Democracy in the Contemporary World – Notes

Tale of two Democracies– Chile and Poland

Salvador Allende was a member of the Socialist Party in Chile and was democratically elected President in 1970.

His people- friendly policies upset big businesses and also the United States.

The United States financed a military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet against Allende.

General Pinochet installed himself as the country’s President and ruled it brutally for 17 years.

Democracy returned to Chile in 1988 after a referendum and the ousting of general Pinochet.

In 1980, Poland was ruled by the Communist Party under the Soviet Union.

Under the communist regime, all factories and big property were owned by the government.

Strikes and trade Union were illegal.

Poland’s transition to democracy came with the formation of the workers union known as solidarity under the leadership of Lech Walesa.