Chile's New Authoritarian Playbook Takes Notes from El Salvador's Prison State
📰 THE STORY: ABC News reports that Chile's far-right president-elect has visited El Salvador's infamous mega-prison and plans to consult with President Nayib Bukele on 'security' strategies, praising his iron-fisted approach to crime. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: Chile endured 17 years of brutal military dictatorship under Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990), a regime installed
via a CIA-backed coup that overthrew democratically elected Salvador Allende. Over 3,000 people were murdered or 'disappeared,' tens of thousands tortured, and a neoliberal economic model imposed. To see a new Chilean leader admire a system accused of mass human rights abuses and due process violations mirrors a dark chapter in its own history. Double Standard: Western media quick to condemn
'authoritarianism' in nations targeted for regime change (e.g., Venezuela, Cuba) often sanitizes or even celebrates similar tactics when employed by US-aligned leaders (e.g., Bukele, Milei). The language shifts from 'human rights abuses' to 'tough-on-crime' pragmatism, ignoring the fact that El Salvador's mega-prison has held tens of thousands without proper trial, including many innocent people,
under a suspended constitutional rights framework. This is framed as a 'security success' rather than a massive erosion of civil liberties that would be decried if it happened in, say, Nicaragua. Follow the Money: Bukele's government, despite its anti-establishment rhetoric, has cultivated close financial ties with the US through multilateral institutions like the IMF and World Bank, and has