fictionfan's review
4.0
Enjoyable, informative and sometimes inspiring…
Already involved in politics before the coup that brought Pinochet to power, Ricardo Lagos was one of the leaders in the movement to restore democracy to Chile and subsequently went on to become its democratically elected President.
In this book, Lagos starts by telling the story of how many of the various opposition parties came together with one purpose - to find a way to oust Pinochet without a violent struggle. The horrors of the Pinochet era are somewhat downplayed; Lagos concentrates more on the ideological and economic effects, although he does give enough information about the 'disappeared' and the victims of torture to remind us of the excesses that were carried out by the regime. He is also honest about the amount of support Pinochet had within Chile - when a referendum on the regime was finally held, 44% of people voted for Pinochet to remain in power.
Lagos then goes on to describe the restoration of democracy and the social and economic restructuring that has happened in the two decades since the regime fell. As one of the group of left-leaning leaders who embraced Blair's Third Way, Lagos looked for innovative ways to involve both private and public sectors in rebuilding Chile's infrastructure, restoring its economy and tackling the worst effects of poverty. To go by his own account in this book, Chile would seem to have taken huge steps towards becoming a fairer and richer society, although Lagos admits there's still much more work to be done.
In the last section, Lagos recounts Chile's role in the UN discussions around the resolutions sought prior to the invasion of Iraq. It's interesting to see this told from the point of view of one of the smaller countries - to read of the schmoozing and arm-twisting employed by the US and to a lesser extent the UK to get the votes of the unaligned countries. Lagos uses the epilogue to ponder on some of the political challenges remaining to Chile as well as some of the global challenges such as climate change.
Overall, this book is interesting and easy to absorb. Sometimes a little self-congratulatory, that can surely be forgiven from a man who is clearly very proud of how far his country has come in such a short time. An enjoyable, informative and sometimes inspiring read - recommended.
http://fictionfanblog.wordpress.com/
Already involved in politics before the coup that brought Pinochet to power, Ricardo Lagos was one of the leaders in the movement to restore democracy to Chile and subsequently went on to become its democratically elected President.
In this book, Lagos starts by telling the story of how many of the various opposition parties came together with one purpose - to find a way to oust Pinochet without a violent struggle. The horrors of the Pinochet era are somewhat downplayed; Lagos concentrates more on the ideological and economic effects, although he does give enough information about the 'disappeared' and the victims of torture to remind us of the excesses that were carried out by the regime. He is also honest about the amount of support Pinochet had within Chile - when a referendum on the regime was finally held, 44% of people voted for Pinochet to remain in power.
Lagos then goes on to describe the restoration of democracy and the social and economic restructuring that has happened in the two decades since the regime fell. As one of the group of left-leaning leaders who embraced Blair's Third Way, Lagos looked for innovative ways to involve both private and public sectors in rebuilding Chile's infrastructure, restoring its economy and tackling the worst effects of poverty. To go by his own account in this book, Chile would seem to have taken huge steps towards becoming a fairer and richer society, although Lagos admits there's still much more work to be done.
In the last section, Lagos recounts Chile's role in the UN discussions around the resolutions sought prior to the invasion of Iraq. It's interesting to see this told from the point of view of one of the smaller countries - to read of the schmoozing and arm-twisting employed by the US and to a lesser extent the UK to get the votes of the unaligned countries. Lagos uses the epilogue to ponder on some of the political challenges remaining to Chile as well as some of the global challenges such as climate change.
Overall, this book is interesting and easy to absorb. Sometimes a little self-congratulatory, that can surely be forgiven from a man who is clearly very proud of how far his country has come in such a short time. An enjoyable, informative and sometimes inspiring read - recommended.
http://fictionfanblog.wordpress.com/
jdscott50's review
5.0
After reading Bolano for years, this is the first time I’ve read an in-depth review of the violence and strife in Chile that he and many others escaped. It’s harrowing to see how the author, Richard Lago, escaped after the September 11, 1973 coup that overthrew President Allende for General Pinochet. He does escape, but he goes back to face the evil and through his efforts, he and his allies convince the country to vote out a dictator. It’s an amazing feat and I have never heard of the overthrow of a dictator through a free election. Lagos should have been killed ten times over, but he persevered to free Chile from tyranny.
Great detail on how Lagos fought Pinochet, probably 2/3 of the book. He highlights the horrors of living under Pinochet, the disappearances and what people did to survive. It’s only when support from the U.S. fades does the dictatorship begin to falter, allowing Lagos and his allies to gain a foothold leading to unprecedented protests against the regime. This all leads to a critical moment in Chilean history that Lagos refers to as “The Finger”. He goes on a live television show debate and challenges Pinochet to a new Plebiscite reminding everyone of his promise not to run after 1989. This becomes the catalyst that leads to the election and the “No” vote against Pinochet.
The rest of the book is denouement. I think the major points are Lagos attempts to highlight Chile as a country transformation away from dictatorship and embracing a free market economy. His brushes with President Bush seem to highlight how far Chile has come from being a puppet regime to a country in its own right. Lagos also highlights Pinochet’s arrest in the U.K. and how that led to stripping away the last of his power from Chile, a country now looking forward instead of backward.
The book ends in a hopeful tone, highlighting all Chile has gone through, but still struggling towards prosperity. It was like a country dreaming a nightmare and now they are beginning to wake up to a brighter future, a truly inspiring story.
Great detail on how Lagos fought Pinochet, probably 2/3 of the book. He highlights the horrors of living under Pinochet, the disappearances and what people did to survive. It’s only when support from the U.S. fades does the dictatorship begin to falter, allowing Lagos and his allies to gain a foothold leading to unprecedented protests against the regime. This all leads to a critical moment in Chilean history that Lagos refers to as “The Finger”. He goes on a live television show debate and challenges Pinochet to a new Plebiscite reminding everyone of his promise not to run after 1989. This becomes the catalyst that leads to the election and the “No” vote against Pinochet.
The rest of the book is denouement. I think the major points are Lagos attempts to highlight Chile as a country transformation away from dictatorship and embracing a free market economy. His brushes with President Bush seem to highlight how far Chile has come from being a puppet regime to a country in its own right. Lagos also highlights Pinochet’s arrest in the U.K. and how that led to stripping away the last of his power from Chile, a country now looking forward instead of backward.
The book ends in a hopeful tone, highlighting all Chile has gone through, but still struggling towards prosperity. It was like a country dreaming a nightmare and now they are beginning to wake up to a brighter future, a truly inspiring story.
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