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A Brief Historical and Legal Description of Religious Liberty
The Republic of Chile was founded after gaining independence from Spain in 1818. Democratic governance predominated in this century until the overthrow of the socialist government of Salvador Aliunde in 1973. General Augusto Pinochet became head of the state and ruled the country as a dictator until 1989. Eduardo Frei, son of the former President Eduardo Frei (1964-1970) swept to victory in the December 11, 1993 presidential elections.1 Chile is a multiparty democracy based upon a Constitution which provides for a strong executive, a bicameral legislature, and an independent judiciary. Approved by referendum in 1980, the Constitution was written under the former military government and contains limits on popular rule. Eduardo Frei began a 6-year term on March 11, 1994. A new Congress comprising 120 Deputies and 46 Senators was sworn in the same day. Appointees of former dictator General Pinochet continued to dominate the constitutionally independent judicial branch.2
In 1990, Chile ratified the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights and formally recognized the jurisdiction of the Inter-American Rights Court for the interpretation and enforcement of the provisions contained in the convention. In August 1993, President Patricio Aylwin presented a draft law to Congress to speed up investigations into pending cases of human rights violations committed under the former military government.3
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government respects this right in practice, allowing all denominations to practice their faiths without restriction.4 Chile is predominantly Roman Catholic (89%) with 10% practicing other Protestant denominations, and Judaism 1%.5
During the constitutional reform in 1925, a discussion on the legal status of the Catholic church and all non-Catholic churches surfaced; the President suggested that the Catholic church had no obligation to negotiate the possession of its properties. Also, although the Catholic church was not the official church anymore, it received a preferential treatment, remaining as an entity of public law. All non-Catholic churches are entities of private law, which means that they are compelled to organize themselves as "corporations," and to fulfill a series of legal requirements in order to get their incorporation papers recognized by the government.
In September 1992, Chile began to consider a draft bill that would grant Protestants full legal status under the nation's constitution. On October 27, 1993, the Executive Power sent a draft law on the legal status of non-Catholic churches to the Congress. This bill would grant Protestants, and members of other non-Catholic religious groups, full legal status under the nation's constitution. Known as "Norms Pertaining to Juridical Constitution and Functioning of Evangelical Organizations," the bill would elevate evangelicals to equal status with the Catholic church. At present, evangelical churches are registered under the same status as football clubs, according to Presidential Adviser Humberto Lagos.6 However, almost all the organizations that assemble Protestant churches have voiced their opposition to the draft law, because they consider that the governmental bill still discriminates religious minorities by undue control measures on non-Catholic churches.
In April 1993, the Inter-American Bar Association adopted a resolution aimed at safeguarding religious liberty in the Americas. At the conference in Santiago, the IABA passed a measure alerting nations of the Western Hemisphere that, "The protection of religious liberty of all persons, religious associations and entities should constitute a basic concern of all juridical and constitutional systems."7
Constitutional Provisions and Legislation Relating to Religion
The Chilean Constitution of 1833 established the Roman Catholic Apostolic religion as the official religion of the state. The Constitution of 1925 established the separation of church and state. Concerning the freedom of conscience and worship, it granted:
Article 10: The Constitution ensures to all the inhabitants of the Republic:(2): Practice of all beliefs, liberty of conscience, and the free exercise of all religions not contrary to morality, good usage, and public order. Therefore, the respective religious bodies have the right to erect and maintain houses of worship and accessory property under the conditions of security and hygiene as fixed by the laws and regulations.8
The 1980 Chilean Constitution now grants:
Article 19(6): The freedom of conscience, the manifestation of all beliefs, and the free exercise of all religions that do not oppose morality, good manners, or the public order. The religious confessions can build and keep temples and their dependencies under the safety and sanitation conditions established by laws and regulations. The churches, confessions, and religious institutions of any denomination, will have the rights that are granted, recognizing regarding their property, the laws currently in effect. The temples and their dependencies, exclusively destined to the service of worship, will be exempted from any kind of contributions."9Currently, Decree 110, which regulates the creation of profit institutions of any kind, requires that all non-Catholic religious institutions must organize themselves under the form of private "corporations." The government has the power to recognize or dismiss incorporation papers of any non-Catholic church.10
Recent Reported Cases of Religious Intolerance
On September 18, 1995, more than 10,000 evangelicals marched in Santiago to protest for a municipal ordinance that restricted the "emission of annoying sounds" in the city. On the days before the march, many evangelical churches that customarily preach on the streets in downtown Santiago, were ordered to halt their evangelistic public services. Many evangelical leaders considered the measure as an attempt to prevent the evangelical churches from attracting more believers. A Chilean Congressman denounced that the measure was a clear violation of religious freedom, since the ordinance only affected the evangelical's street events.11
A recently proposed law in Chile which passed the Lower Chamber and is before the Senate would create substantial discrimination against non-Catholic churches. If the law is enforced, a church would not be legally recognized unless it had 200 members. Any non-recognized church would have no legal recourse and could be closed at the whim of a neighbor. Street preaching would be outlawed. Noise levels in churches would be strictly monitored. A church could be fined or closed if music can be heard within 3 foot from the outside walls. Pastors would be required to be high school graduates and could not work a secular job. The mayor of each sector of Santiago (Chile's capital) would have the last word as to whether an evangelical church could even exist in his district. This has been interpreted by the evangelical churches as a threat to their work, especially on behalf of poor people.12
In the last few years, many Mormon churches were bombed. The number of bombings of Mormon churches declined in 1993, with 15 reported, apparently as a result of the success the police had arresting leaders of the Lautaro extremist movement. Two of the incidents, however, were more violent that those in the past, with terrorists confronting worshipers in the churches. The terrorist's motives for attacking the Mormons were not totally clear, but apparently were more political than religious.13
B'Nai B'rith International (an Anti-Defamation Jewish League), raised concern about the activities of a small "neo-Nazi" movement; a report was issued in July 1993 stating that groups of as many as 200 Chileans had held ceremonies to declare their allegiance to the Third Reich and their opposition to democracy.14
ENDNOTES
1. U.S. Department of State, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1993 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1994): 391.2.U.S. Department of State, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1994, (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1995): 341.
3. "Chile." Amnesty International Report 1994.
4. U.S. Department of State, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1995 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1995): Internet 6.
5. Edward H. Lawson, ed., Encyclopedia of Human Rights (New York: Taylor & Francis, Inc., 1991): 176.
6. "Chile." News Network International: Special Edition (September 23, 1992): 3.
7."Chile," News Network International: Special Edition, (May 26, 1993): 6.
8. Gerald E. Fitzgerald, The Constitutions of Latin America (Chicago: Henry Regnery Company, 1968): 4-5.
9. ibid.
10. ibid, 5.
11. "Evangélicos convocan a marcha." La Tercera, September 6, 1995.
12. "Grave amenaza para evangélicos chilenos." Rutherford Magazine (Spanish edition) (November 1995): 2.
13. U.S. Department of State (1993): 390.
14. ibid, 391.
Source: Handbook on Religious Liberty Around the World, Pedro C. Moreno, Editor. Charlottesville, VA: The Rutherford Institute. This report is reprinted here by special arrangement with the Rutherford Institute and may not be reproduced or mirrored on another webside without written permission of the Rutherford Institute.
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