Why did so many self-described progressives respond to an anti-semitic attack by questioning the victims, asks JULIA BARD
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The Chilean army needs a root and branch reform
CARMEN HERTZ speaks to Hugo Guzman about the context of the resignation the army’s comander-in-chief general Ricardo Martinez and the institution’s vast network of corruption, fraud and embezzlement
Chilean Army Chief General Ricardo Martinez hands in his resignation, Carmen Hertz
[Carmen Hertz pic: Rodrigo Fernandez/Creative Commons]
A nationwide mobilisation signals growing resistance to the far right, but lasting change will depend on deep organising in every corner of society, writes GAWAIN LITTLE
Art matters because stories, herstories, histories, and even flights of fancy matter, posits MATT KERR
As the far right gains ground, Fire Brigades Union members are organising in workplaces and on the streets to defend public services and workers’ rights, says STEVE WRIGHT
As far-right rhetoric rises and political tensions deepen, an unprecedented alliance of organisations marches to assert that inclusivity, not exclusion, defines the majority, says STEVE GILLAN
As extremist movements grow on the streets and at the ballot box, the emergence of the Together Alliance points to a vital strategy: unity across trade unions, campaigners and communities, says TONY CONWAY
THE head of Chile’s armed forces General Ricardo Martinez resigned on March 2 over corruption allegations. Three of his four predecessors in the post, the same held by General Pinochet when he overthrew elected president Salvador Allende, are caught up in the corruption scandal.
LET US look at some facts. All the commanders-in-chief of Chile’s armed forces from Augusto Pinochet until now, including Ricardo Martinez, have been prosecuted or indicted for crimes of embezzlement. Pinochet has also been prosecuted for crimes against humanity, and two commanders-in-chief — supporters of Salvador Allende — were assassinated on Pinochet’s orders: general Rene Schneider in 1970 in Santiago and general Carlos Prats in 1974 in Buenos Aires.
The status quo of military impunity undermines Chile’s democratic institutions, it is an affront to society as a whole and a discredits the army, which enjoys unprecedented institutional autonomy, discretion and arbitrariness in the conduct of its affairs.
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