[ "The world has much to learn from the exemplary process of the
convention and the visionary product on which Chile will vote in its
September plebiscite."]
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TOP ECONOMISTS HAIL CHILEAN CONSTITUTION AS ‘NEW GLOBAL STANDARD’
ON CLIMATE, INEQUALITY  
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Jake Johnson
August 10, 2022
Common Dreams
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_ "The world has much to learn from the exemplary process of the
convention and the visionary product on which Chile will vote in its
September plebiscite." _

Chilean President Gabriel Boric shows the final draft of the
constitutional proposal after signing it during its presentation at
the National Congress in Santiago on July 4, 2022., (Photo: Javier
Torres/AFP via Getty Images)

 

A GROUP OF WORLD-RENOWNED economists and social scientists published
an open letter Wednesday hailing Chile's draft constitution as a
transformative document that—if granted final approval by the
Chilean people on September 4—would serve as a "new global standard"
on fighting the climate crisis and pervasive inequality.

Signed by Thomas Piketty, Jayati Ghosh, Gabriel Zucman, and other
luminaries from across the globe, the new letter
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the proposed constitution
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a "visionary product" from which the rest of the world "has much to
learn."

"For the first time, a constitution recognizes care work, social
reproduction, and women's health as fundamental to the prospects of
the economy," the letter notes.

The experts proceed to cite the 178-page document's approach to
"public services and social security" as "another source of
inspiration."

"By establishing new institutions for the provision of universal
public services like education, health, and social security," the
letter reads. "Chile successfully applies the lessons of recent
history that show the importance of these services for both short-term
economic resilience and long-term economic growth."

A 154-member assembly finalized the newly proposed constitution in May
following a lengthy and contentious process kicked off by a 2020
plebiscite, in which Chileans overwhelmingly voted
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replace the right-wing constitution that the Pinochet
dictatorship—ushered into power in a U.S.-backed coup—foisted upon
the country decades earlier.

"This is an ecological and equal constitution with social rights at
its very core," María Elisa Quinteros, the president of the assembly,
said of the new document in a recent interview
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Guardian_.

Months before the new document was completed, leftist Gabriel Boric
won the Chilean presidency on a vow to bury neoliberalism
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a resounding signal of the public's desire for sweeping change in
the deeply unequal
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While neoliberal mouthpieces such as _The
Economist_—which actively helped foment
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1973 coup that brought Pinochet to power—have criticized
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newly proposed constitution as a "left-wing wish list" that poses a
threat to the nation's "business climate
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expert observers have applauded
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remarkable and historic, given its recognition of the government's
obligation to fight the climate crisis, provide free public education,
and protect Indigenous people and other vulnerable groups.

In their letter Wednesday, the top economists and social scientists
write that "taken together, we believe that the constitution creates a
legal framework that will succeed to prepare Chile for a new century
of equitable growth, with provisions to attract investment, protect
financial stability, and promote development for all Chileans."

Read the letter in full below:

_We, economists and social scientists from around the world, commend
the Chilean constitutional convention and the visionary document it
has produced to secure sustainable growth and shared prosperity for
Chile._

_We believe that the new constitution sets a new global standard in
its response to crises of climate change, economic insecurity, and
sustainable development. The economic provisions of the constitution
would represent gradual but substantial advances for the people of
Chile._

_The approach to gender in the constitution marks a major step forward
in the economic model of development. For the first time, a
constitution recognizes care work, social reproduction, and women's
health as fundamental to the prospects of the economy._

_The approach to public services and social security is another source
of inspiration. By establishing new institutions for the provision of
universal public services like education, health, and social security,
Chile successfully applies the lessons of recent history that show the
importance of these services for both short-term economic resilience
and long-term economic growth._

_The constitution's tax policy mandates promise to tackle Chile's
economic inequality—among the highest in the OECD—while upgrading
the country's revenue to OECD standards, reducing dependency on
extractive rents and contributing to sustainable public finances._

_The approach to work represents an important and democratic response
to our times. By enshrining rights to work and collective action, the
constitution aims to redress the crisis of precarity that afflicts
economies around the world._

_Finally, the approach to central banking sets a new global benchmark.
By enshrining a mandate the takes account of financial stability,
employment protection, and environmental care, the constitution
establishes a responsible framework for central banking that is fit
for the 21st century._

_Taken together, we believe that the constitution creates a legal
framework that will succeed to prepare Chile for a new century of
equitable growth, with provisions to attract investment, protect
financial stability, and promote development for all Chileans. The
world has much to learn from the exemplary process of the convention
and the visionary product on which Chile will vote in its September
plebiscite._

* Chile
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* Constitution
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* Human Rights
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* model legislation
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