More than 50 artists and intellectuals demanded more unity by the opposition forces to achieve a higher representation in the Constitutional Convention to draft the new Constitution for Chile.
In a public letter, 61 prominent personalities expressed their ‘deep concern about the complex scenario being faced by the wide and diverse world of the opposition’ before one of the most important political events of the past 40 years.
On January 11, candidates must be registered to elect the members of the Convention in April 2021, and in this regard, the signatories pointed out that ‘if we lose sight of the relevance of this founding moment and the opposition presents several lists, the right wing will win and will be over-represented in this body.’
This, they warned, will have serious consequences for the content of the Constitution and, therefore, the constitutional process will fail to respond to the demands and aspirations expressed by the Chilean people in the social riots that began in October 2019.
The text recalls that this month a group of political and social leaders, artists and prominent people in national life, publicly called for forging a political and social agreement to build a unitary list of the opposition, with a large integration of independent people, especially social and cultural leaders.
In this sense, the signatories demanded that the political parties and movements and social organizations ‘work tirelessly and reach an agreement to present a Unitary List of Opposition to the Constitutional Convention, with about 60 percent of independent candidates.
They also called on all those forces to agree on the essential contents of the new constitution, especially ‘the establishment of a Social and Democratic Rule of Law to build a more just and dignified country for all. Our people and this historic moment demand from us to be up to the challenge.’
Among the signatories are Raul Zurita, winner of the National Prize for Literature and 2020 Reina Sofia Prize for Ibero-American Poetry; Elicura Chihualiaf, 2020 National Literature Prize winner; Claudio Di Girolamo Carlini, film director and playwright; singer-songwriters Isabel Parra and Patricio Manns, and Jorge Coulon, a member of the emblematic Inti Illimani group.
Other signatories are actors Alejandro Goic, Delfina Guzman, Alfredo Castro, Claudia Di Girolamo and Amparo Noguera, and writers Pia Barros, Pedro Cayuqueo, Jorge Baradit and Marcela Serrano, among many other intellectuals.
