A group of 75 Democrats leaders and former DC members voiced support for former President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle after his DC membership suspension. The action was taken by the party's Supreme Tribunal due to Frei's meeting with presidential candidate José Antonio Kast. The signatories called the decision 'unintelligent and irrational'.
On Friday, a group of Democrats authorities, led by Senator Ximena Rincón, along with former DC members such as Jaime Ravinet and Jorge Sabag, delivered a letter supporting former President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle. The document, signed by 75 individuals, rejects the suspension of his membership imposed last Wednesday by the DC's Supreme Tribunal, due to Frei's meeting with right-wing Republican candidate José Antonio Kast.
In the letter, the signatories stated: “we express our full solidarity with the former President of the Republic, Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, who has been subjected to the suspension of his membership by the Christian Democracy, a party in which he has been a member all his life and which was founded by his own father.” They described the measure as “an unintelligent and irrational decision regarding a man who has dedicated his life to public service and the development of Chile.”
They highlighted Frei's legacy, noting that his government (1994-2000) was a “period of growth, stability, fiscal responsibility, and democratic strengthening, recognized across the board even by those who disagree with him politically.” They added: “It is especially unfair that someone who decisively contributed to lifting millions of Chileans out of poverty, modernizing the State, and integrating Chile into the world, now receives as 'payment' a party sanction for exercising a basic right in democracy: to dialogue.”
The signatories explained that the meeting with Kast aimed to “exchange ideas about Chile's future, seeking points of convergence and actions to address people's real needs.” They criticized the DC leadership's response: “That gesture—befitting a statesman and democrat—has been met by the DC leadership with disqualifications and verbal virulence that do not contribute to the democratic climate our country needs.”
They categorically rejected the attacks on Frei and regretted that the DC chose “the path of symbolic expulsion over democratic respect.” Notably, Democrats emerged in 2022 from former members of DC, PPD, and the Radical Party, and plans a meeting with Kast this Monday to formalize support ahead of the runoff, though the party is in dissolution process for failing legal requirements.
In a related letter to the editor, Cristóbal Quiroz N. questioned: “Perhaps Frei did not betray the DC, maybe the DC betrayed itself,” referencing prior suspensions of the Chilean DC by the American Christian Democratic Organization for backing communist candidacies, contrasting with Frei's support for opposing options.