Chile

• temperate;
• desert in north;
• Mediterranean in central region;
• cool and damp in south

• low coastal mountains;
• fertile central valley;
• rugged Andes in east

• severe earthquakes;
• active volcanism;
• tsunamis

• widespread deforestation and mining threaten natural resources;
• air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions;
• water pollution from raw sewage

• strategic location relative to sea lanes between Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage);
• Atacama Desert is one of world's driest regions

0-14 years:

25.8% (male 2,090,165; female 1,996,972)

15-64 years:

66.3% (male 5,235,061; female 5,261,820)

65 years and over:

7.8% (male 515,698; female 724,241) (2004 est.)

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.71 male(s)/female

total population:

0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

noun:

Chilean(s)

adjective:

Chilean

conventional long form:

Republic of Chile

conventional short form:

Chile

local long form:

Republica de Chile

local short form:

Chile

• 13 regions (regiones, singular - region);
• Aisen del General Carlos Ibanez del Campo, Antofagasta, Araucania, Atacama, Bio-Bio, Coquimbo, Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, Los Lagos, Magallanes y de la Antartica Chilena, Maule, Region Metropolitana (Santiago), Tarapaca, Valparaiso

note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica

• based on Code of 1857 derived from Spanish law and subsequent codes influenced by French and Austrian law;
• judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court;
• has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

note: Chile is in the process of completely overhauling its criminal justice system; a new, US-style adversarial system is being gradually implemented throughout the country with the final stage of implementation in the Santiago metropolitan region expected in June 2005

chief of state:

President Ricardo LAGOS Escobar (since 11 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:

President Ricardo LAGOS Escobar (since 11 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the president

elections:

• president elected by popular vote for a six-year term;
• election last held 12 December 1999, with runoff election held 16 January 2000 (next to be held NA December 2005)

election results:

Ricardo LAGOS Escobar elected president; percent of vote - Ricardo LAGOS Escobar 51.32%, Joaquin LAVIN 48.68%

• bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (48 seats, 38 elected by popular vote, 9 designated members, and 1 former president who has served a full six-year term and is senator for life);
• elected members serve eight-year terms (one-half elected every four years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (120 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

elections:

Senate - last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2005); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2005)

election results:

• Senate - percent of vote by party - NA;
• seats by party - CPD 20 (PDC 12, PS 5, PPD 3), APC 16 (UDI 9, RN 7), independents 2;
• Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA;
• seats by party - CPD 62 (PDC 24, PPD 21, PS 11, PRSD 6), UDI 35, RN 22, independent 1

• Alliance for Chile ("Alianza") or APC - including RN and UDI;
• Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Adolfo ZALDIVAR];
• Coalition of Parties for Democracy ("Concertacion") or CPD - including PDC, PS, PPD, PRSD;
• Communist Party or PC [Gladys MARIN];
• Independent Democratic Union or UDI [Pablo LONGUEIRA];
• National Renewal or RN [Sebastian PINERA];
• Party for Democracy or PPD [Victor BARRUETO];
• Radical Social Democratic Party or PRSD [Orlando CANTUARIAS];
• Socialist Party or PS [Gonzalo MARTNER]

• revitalized university student federations at all major universities;
• Roman Catholic Church;
• United Labor Central or CUT includes trade unionists from the country's five largest labor confederations

chief of mission:

Ambassador Andres BIANCHI

chancery:

1732 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

telephone:

[1] (202) 785-1746

FAX:

[1] (202) 887-5579

consulate(s) general:

Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Craig A. KELLY

embassy:

Avenida Andres Bello 2800, Las Condes, Santiago

mailing address:

APO AA 34033

telephone:

[56] (2) 232-2600

FAX:

[56] (2) 330-3710

• two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red;
• there is a blue square the same height as the white band at the hoist-side end of the white band;
• the square bears a white five-pointed star in the center representing a guide to progress and honor;
• blue symbolizes the sky, white is for the snow-covered Andes, and red stands for the blood spilled to achieve independence;
• design was influenced by the US flag

lowest 10%:

3.7%

highest 10%:

41% (2000)

• grapes, apples, pears, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, beans, beef, poultry, wool;
• fish;
• timber

general assessment:

modern system based on extensive microwave radio relay facilities

domestic:

extensive microwave radio relay links; domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations

international:

country code - 56; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

total:

6,585 km

broad gauge:

2,831 km 1.676-m gauge (1,317 km electrified)

narrow gauge:

3,754 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)

total:

79,814 km

paved:

15,484 km (including 294 km of expressways)

unpaved:

64,330 km (2000)

• gas 2,583 km;
• gas/lpg 42 km;
• liquid petroleum gas 539 km;
• oil 1,003 km;
• refined products 757 km (2004)

total:

47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 725,216 GRT/954,519 DWT

by type:

bulk 10, cargo 5, chemical tanker 9, container 3, liquefied gas 1, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea/passenger 1, vehicle carrier 4

foreign-owned:

Argentina 1

registered in other countries:

28 (2004 est.)

• 18 years of age for compulsory military service;
• all citizens 18-45 are obligated to perform military service;
• conscript service obligation - 12 months for Army, 24 months for Navy and Air Force (2004)

• Bolivia has reactivated its claim to the Atacama corridor ceded to Chile in 1884 to secure sovereign maritime access for Bolivian natural gas;
• dispute with Peru over the economic zone delimited by the maritime boundary;
• Beagle Channel islands dispute resolved through Papal mediation in 1984, but armed incidents persist since 1992 oil discovery;
• territorial claim in Antarctica (Chilean Antarctic Territory) partially overlaps Argentine and British claims

• important transshipment country for cocaine destined for Europe and the US;
• economic prosperity and increasing trade have made Chile more attractive to traffickers seeking to launder drug profits, especially through the Iquique Free Trade Zone, but a new anti-money-laundering law improves controls;
• imported precursors passed on to Bolivia;
• domestic cocaine consumption is rising