Upstanders

In the aftermath of the earthquake in Chile, the Chilean military is back on the streets for the first time since Pinochet’s military dictatorship in the 1970s and 80s. Chileans recognize that the soldiers are there to protect them, and “Chileans are welcoming the military’s role in earthquake relief efforts,” NPR writes. In contrast, many citizens were afraid of the military during “the Pinochet years, when soldiers were a constant presence and were responsible for widespread human rights abuses.” Despite their fear, Chileans used many different approaches to resist the dictatorship (1973-1990), Roberta Bacic writes in an article for Open Democracy. Bacic’s approach was greatly influenced by Gandhi’s belief in the power of nonviolence. “Non-violence,” Bacic explains, “refers to a philosophy and strategy of conflict resolution, a means of fighting injustice and—in a broader sense—a way of life, developed and employed by Gandhi and his followers all around the world.” By this definition, Bacic concludes, non-violence is an “action that does not commit or allow injustice.” Bacic and a group of others were determined to “tell the truth and act on it.” She became part of the anti-torture movement that helped pressure Pinochet to sign the international Convention Against Torture in 1984, “which in turn would lead to his detention in England in 1999 while awaiting the result of the request for his extradition to Spain.” Bacic is a Chilean researcher in human rights as well as a curator for exhibitions of Arpilleras—Latin American, three-dimensional textiles originating in Chile that depict how political violence impacted everyday life.