The latter remained in effect following the democratic transition in 1989, and for years, it prevented criminal accountability for crimes of the military regime.

Data up to 2020. Hover over column labels for definitions.


Domestic Trials

Chile has held the most domestic human rights prosecutions of any country in the world. TJET has compiled data on 483 domestic prosecutions between 1973 and 2020. These include 462 transitional human rights prosecutions of state agents, in which 355 persons were convicted; 18 regular human rights prosecutions of state agents, in which ten persons were convicted; 115 intrastate conflict prosecutions of state agents, in which 101 persons were convicted; and one intrastate conflict prosecution of opposition members, in which no one was convicted. In 190 trials that involved high-ranking state agents, 156 persons were convicted.