Citizen Participation and Social Rights in a New Constitution for Chile

Starting in October 2019, a large proportion of Chile’s population took part in protests to express their frustration with the inequality and unfairness of the economic and political system. The protests led to a national agreement to replace the current constitution, which was adopted during the dictatorship. To ensure the process of drafting a new constitution for Chile is as participatory as possible, the research will identify good comparative examples of participatory processes in constitution-making and deliberative democracy. It will deliver lessons and propose concrete mechanisms to involve vulnerable groups in the political process.

This exciting research project is open to postgraduate human rights students as part of the Human Rights Centre Clinic Module (HU902). If you have any questions, please contact us on humanrightscentreclinic@essex.ac.uk.

The Partner

Now We Participate, Ahora Nos Toca Participar in Spanish (ANTP), is a civil society initiative to encourage citizens in Chile to learn and teach others about participation as a right, about the Chilean Constitution and the political process ahead. ANTP promotes active participation in society, with a special focus on women, indigenous groups, LGBT+ people, children, people with disabilities, older people, rural communities, incarcerated people, refugees and migrants.