Heine Discusses Chilean Leadership in Latin America Advisor
Ambassador Jorge Heine, Research Professor at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, was recently featured in the Latin America Advisor, a publication of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington D.C. think tank.
Heine responded to the publication’s feature Q&A, which asked about the leadership of Chilean President Sebastián Piñera. At the end of July, Piñera approved a law allowing citizens to withdraw a portion of their pension savings to alleviate economic hardship caused by the coronavirus pandemic; however, his own government opposed the measure. Following this, he appointed a new foreign minister, interior minister, and other top officials in his cabinet.
When asked to comment on this matter, Heine said that Piñera’s government has been out of touch with the citizenry for much of his term as it struggled to accept changes to the “Chilean model,” based on low taxes, privatized social services, and high inequality. He argued that the government had a second chance with the COVID-19 outbreak to truly prove itself, but the country’ response did not instill confidence.
An excerpt:
Piñera’s is now a coalition government dominated by hardliners, just at the time when Chile enters a period of many elections, starting with a plebiscite on the constitution next October. Paradoxically, the opposition is not in better shape either, having been unable to capitalize on the country’s current mess.
The full issue of the Latin America Advisor can be read here.
Ambassador Jorge Heine is a Research Professor at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. He has served as ambassador of Chile to China (2014-2017), to India (2003-2007) and to South Africa (1994-1999), and as a Cabinet Minister in the Chilean Government. Read more on him here.