During the 1970s, Latin America had characteristic military governments whose ideologies revolved around antipolitics. Military rulers grabbed power from rightfully elected civilian leaders throughout the region, citing that political classes were responsible for poverty and civil unrest.In 1973, General Augusto Pinochet replaced socialist President Salvador Allende, elected in 1970. Several factors, including the support of the US government, led to the overthrowing of Allende in 1973. Also, domestic and international factors led to the transition of Chile from a military government to a democratic state. Until 1990, women did not take part in political decisions. However, women’s organizations both in the right and the left end of the political arena played critical roles in organizing oppositions to military rule in their country.
Traditionally in Chilean society, women assumed private duties while men were active in political spheres. However, General Pinochet’s neo-liberal economic strategies and political injustices made women in the country to take collective action in 1989-1990 to champion for democracy in Chile. As a result, women began to be actively involved in economic and political tasks outside their home settings. The introduction of the arpillera movement gave women a chance to take part in administrative tasks significantly in the process of democratization of the country, which involved the removal of the military regime. For instance, the Mujeres Por la Vida (Women for life) comprising of sixteen women leaders formed in 1983 championed for democratic reforms. Women for life were a movement that mobilized other women to support the end of the military government and raise gender concerns that affected women in Chile.
The Mujeres Por la Vida supported the increment of the rights of women and actively insisted on the inclusion of women in the political agenda in Chile. The movement claimed that the military crisis created the need for a political party that gave the Chileans a right to choose their leader. The campaign rallied women in the country to organize protests against the disappearance of their loved ones and condemn the aggressive approach that did not allow them to carry out any business increase the poverty in the country. For instance, the Agrupación de Familiares de Detenidos-Desaparecidos was a human rights organization started by women who lost their family members. Poverty-stricken and working-class women who had to struggle to meet their basic needs formed economic organizations such as Csoup Kitchens and shopping collectives to help women in the provision of food for their families. The empty pot movement of 1983 was a symbol of condemnation of the military rule in the country. Women in Mujeres Por la Vida sought to unite political parties with the belief that women were the bridge between partisan divisions.
The Chilean case illustrates that women have the potential to influence the political and economic climate in a country. Women movements both in the left (Mujeres Por la Vida) and right (Poder Femenino) wings came up with alliances. They mobilized women to come up with decisions whenever there were disagreements. Both the right and left-wing women joined forces to increase their numbers in political choices. Regardless of their political stands, women on both fronts believed that they were working to solve one problem, alleviate poverty, and encourage the representation of women in governance. In both wings, women came up with approaches to support women in fighting for their loved ones and coming up with ways to feed their families. Also, women believed that they had the power to influence the political climate of the country significantly. Also, the right and left-wing movements believed in the ability of women to bridge the gap between political party insisting on cross-partisan unity