Original article: Jeannette Jara advierte que gobierno de Kast está repitiendo el manual de las ultraderechas internacionales: «Después del no hay plata dirán que el sacrificio de hoy servirá para mañana» The former presidential candidate, Jeannette Jara, warned that the Kast administration is closely mirroring the strategy of international far-right movements, which upon taking power tend to roll back social rights by citing resource shortages. The ex-Minister of Labor participated in the forum «For the Right to the City,» organized by the Center for Public Policy Studies Territory and Community, alongside Rodrigo Mundaca, governor of Valparaíso; Natalia Garrido, spokesperson for the Movement of Inhabitants in Struggle; and Joel Olmos, mayor of La Cisterna. In this context, Jara expressed her belief that in the early days of Kast’s government, their actions have followed the far-right manual: starting with heightened nationalism, fostering anti-immigrant sentiment, and then exploiting the most pressing social issues in society—security being the main concern in Chile.
«Once they gain electoral power, they typically push to roll back social rights,» she added, emphasizing that in the Chilean context, this regression is framed by claims of «there’s no money. » «And I can guarantee that after ‘there’s no money’ will come ‘it’s time to tighten our belts,’ followed by claims that today’s sacrifices will pay off tomorrow. They then continue with pardons for those connected to human rights violations and the weakening of the Ministry of Women.
I’m not a fortune-teller, nor do I possess a crystal ball, but I can assure you they are sticking to the entire playbook,» Jara argued. Territorial Planning: A Political Decision Regarding the forum topic, the former presidential candidate warned that the crisis generated by Mepco’s intervention will inevitably affect the quality of life for the population, as well as increase interest in mortgage loans due to rising inflation. Jara also reminded participants that territorial planning is «not just a matter for experts; it’s a political decision about who has the right to live in quality housing.
That is the essence of this discussion. » «When there is no territorial justice, inequality is not only an economic measure gauging income but also defines territories. We see this in electoral results or wealth distribution: usually, it’s the same neighborhoods that stand out in contrast to others.
In the Metropolitan Region, this is quite evident when we talk about three, four, or five municipalities,» she stated. For Jara, «the distribution of territory has much to do with our country’s class structure, and urban regulatory plans have often been instruments of social segregation without a doubt. Those of us with experience from the eradication of slums in the 1980s know this well,» she asserted.
Access to Employment Opportunities One key point raised by the former minister was the necessity for social housing to be located in areas with established infrastructure, a factor that is nearly impossible today due to the high costs imposed by the market. «It’s not enough just to bring basic or social services to a community; we must also link these spaces with elements that are crucial to meeting the material living conditions of people. Primarily, I am referring to employment opportunities that enable people to access jobs, earn a salary, and support their families,» Jara explained.
The absence of such job opportunities creates situations where «people living in El Abrazo in Maipú have to travel two hours to reach downtown Santiago, the same goes for those from Quilicura,» she detailed. «This means that social housing projects must be established in areas with consolidated infrastructure, leading us to a second problem: where there is established infrastructure, land prices increase considerably,» the former presidential candidate pointed out. Who Benefits from Surplus Value?
In this section, Jeannette Jara addressed another often-overlooked topic in political discourse: who receives the surplus value from housing and construction. She noted that «if we look at what happens in areas where, for example, a Metro station is built, we know that the surrounding homes being constructed, usually apartments, will generally sell for much higher prices. So the question is, why should the surplus value go to the developer or real estate agency and not the State, which created the conditions for a more consolidated territorial area?
» The ex-minister expressed that if this surplus value remained with the State, it could enhance its capacity, for instance, to expand the Metro or construct more social housing. «This discussion often goes unheard and becomes normalized—it’s common for the state to incur expenses while the surplus value is captured by the private sector,» she said. «I am not against the private sector; I believe there must be space for everyone in society, but if the State is the one investing, why shouldn’t it receive the profit?
This is a fundamental inquiry that is worthwhile considering,» she maintained. Common Good vs. Corporate Profit Finally, Jeannette Jara emphasized that «when discussing housing as a social right, we do so not only because we need a space, a roof to coexist, develop, and grow as a community, but because it is part of a genuine protection system that countries have built over time.
» «Unfortunately, if we examine this first month of the far-right administration, it is advancing contrary to the protection of rights,» she challenged. At this juncture, she clarified that «when discussing a 3% budget cut, we are impacting social rights funded through benefits established in ministry budgets, which were asked to reduce by 3%. So it’s not as if that 3% will come from nowhere.
» In this same line of thought, she indicated that «if we view the cost of housing as a market commodity that has remarkably exploded, particularly in the land sector, then it’s no surprise that we discuss the necessity of regulating this sector in a way that allows the price of land and housing to be regarded as a common good for life, rather than merely as a private consumption item for corporate profits.