Constitutional Convention (Chile)

According to Senator Jaime Quintana (PPD), the term "Constitutional Convention" was coined during the drafting of the "Agreement for social peace and the New Constitution" on 14 November 2019; that afternoon he received a communication from Mario Desbordes, then president of National Renewal (RN), in which he requested that the body that drafted the new Political Constitution not be called the "Constituent Assembly" to facilitate the approval of the agreement by right-wing politicians.[3]

According to various academics, such as Claudia Heiss and Francisco Soto, the concept of "Constitutional Convention" would be equivalent to the concept of "Constituent Assembly", insofar as its operation and composition would be the same, and both correspond to collegiate bodies that draft a Constitution.[4] Lawyer Leonel Sánchez points out that the definition of both concepts is similar, based on studies from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and cases from other countries with similar constituent bodies.[5] Mario Herrera, an academic at the University of Talca, points out that there are no differences between the Constitutional Convention and a Constituent Assembly, since in both their members are elected by popular vote and their sole purpose is to draft a new Political Constitution.[6]

The elections to determine the seats of the 155 constituent conventions will be held on 11 April 2021. Within thirty days after the election, the elected candidates must be proclaimed and within three days after this ruling must be communicated to the National Congress and the President of the Republic; The latter, within 3 days of receiving said communication, must call the installation session of the Constitutional Convention and indicate the place where it will be held (if not indicated, it will be held at the headquarters of the National Congress in Valparaíso).[1]

The installation session of the Constitutional Convention must be held within 15 days after the date the convening decree is published.[1]

The Constitutional Convention will be composed equally by men and women, as well as will have the representation of the native peoples through 17 reserved seats: 7 for the Mapuche people, 2 for the Aymara people and one for each of the other peoples (Kawésqar , Rapanui, Yagán, Quechua, Atacameño, Diaguita, Colla and Chango).[7]

It is estimated that the Constitutional Convention should begin its sessions between 19 April and 14 May 2021; other sources indicate that the start of sessions should take place at the beginning of June.[8][9] In the session of installation of the Convention, its president and vice president must be elected by an absolute majority of its members. Likewise, it must approve its voting regulations and operating rules by a quorum of two-thirds of its members.[1] The same two-thirds quorum will be applied to make any decision, which implies that the points that do not generate said consensus will be left out of the draft text of the new Political Constitution. In the same way, the current Constitution establishes that the text presented by the Convention must respect the democratic regime, judicial decisions and international treaties.[10]

In the event that there are claims for alleged violations of the procedural rules applicable to the Convention, these will be known and resolved by five members of the Supreme Court, chosen by a draw.[11]

The Convention must draft and propose the text of the new Political Constitution of the Republic within a period of nine months, and it may be extended only once for 3 months. Once the proposed new Constitution is approved by the Convention or the term of the extension expires, the institution will be dissolved.[1]

Seat

Pereira Palace, one of the buildings that houses the Constitutional Convention.

In September 2020, it was proposed that the Constitutional Convention would meet in the palace of the former National Congress of Chile, located in the center of Santiago, as well as the Pereira Palace as a support building to house advisers and administrative officials.[12] However, several parliamentarians demonstrated against occupying the headquarters of the former Congress in Santiago, since according to them other legislative tasks and meetings with civil society are carried out in that building and would not present the necessary infrastructure.[13] Deputy Iván Flores proposed that the Convention meets at the Huneeus Palace.[14]

On 23 November 23 2020, the government entered several indications to the Budget Law for the year 2021, among which are considered items to remodel and enable both the palace of the former National Congress in Santiago and the Pereira Palace in order to house the Constitutional Convention, evaluating the possibility that the plenary sessions are held in the old chamber of the Chamber of Deputies or the Hall of Honor of the former Congress, and that the Pereira Palace as an auxiliary building that houses different commissions and services.[15]

On 11 January 2021, President Sebastián Piñera announced the Pereira Palace as the working headquarters of the Constitutional Convention. The venue will have 15 offices with 102 seats and 11 meeting rooms with a total capacity of 132 seats, as well as a larger room that can host meetings of up to 40 people; There will also be a dining room on the fourth level for the conventional constituents. It was also confirmed that the palace of the former National Congress will be used for plenary sessions and for certain commissions.[16]