ABSTRACT
The fall of the Allende government in September 1973 marked the collapse of Chile’s long-standing democracy. The military coup also put an end to the long tradition of austerity that had characterised Chilean presidents, starting with Bernardo O’Higgins in 1817 and continuing uninterrupted until the fall of Salvador Allende’s government in 1973. Pinochet became the first Chilean president who enriched himself during his mandate. However, following democratic restoration, a series of new cases of civil service corruption emerged, directly involving members of the parties who made up the ruling Concertación coalition (which stayed in power for 20 years). This chapter shows how Pinochet and his family managed to appropriate public resources. It also gives a detailed analysis of several corruption scandals that emerged between 1990 and 2018 following democratic restoration. Although these cases are relatively small in terms of numbers and gravity, compared to what constitutes the norm in other Latin American countries, they have seriously damaged the prestige and legitimacy of the entire political class. Nevertheless, the different democratic governments and the Parliament did not remain indifferent to the appearance of a series of corruption cases from 1990 onwards. This chapter provides a detailed account of the wide range of legal and administrative initiatives adopted by the Chilean government in the past 20 years with the support of all political forces. This has put Chile at the forefront of anti-corruption policies in Latin America and has undoubtedly contributed to maintaining the country’s high standards of public probity.
