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E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR KPAO PGOV ECON PREL SNAR EFIN CI
SUBJECT:  CHILE MEDIA REPORT - JANUARY 15 
 
Leading Stories 
--------------- 
¶1.  Chilean dailies highlighted an audit on Chile's National 
Registry Service that revealed repeated mismanagement and 
embezzlement during former Director Guillermo Arenas' 
administration; Chile's Central Bank's predictions of a 2% to 3% 
economic growth in 2009; and the latest developments in the conflict 
in Gaza. 
 
U.S.-Related News 
----------------- 
¶2.  Interview with Chile's Ambassador to the U.S. Mariano Fernandez 
on the atmosphere in Washington for the upcoming Presidential 
Inauguration and his expectations about bilateral relations with the 
Obama Administration.  "Our greatest challenge is to continue 
deepening and diversifying the current very good bilateral relations 
with the United States.  Our challenge is to be creative in order to 
avoid making our relations bureaucratic and dull.  Besides a host of 
initiatives that we will continue to pursue and broaden, the Free 
Trade Agreement and the Chile-California Plan are the framework of 
our relations.  It is important to point out that the State 
Department's 2008 document on (U.S.) relations with Latin America 
mentions the Chile-California Plan and the Economic Dialogue with 
Brazil as the only bilateral (issues)" (Diario Financiero, business 
and financial, circ. 30,000, 1/15). 
 
¶3.  Chilean exports to the United States dropped by 11.5% during 
November 2008, revealed a report released by business and industry 
association SOFOFA (La Segunda, conservative, afternoon daily, circ. 
33,000, 1/15). 
 
Local 
------- 
¶4.  The Central Bank's Monetary Policy Report projected a 2% to 3% 
growth in Chile's economy in 2009, and reduced from 4% to 3.1% its 
inflation rate prediction for December 2008 (El Mercurio, 
conservative, influential newspaper-of-record, circ. 129,000, 
1/15). 
 
¶5.  Long timer Socialist Party member Jorge Arrate resigned his 
membership of 46 years and announced he will run for the presidency 
of Chile.  Mr. Arrate, a close friend's of President Salvador 
Allende and other renowned Chilean Socialists, served in the 
cabinets of former Presidents Patricio Aylwin and Eduardo Frei. 
Jorge Arrate criticizes the current party leadership headed by 
Camilo Escalona (All dailies, 1/15). 
 
¶6.  Members of the Chamber of Deputies' Human Rights Commission 
voted to remove Deputy Karla Rubilar as President of the Commission 
for erroneously charging several families of detained and 
disappeared as "false" victims (La Tercera, conservative, 
independent, circ. 101,000, 1/15). 
 
Chile-Cuba 
---------- 
¶7.  Government coalition Senators Nelson Avila from the Radical 
Democratic Socialist Party (PRSD) and Jaime Gazmuri from the 
Socialist Party (PS) argued in favor of President Michelle 
Bachelet's agenda during her upcoming official visit to Cuba.  Both 
Senators characterized the tour as "natural and positive in the 
process of diversifying relations with countries and governments in 
Latin America."  Senator Gazmuri criticized the right and the 
Christian Democratic Party for having a "double standard" in their 
requirement that Bachelet meet with the dissidents.  "We have never 
seen those sectors setting conditions on trips to countries... such 
as China" (La Nacion, government-owned, editorially independent, 
circ. 4,200, 1/15). 
 
Editorials 
------------ 
¶8.  "Obama's Initial Signals Towards the Region"  "In her 
confirmation hearing at the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee 
Tuesday, future Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's guaranteed that 
the Obama Administration aspires to have 'a vigorous association' 
with Latin America... (and that) her country's international policy 
should be based on a combination of 'principles and pragmatism' and 
not affix itself on a 'rigid ideology.'  If these lines are 
interpreted as key to Obama... one could expect from Washington a 
more flexible and understanding perspective towards the new 
political realities that have appeared on the subcontinent.  The 
guarantee offered by the next Secretary of State regarding her will 
to rebuild a common space in Latin America is good indication of a 
collaborative period...." (La Nacion, 1/15). 
 
¶7.  "Israeli Military Operation in Gaza"  "Israel notes that it is 
acting on legitimate defense.  However, it seems evident that there 
is no proportion between the violence deployed in its offensive and 
the threat represented by Hamas' missiles on the south of Israel.... 
 Hopefully, the talks carried out by Egypt and France will bear 
fruit and Palestinians and Israelis understand that they live in a 
territory where they need to learn to share, by respecting the 
integrity of their borders and mutual deference" (La Tercera, 
1/15). 
 
SIMONS