28 CultureShock! Chile
consequences of the political, social and economic disarray
into which the country had fallen. Many believed Chile would
become another Cuba (an idea reinforced by the many
Cubans who had come to Chile as ‘advisors’.) By 1972, acts
of violence, protests and strikes were regular throughout
Chile. Women took to the streets banging their empty soup
pots, in opposition to Allende and his policies.Escalating Violence
As 1973 progressed, confrontation increased. More and
more Chileans believed there was no peaceful solution and
feared that severe violence would erupt well before the next
election in 1976. Rumours of a coup had been spreading for
quite a while when Allende received news that the navy had
stormed Valparaíso on the morning of 11 September 1973.
Allende was offered safe passage and exile, but he adamantly
refused. Instead he left his home and went to La Moneda,
the presidential palace in the centre of Santiago. He took up
arms to defend himself and his vision for Chile. Later that
morning he made a moving speech, broadcast on the radio,
describing his hopes and plans for the country he loved and
denouncing those he considered traitors. He proclaimed
that the ‘free man’ would ultimately prevail. The Ministry
of Defense faced La Moneda from across the Alameda (the
main thoroughfare) and throughout the morning troops
exchanged fire with Allende’s supporters. Bullet holes in the
walls of the Ministry of Defence were a solemn reminder of
this day for many years.
Close to noon, air force jets bombed La Moneda, damaging
a long-standing symbol of democratic government. Allende’s
last moments remain unclear, but today there is a general
consensus that he took his own life. What is clear is that the
socialist experiment in Chile had come to a violent end.
While it is well-known that the CIA was involved in the
coup, its role is sometimes overstated. It is true that the US
attempted to sabotage the Allende government from the
beginning and backed the coup, but the Chilean political
system had disintegrated of its own accord. If you enter
into a conversation with a Chilean and boldly assert that