Unidad Popular

(UP)

   / Popular Unity

   A coalition of five leftist political parties in Chile, including the Partido Comunista (PC, Communist Party) and the Partido Socialista (PS, Socialist Party). Formed in 1969, the UP helped elect Salvador Allende Gossens to the presidency in 1970. The UP enjoyed the broad support of the Chilean working class, many of whom were urban workers who had been traditionally excluded from the democratic process. UP leader Salvador Allende Gossens presented a party platform advocating reform, not revolution—a “peaceful road” toward a democratically based socialist government.

   Once in office, the UP tried to fulfill its main objective of redistributing wealth and power. Its program was vigorously opposed by the right and center party representatives in the legislature, particularly the Christian Democrats, and by the upper and middle classes. Attempts to circumvent the opposition resulted in economic and social chaos. In the end, the UP fell victim to elements from both inside and outside the country. Protests were organized by conservative women’s groups, professional guilds (gremios), and business and landowners associations. Meanwhile, through economic blockades and political conspiracies, the United States, under the administration of President Richard Nixon, sought to destabilize the economy and discredit the government. The UP was overthrown in a coup led by General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte on 11 September 1973.