conventional long form: Republic of Chile
conventional short form: Chile
local long form: Republica de Chile
local short form: Chile

CI

republic

Santiago

13 regions (regiones, singular - region);
Aisen del General Carlos Ibanez del Campo, Antofagasta, Araucania,
Atacama, Bio-Bio, Coquimbo, Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, Los
Lagos, Magallanes y de la Antartica Chilena, Maule, Region
Metropolitana (Santiago), Tarapaca, Valparaiso
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica

18 September 1810 (from Spain)

Independence Day, 18 September (1810)

11 September 1980, effective 11 March 1981; amended 30
July 1989 and in 1993

based on Code of 1857 derived from Spanish law and
subsequent codes influenced by French and Austrian law; judicial
review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; does not accept
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal and compulsory

chief of state: President Ricardo LAGOS Escobar (since 11 March 2000);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ricardo LAGOS Escobar (since 11 March
2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term;
election last held 12 December 1999, with runoff election held 16
January 2000 (next to be held NA December 2005)
election results: Ricardo LAGOS Escobar elected president; percent of
vote - Ricardo LAGOS Escobar 51.32%, Joaquin LAVIN 48.68%

bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional
consists of the Senate or Senado (48 seats, 38 elected by popular vote
and 10 appointed (all former presidents are senators for life);
members serve eight-year terms - one-half elected every four years)
and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (120 seats; members
are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 11 December 1997 (next to be held NA
December 2001); Chamber of Deputies - last held 11 December 1997 (next
to be held NA December 2001)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by
party - CPD (PDC 14, PS 4, PPD 2), UPP 17 (RN 7, UDI 10), Chile 2000
(UCCP) 1, independents 10; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by
party - CPD 50.55% (PDC 22.98%, PS 11.10%, PPD 12.55%, PRSD 3.13%),
UPP 36.23% (RN 16.78%, UDI 14.43%); seats by party - CPD 70 (PDC 39,
PPD 16, PRSD 4, PS 11), UPP 46 (RN 24, UDI 21, Party of the South 1),
right-wing independents 4

Supreme Court or Corte Suprema, judges are appointed
by the president and ratified by the Senate from lists of candidates
provided by the court itself, the president of the Supreme Court is
elected by the 21-member court; Constitutional Tribunal

Chile 2000 - main party is UCCP
; Christian Democratic Party or PDC
; Coalition of Parties for Democracy
("Concertacion") or CPD  - including PDC, PS,
PPD, PRSD; Independent Democratic Union or UDI ;
National Renewal or RN ; Party for Democracy or PPD
; Party of the South or PS ; Progressive
Center-Center Union or UCCP ; Radical
Social Democratic Party or PRSD ; Socialist Party or PS
; Union for the Progress of Chile ("Alliance for
Chile") or UPP  - including RN and UDI

revitalized university student
federations at all major universities; Roman Catholic Church; United
Labor Central or CUT includes trade unionists from the country's five
largest labor confederations

APEC, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11,
G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

chief of mission: Ambassador Mario ARTAZA
chancery: 1732 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone:  (202) 785-1746
FAX:  (202) 887-5579
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York,
Philadelphia, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)

chief of mission: Ambassador John O'LEARY
embassy: Avenida Andres Bello 2800, Santiago
mailing address: APO AA 34033
telephone:  (2) 232-2600
FAX:  (2) 330-3710

two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red;
there is a blue square the same height as the white band at the
hoist-side end of the white band; the square bears a white
five-pointed star in the center; design was based on the US flag