Due to rising social unrest which began in October 2019, the National Congress
signed an agreement in November to hold a national referendum in April 2020 on the introduction of a new Constitution, as reported by The Guardian on 15 November 2019. The response by Christians has been varied. According to a CNN report on 18 January 2020, some Protestant churches advocate
rejecting the proposal since it fails to meet the citizens" demands and does not guarantee fundamental rights. Representatives of the Catholic Church, on the other hand, can
accept the introduction of a new Constitution as long as the rights to life, expression and worship are respected, as a report by La Tercera on 7 November 2019 explained.
Rossana Ramirez, persecution analyst at World Watch Research (WWR), comments: "According to estimates by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the
protests in Chile have resulted in 29 deaths and 13,046 people being injured (Pro Vea, 3 February 2020). However, religious freedom violations should also be noted: According to an article by the organization Comunidad y Justicia (published on 26 January 2020), around
57 churches were either vandalized or severely damaged during the protests, and this number could be much higher."
Rossana Ramirez continues: "Christians need to know to what extent a new Constitution will protect the right to religious freedom in the country. The demonstrators are demanding equality and want to do away with old paradigms and institutions. They view religion with suspicion, especially the Christian faith, since church doctrine is seen as being non-inclusive. With church leaders rejecting liberal views on abortion and same-sex marriage, for example, many regard Christians as being against equality and women's rights. Consequently, citizens, especially young people who participated in the protests, have violently lashed out against churches, viewing them as supporters of social inequality and discrimination."
Rossana Ramirez concludes: "Taking into account the rapid increase in secularization in the country and the proliferation of secularist pressure groups (often supported by local authorities and political parties), it would seem likely that a new, more "progressive" Constitution would lead to: i) worsening attacks on churches; and ii) less recognition of the role of Christian values in the public sphere (i.e. by denying the participation of church leaders and other Christians in debates on social issues). On the whole, church leaders are aware of these dangers and that is why they are insisting that basic human rights and the right of religious freedom must be recognized and properly guaranteed in any new Constitution."
