Political Parties and Social Movements in Post-transition Chile: Between Mistrust and Reconfiguration

Between Hope and Disaffection: The Chilean Constitution-Making Process and the Intermediation Crisis

“…Extensive research examines the relationship between society and political parties in Chile, primarily focusing on the gap between parties and social movements. Scholars have called this phenomenon the “political autonomization of social movements” (Parra 2021; Somma and Bargsted 2015; Somma and Medel 2017). It involves a two-way process in which political parties no longer rely on social movements for political sustainability and movements no longer require party resources to implement their strategies (Somma and Bargsted 2015, 228–29).…”

“…The center-left Concertación governments embraced a governance strategy founded on demobilizing social sectors and promoting economic growth to prevent an authoritarian reversal (Parra 2021; Tricot 2021). According to the specialized literature, most movements have followed an autonomization pattern during the past two decades (Parra 2021; Somma and Medel 2017). Although autonomization is a general trend in Chile, there have been nuances in the process.…”

“…The human-rights’ movement emerged as a response to human-rights abuses during the dictatorship, primarily against left-wing party members. However, it has moved increasingly toward autonomy, maintaining ties mainly with the CP (Parra 2021).…”

“…These included the Movement for the Defense of Access to Water, Land, and Environmental Protection (MODATIMA) and Patagonia without Dams. This support enabled them to operate independently of political-party resources (López 2023; Parra 2021). Similarly, the No+AFP movement—a coordinating committee of trade unions and citizens opposed to the individual capitalization pension system—developed its tactics with political autonomy (Rozas and Maillet 2019).…”