This book analyzes how the past and its representation in the public space have been a source of conflict in Chile since the end of the Pinochet regime. From a multi-disciplinary perspective (sociology, anthropology and history), it studies the work of seven organizations of memory and human rights in Santiago, Chile, the struggles in which they are engaged, and the main debates that have arisen in the country around the themes of impunity, truth and memory.Covering the period from 1998 to 2018, this book begins its analysis with the detention of Augusto Pinochet in London and concludes with the end of the second term of Michelle Bachelet. The seven organizations studied range from family groups and survivors to sites of memory and consciousness. Through analyses of the discourses produced by these organizations, it examines particular historical periods(1998-2000, 2001-2008, 2009-2010, 2011-2013 and 2014-2018) by focusing on strong debates and events of these conjunctures in order to highlight the struggles of meaning and the conflicts of legitimacy relating to these times. In concrete terms, particular attention is paid to the analysis of the main themes of litigation, the way in which the actors are mobilized, their objectives and how the past is evoked in the public space.
Battles for Memory and Justice in Chile: Struggles for Remembrance, Legitimacy and Accountability will be of interest to researchers from different disciplines and fields of study within the human and social sciences, such as sociologists, historians and anthropologists working in fields such as Latin American studies, sociology of memory, sociology of social movements and human rights studies.
Author(s): Joannie Jean
Series: Latin American Societies: Current Challenges in Social Sciences
Publisher: Springer
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 208
City: Cham
Battles for Memory and Justice in Chile
Struggles for Remembrance, Legitimacy and Accountability
Copyright
Preface
Acknowledgments
Contents
List of Figures
About the Author
Abbreviations
Chapter 1: Introduction
Organization of This Book
Brief Literature Review
Plural Memories, National Memories, and Cultural Traces of Memory
Commemorations and Performances of the Past
Social Movements: Memorial and Legal Activism
Research Questions and Scientific Relevance
A Brief Contextualization
Chile’s Path from Socialism to Dictatorship
Transition to Democracy
Post-transitional Era?
References
Chapter 2: Theoretical and Conceptual Framework
Sociology of Memory: Memory, Representations, and Identities
Emblematization of Memory
The Porteurs de Mémoire: At the Intersection of the Sociology of Memory and Social Movements
Sociology of Social Movements: Political Process Theory
Discourse Analysis: Between Theory and Method
Methods
General Presentation
References
Chapter 3: The Year That Changed Everything (1998–2000)
1998 or the Judicial Saga That Imprisoned Pinochet for 503 Days
The Arrest of Pinochet in London: Some Historical Background
Meanwhile in Chile…
Mobilizations of Memory: Discursive Struggles Around the Person of Pinochet
Struggles around the Representation of Augusto Pinochet
Pinochet as a Dictator
Pinochet as a General
Fight Against Impunity
Opposition to Government Efforts
Safeguarding National Sovereignty: Efforts for the Repatriation of Pinochet
Mobilizations of Memory: Discursive Struggles Around the Issue of Justice and the Mesa
La Mesa: Some Historical Background
Stance of Organizations in Relation to the Mesa
Points of Convergence Between the AFEP, the AFDD, and the ANEXPP
Associations’ Space in the Media and Political Recognition
Conclusion
References
Chapter 4: Renewal of the Struggle and Pinochet’s Final Dance with Justice (2001–2008)
Historical Background
Impunity or the Myth of Justice
The Power of Judges
Presidential Pardon Project
Campaign for the Cancellation of the Amnesty Law and the Bachelet Effect
Recovery of Londres 38: An Event Apart
Pinochet’S Last Stand
Human Rights and Memory Organizations
Space Occupied by the Groups, Collaboration, and Opportunities
Conclusion
References
Chapter 5: Disappointed Hopes and the Return of the Right (2009–2010)
Bachelet and Impunity
Impunity Under Piñera
Relations Between Organizations and the Piñera Administration
Indulto Bicentenario (Bicentennial Pardon) or the Continuation of the Prescription
Rossy Lama: Problems of Subjectivity
The Hearing with Piñera and the Exit of Hinzpeter
Public Space for Memory: The Case of the MMDH
The MMDH Under Bachelet
MMDH Under Piñera
Opportunity, Collaboration, and Space for Associations
Conclusion
References
Chapter 6: Making Memory an Object of the Present and Human Rights an Object of Debate (2011–2013)
Impunity
The Judiciary and Impunity
The Closing of the Cordillera Prison and the Suicide of Mena
Commemorative Activities of September 11, 2013
Los Lienzos de la Memoria: The Banners of Memory
Space for Associations: Role and Project for Society
Conclusion
References
Chapter 7: Today and Tomorrow (2014–2018): A Question of Impunity
Introduction
Impunity and the Secrecy Surrounding the Valech Commission
Punta Peuco: Prison Benefits, Justice, and Prison Closure
Campaign for the Release and Granting of Prison Benefits
Justice and Impunity: Judicial Power and Prisoner Release
“Se cierra o no se cierra Punta Peuco”: Will the Prison Ever Be Closed?
Nunca Más, Biological Impunity, and Bachelet
References
Chapter 8: Politics of Memory and Political Disaffection: Between Collaboration, Distrust, and Disapproval
Solidarities, Opportunities, and Occupied Spaces
Conclusion
References
Index
