EL COMETA MARINO República de Chile

EL COMETA
MARINO
República de Chile
Ben Scheelk
Amanda Emerson
"I grew up in this town, my poetry was
born between the hill and the river, it
took its voice from the rain, and like the
timber, it steeped itself in the forests.“
Pablo Neruda
GEOGRAPHY
 2880 miles long, 4000 miles of coastline
 >200 miles wide in most places
 Northern Region
 Arid/Semiarid, Atacama Desert, mineral wealth
 Central Region
 Mediterranean, agricultural, urban centers
 Southern Region
 Oceanic, Subpolar Oceanic, Tundra
 Forests, lakes, rivers, fishing
 Islands
 Easter Island, Robinson Crusoe Island
 Sala y Gómez, San Ambrosio and San Felix Islands
 Alpine
ORIGINS
 Monte Verde site
 14,000 BCE
 Pre-Clovis
 Cueva del Milodon
 Pali Aike Crater’s lava tube
 Northern People
 Pre-Incan influence, handicrafts
 Araucanian (Mapuche) Culture
 Agriculture, hunting and gathering
 Patagonian Culture

Nomadic, fishing and hunting
COLONIZATION AND INDEPENDENCE
Colonial Period
 Santiago founded in 12 February,1541
 Captaincy General of Chile (under Viceroyalty of Peru)
 Establishment of encomiendas, provide food for Peru
Pedro de Valdivia
Independence
 Usurpation of Spanish throne, struggle among Criollos
 Patria Vieja, Reconquista, and Patria Nueva
 Declaration of Independence - 12 February, 1818
Bernardo O’Higgins
HISTORICAL PERIODS
 Constitutional Organization (1818-1833)
 Conservative Era (1830-1861)
 Liberal Era (1861-1891)
 Parliamentary Republic (1891-1925)
 Presidential Republic (1925-1973)
 Military Government (1973-1989)
 Democracy (1989-Present)
Battle of Iquique - 21 May 1879
SOCIETY
 16,601,707 (July 2010 est.)
 Population growth rate: 0.881% (2010 est.)
 Urban population: 88% of total (2008)
 IMMIGRATION has had a major influence
 Ethnicity
 White and White-Amerindian 95.4%
 Mapuche 4%, other indigenous groups 0.6% (2002 census)
 Language
 Spanish, German, English
 Indigenous: Mapudungun, Quechua, Aymara, and Rapa Nui
 Religion
 Roman Catholic 70%,
 Evangelical 15.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.1%, other Christian 1%,
 Other 4.6%, none 8.3% (2002 census)
Source: CIA World Factbook
CULTURE
 Major Influences:
 Andean, Mapuche
 Spanish, European, US
 Music and Dance
 Folkloric, popular, classical
 Cueca, zoomorphic (rooster and hen)
 Literature
 Gabriella Mistral, Pablo Neruda
 Cuisine
 Asado, cazuela, empanadas, humitas,
pastel de choclo, pastel de papas, curanto
 Sports
 Fútbol, rodeo, tennis, skiing/snowboarding, surfing
ECONOMY
 GDP (nominal) - $161.781 billion (2009 est.)
 Per capita - $10,025
 Major Financial Center of Latin America
 High Income Disparity - Gini (2009): 52 (ranges from 28-70)
 Market-oriented economy
 High level of international trade, exportation of primary resources
 Trade liberalizing agreements, proponent of Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)
 First OECD member in South America (Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development)
 Largest copper exporter in the world
 Other Exports:
 Minerals, forestry/wood products, fresh fruit, processed foods, fishmeal, seafood, and wine
 Tourism
Energy Source
ENERGY
 Electricity consumption (43rd):
57.29 billion kWh (2007 est.)
 Oil consumption
(47th):
277,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
 Natural Gas consumption (79th):
2.34 billion cu m (2008 est.)
 Energy Resources
 Hydroelectric
 Thermoelectric
 Alternative
 Environmental Issues
Hydro,
34%
Wind,
1%
Thermal,
65%
POLITICS
 Unitary Presidential Republic
 Central government is supreme
 Administrative divisions exercise only
powers delegated by the central state
 Executive, Legislative, Judicial
 1980 Constitution
 President Sebastián Piñera
 Bicameral Congress
 38-seat Senate
 120-member Chamber of Deputies
MILITARY DICTATORSHIP
 President Salvador Allende
 Socialist Party of Chile
 “Unidad Popular”
 Promoted worker’s interests, nationalized industries
 Destabilization on multiple fronts
 General Augusto Pinochet
 Coup d’Etat – 11 September, 1973
 Human rights violations, “Caravan of Death”
 Neoliberal reforms, movement toward free-market
economy
 A wound which refuses to heal…
 National Commission for Truth and Reconciliation
 Rhettig, Report (1991),Valech Report (2004)
“Perhaps this war will pass like the others
which divided us leaving us dead, killing us along
with the killers but the shame of this time puts
its burning fingers to our faces. Who will erase
the ruthlessness hidden in innocent blood?”
Pablo Neruda