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Special Report - Dynasties II, 2009 (ISSN 17414474)
CHILE: Politics and businesses entwine
The country's business and political elite is closely entwined. The
defining event for both sides was the government of the ill-fated Salvador
Allende, which launched an assault on their assets. Families such as the
Alessandris, who had provided the country with two presidents, and the Edwards,
drew on their business and military connections to oppose and eventually
overthrow Allende. The traditional families prospered under Pinochet and have
not been threatened by his successors in the Concertación. It is worth noting
that Sebastián Piñera, the right wing candidate for the presidency, is largely a
self-made man. His father was a top civil servant.
