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Salvador Allende

Salvador Allende

Salvador Guillermo Allende Gossens (26 June 1908 – 11 September 1973) was a Chilean socialist politician who served as the 28th president of Chile from 1970 until his death in 1973. As a socialist committed to democracy, he has been described as the first Marxist to be elected president in a liberal democracy in Latin America.

Allende's involvement in Chilean politics spanned a period of nearly forty years, during which he held various positions including senator, deputy, and cabinet minister. As a life-long committed member of the Socialist Party of Chile, whose foundation he had actively contributed to, he unsuccessfully ran for the national presidency in the 1952, 1958, and 1964 elections. In 1970, he won the presidency as the candidate of the Popular Unity coalition in a close three-way race. He was elected in a run-off by Congress, as no candidate had gained a majority. In office, Allende pursued a policy he called "The Chilean Path to Socialism". The coalition government was far from unanimous. Allende said that he was committed to democracy and represented the more moderate faction of the Socialist Party, while the radical wing sought a more radical course. Instead, the Communist Party of Chile favored a gradual and cautious approach that sought cooperation with Christian democrats, which proved influential for the Italian Communist Party and the Historic Compromise.

As president, Allende sought to nationalize major industries, expand education, and improve the living standards of the working class. He clashed with the right-wing parties that controlled Congress and with the judiciary. On 11 September 1973, the military moved to oust Allende in a coup d'état supported by the CIA, which initially denied the allegations. In 2000, the CIA admitted its role in the 1970 kidnapping of General René Schneider who had refused to use the army to stop Allende's inauguration. Declassified documents released in 2023 showed that US president Richard Nixon, his national security advisor Henry Kissinger, and the United States government, which had branded Allende as a dangerous communist, were aware of the military's plans to overthrow Allende's democratically elected government in the days before the coup d'état.

As troops surrounded La Moneda Palace, Allende gave his last speech vowing not to resign. It is alleged that later that day, Allende died by suicide in his office; the exact circumstances of his death are still disputed. Following Allende's death, General Augusto Pinochet refused to return authority to a civilian government, and Chile was later ruled by the Government Junta, ending more than four decades of uninterrupted democratic governance, a period known as the Presidential Republic. The military junta that took over dissolved Congress, suspended the Constitution of 1925, and initiated a program of persecuting alleged dissidents, in which at least 3,095 civilians disappeared or were killed. Pinochet's military dictatorship only ended after the successful internationally backed 1989 constitutional referendum led to the peaceful Chilean transition to democracy.

El Equipo del Pueblo

2024

as as Self (archive footage)

Con Los Ojos de Hoy

2023

Primera

2022

as Self (archive footage)

O Grande Irmão: O Dia que Durou 21 Anos 2

2022

as Self (archive footage)

Cybersocialism: Project Cybersyn & The CIA Coup in Chile

2021

as As Himself

Los Jaivas: Todos juntos

2020

as (archive footage)

Laboratory Greece

2019

as Self (archive footage)

ReMastered: Massacre at the Stadium

2019

as Self (archive footage)

Santiago, Italia

2018

as Self (archive footage)

Beyond My Grandfather Allende

2015

as Self (archive footage)

Chicago Boys

2015

as Self (archive footage)

Guerilleros

2015

as Self (archive footage)

People's Train of Culture

2015

as Self (archive footage)

Laissez-faire

2015

as Self (archive footage)

Pinochet

2012

as Self (archive footage)

Santiago Files

2011

as Self (archive footage)

Memória Cubana

2010

as Self (archive footage)

The Inconclusive Independence

2010

as Self (archive footage)

Sabor a Victoria

2009

TV o no TV

2008

as Self (archive footage)

The Judge and the General

2008

as Self (archive footage)

The War on Democracy

2007

as Self (archive sound)

Salvador Allende

2004

as Self (archive footage)

Bowling for Columbine

2002

as Self - President of Chile (archive footage)

Chico

2001

as Self (archive footage)

Chile: Obstinate Memory

1997

as Self (archive footage)

Roberto Rossellini: Il mestiere di uomo

1997

as Self (archive footage)

Chile: A Genral Record

1986

Informe especial

1984

as Self (archive footage)

On Company Business

1980

as Self - Chilean President (archive footage)

The Battle of Chile: Part III

1979

as Self (archive footage)

Voyage au bout de la droite

1978

Les pompiers de Santiago

1978

A Grin Without a Cat

1977

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

The Battle of Chile: Part II

1976

as Self (archive footage)

The Battle of Chile: Part I

1975

as Self (archive footage)

I Was, I Am, I Will Be

1974

as Self (archive footage)

Mitbürger

1974

as Self

Venceremos, solidaridad

1973

as Material de archivo

You Speak of Chile: What Allende Said

1973

Interview with Salvador Allende: Power and Reason

1973

as Self - Interviewee

Chile, el gran desafío

1973

as Himself

Chile 1973 - Workers do not participate in the government, they are the government

1973

Universidad comprometida

1973

as Self

Compromiso con Chile

1972

El Diálogo de América

1972

as Él mismo

Blazing Continent

1972

as self

Compañero Presidente

1971

as Self

Conversation with Allende

1971

as Self

Le train de la victoire

1964