Earthquake Unveils Hidden Chile

Translated by Karen Chang

The ST is from Jorge Ramos’ recent article “Dos Chiles Tras el Sismo,” first published in March 2010, after the Chilean earthquake. The article is an opinion article that examines the underlying social problems such as inequality and poverty in Chile. The ST belongs to a hybrid genre within the written discourse. The ST contains factual reference of the earthquake, which situates the text in the descriptive genre. However, the ST also has a persuasive function that seeks to express the author’s opinion, and his interpretation on the situation.

Source text: “Dos Chiles tras el sismo”

Earthquake Unveils Hidden Chile
Jorge Ramos
March 8, 2010

It’s not about the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that has split Chile into two. What happened is that the earthquake has uncovered the reality of two Chiles. The first Chile is the one marketed abroad : modern, avant-garde, industrious , a country of free trade agreements, an almost first world nation. The other one is the Chile that wasn’t invite to the party, the one who didn’t board the development bus , the home for those ignored by the residents of the Mint Palace (Chile’s Presidential Palace) and the intact skyscrapers of capital Santiago.

This is the ‘primitive Chile’ , according to diplomat and writer Jorge Edwards. It has always been there, he commented, but not many noticed it, until the earthquake shook off the veil . The best evidence of the existence of two Chiles emerged during the riots in the city of Concepción a few hours after the earthquake. The violence caught everyone by surprise . Thousands of Chileans from the ignored Chile felt disconnected and completely isolated from the rest of the country and the central government. They went to the streets to sack shops and supermarkets. Some of them were after food for their families . Others took advantage of the chaos and stole Plasma TVs and refrigerators in a city that didn’t even have electricity. No wonder many Chileans were horrified at the thefts and looting. But, like the filmmaker Jorge Ulla commented, poverty cannot be hidden .

In Chile, as the rest of Latin America, the richest ten percent of the population earns more than half of the nation’s income. The poor continue to be terribly poor, and can barely survive. These poor people were the ones who complained of the absence of aid. They were the ones who were attacked by the army when the president Michelle Bachelet finally decided to send soldiers to control the disturbances a few days later. I can understand her hesitation in making that decision. The army has not attacked the people ever since the cruel era of General Augusto Pinochet . Even Bachelet’s own father died during the dictatorship. It was not an easy decision, but she hesitated too long. That was her first mistake.

Chilean’s fear towards the army seems hereditary. It’s as though it has been passed down from generation to generation through their genes. I have never seen a Latin American country respect their army so much. “Not even a bird flies without authorization” a military told me. He wasn’t joking. The journalists had to submit. We could only enter Concepción with a safe-conduct permit from the military. The curfew only allowed people go out from their houses for six hours a day to look for water and food. However, sometimes this was an impossible task. It was incredible to see that almost every business and office closed for days in the second biggest city of the country.

The second mistake was Bachelet’s government not warning the inhabitants of the towns on the southern coast the risk of a tsunami after Saturday’s earthquake. The army had already admitted their mistake. But it was tragic that many lives were lost because of bureaucratic inefficiency. The Third mistake was that Chiles’ reputation of self- reliance crumbled a few days after the earthquake. A government official stated that offers of international aid would be studied. But he mentioned nothing about accepting them. The vague and inept response stopped international aid when lives could be saved, and the populations in the most affected areas could receive help.

President Bachelet did not say anything about the minister’s statement and it took her six days to clarify that Chile never turned down international aid. I suppose that the sight of Peruvian President Alan Garcia offering help — in spite of the two countries’ long-standing maritime disputes and historical tensions – was too difficult for Chile’s politicians to swallow . But these are extraordinary moments.

The Fourth mistake was that the aid did not go to the people most affected by the earthquake. I talked to many people in the city who lost their homes, who were living on the streets, and hadn’t received a single piece of bread . This made the president’s earlier statement that there had been no interruption in food and gasoline provisions seem utterly absurd . If Bachelet walked a few blocks without bodyguards, she would realize that this was not true.

The fifth mistake was Bachelet’s paralysis in the Mint Palace . The earthquake overwhelmed Bachelet. The Chileans wanted her to be in control of the situation. But, she delayed to visit the worst hit towns and cities. Mind you , she was a good president in normal times but not during times of crisis.

Now, it’s the new president Sebastian Piñera’s turn, to fulfill the expectations of the people. His mission, he said, is not about rebuilding the country, but to rebuild it better. And it’s true. Chile’s fundamental problems are not the cracks caused by the earthquake or the cities destroyed by the Tsunami. The fundamental problem is that some people kept pace with modernity, but did not realize that millions of their countrymen were left behind, without hope, and without a way to catch up. With the collision of tectonic plates, the Chilean society may foresee what is to come. If the tension caused by inequality is not relieved , then the next problem might be greater. Piñera’s challenge will be to unite two Chiles into one. If he doesn’t, the country runs the risk of experiencing a shock even greater than the Feb. 27 quake.