CHILE · POLITICS
Chile’s governing parties have patched up one quarrel, but the sentence-cut crisis behind it now faces party talks, a special session and urgent bills.
Key Facts
- —What changed Squella apologised to UDI president Guillermo Ramírez and to Larraín on 24 October, and Larraín accepted.
- —The crisis behind it The Justice Ministry signed 56 sentence cuts for child sex offenders and paused new ones on 23 October.
- —Next in Congress The opposition seeks a special Chamber session on Wednesday, 28 October, and is preparing a constitutional accusation.
- —The UDI line The UDI blames the law and the courts, and wants the law changed through urgent bills.
- —The government line Kast’s government backs Justice Minister Fernando Rabat and pauses new decrees while urgent bills move.
- —Power Index Chile ranks 3rd of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 63.6 points (October 2026 edition).
On Saturday, 24 October 2026, Republican Party leader Arturo Squella apologised to Chile’s UDI party for a post attacking former Justice Minister Hernán Larraín. Both parties support President José Antonio Kast, so what happens next decides how easily his government can pass laws.
Larraín accepted the Squella apology on Saturday, but the sentence-cut crisis behind it is only now reaching Congress. The Rio Times explained who is involved in Why Chile’s Ruling Parties Clashed, and this guide looks ahead, with every forecast attributed.
In Plain English
- Special session: an extra sitting of the Chamber of Deputies, which the opposition wants on 28 October so that Rabat can explain the sentence cuts.
- Constitutional accusation: a Chamber vote and a Senate trial that can remove a minister who broke the Constitution or the law.
- Immediate discussion: Chile’s fastest bill urgency, giving the chamber that receives a bill six days to vote under Law 18.918.
- PDG: the Partido de la Gente, a 14-seat Chamber bench that the opposition says holds the key votes.
Where the Squella Apology Leaves the UDI
Ramírez said on Saturday that Squella called him, apologised “for his post” and promised to contact Larraín personally, The Clinic reported. Ramírez thanked him and repeated that the UDI is committed to finishing “the task” with its partners, La Tercera reported.
Squella then wrote on X that he had apologised to Larraín personally, would delete the post and that “my response was disproportionate”, T13 reported. Larraín replied on X that he had accepted the apology and that it was now time “to work for Chile”, and CNN Chile reported that Ramírez treated the row as closed.
The call followed sharp words from the UDI, whose president called Squella’s remarks “injurious” and whose official María José Hoffmann said they caused the government “profound damage”. Evópoli’s Luciano Cruz-Coke had told Squella that he runs “the President’s party”, La Tercera reported.
The UDI sits inside the government, since Interior Minister Claudio Alvarado belongs to it. In June Ramírez and National Renewal (RN) president Andrea Balladares made a formal complaint to Alvarado about repeated “lack of respect” from Republicans, El Dínamo reported.
The same June report added that Chile Vamos leaders believe Kast should push a single governing coalition, an idea it called “more distant than ever”. Analyst Cristóbal Bellolio told BioBioChile that Kast’s backing of Rabat keeps the crisis open because no political responsibility has been taken.
The Week Ahead in Congress
On Monday, 26 October, Rabat is due to meet governing-party representatives to contain the unrest, BioBioChile reported. On Wednesday, 28 October, six opposition benches want a special Chamber session at which Rabat would explain his change of criterion, The Clinic, Emol and La Prensa Austral reported.
The Dates
- Mon 26 Oct: Rabat is due to meet governing-party representatives, and the PDG bench plans to meet.
- Wed 28 Oct: the opposition seeks a special Chamber session with Rabat and plans to announce its position on an accusation.
- No date in the sources: any filing of a constitutional accusation, and a Senate vote on the enforcement-courts bill.
The ministry says it will seek “immediate discussion” for bills that bar sentence cuts for people convicted of sex crimes against minors, BioBioChile reported. Under Law 18.918 that is the fastest urgency, giving the chamber that receives a bill six days to finish its vote.
Rabat has said the government will back motions by Deputy Ximena Ossandón and by Senators including Squella, Longton, Flores, Bianchi and Araya, The Clinic reported. A separate bill creating enforcement courts, which would move sentence-cut decisions from commissions to judges, is in its second stage in the Senate, the ministry said.
RN deputies’ constitutional reform would also void cuts granted administratively in the six months before it takes effect, Interferencia reported. The sources reviewed do not say whether the government backs that clause.
How a Constitutional Accusation Would Work
Chile’s Constitution lets 10 to 20 deputies accuse a minister of breaking the Constitution or the law, or of leaving laws unexecuted. Squella argued on Friday that those grounds do not cover a minister who carries out a law, La Tercera reported.
How It Works
- At least 10 and at most 20 deputies sign a written accusation, which counts as filed when announced in the Chamber.
- The same session draws by lot a commission of five deputies, and the minister has 10 days after notification to defend himself.
- The commission has six days to report, and then the Chamber votes. A majority of deputies present approves it, and the minister is suspended.
- The Senate starts hearing the case four to six days later and decides by a majority of senators in office, and removal brings a five-year ban from public office.
The opposition says Rabat’s performance at the special session and the stance of the PDG bench, which it says holds the key votes, will decide whether it files, The Clinic reported. The opposition plans to announce a joint position on Wednesday, 28 October, and the PDG bench plans to meet on Monday, Emol reported, while the sources reviewed show no accusation filed as of Sunday morning, 25 October.
Ramírez said it would be “curious” to ask a minister who swore to respect the law to disobey it, The Clinic reported. He added that removing Rabat would be “a mistake”, La Tercera reported.
A lighter step is an interpellation, in which one third of the deputies can summon a minister to answer questions. The Communist Party paused that idea and asked for a special session instead, CNN Chile reported.
Where the UDI and the Kast Government Stand
Ramírez’s line is that “the first responsibility” lies with a law that was not clear enough and the second with courts that read it as not applying backwards, La Tercera reported. He says the answer is to change the law by immediate discussion, after which the government will deal with the decrees.
Interferencia reported that the UDI also asked for the 56 cuts to be reversed, a request the other reports reviewed do not show Ramírez repeating in public. Ramírez has also blamed the previous government of Gabriel Boric, which he said “threw the ball to the Court”, The Clinic reported.
“Of course the government is not happy with the decrees that reduce sentences … Even if we do not like this kind of decree, we are a government that complies with the law, that complies with the Constitution.”
Gonzalo Arenas, government spokesman, 23 October (translated from Spanish)
Arenas said the government would present its own bill and back the bills that lawmakers have announced, and that Rabat has “all the confidence” of Kast, La Tercera reported. Rabat told Meganoticias that Kast did not know of the decrees, El Mostrador reported.
Arenas also showed what he said was a decree signed under Boric by former minister Jaime Gajardo, saying “the result is exactly the same”, and conceded that “procedures can always be done better”. Former government spokesperson Karla Rubilar, who says she voted for Kast, asked him on Saturday to admit an “extremely serious error” and Rabat to apologise publicly, La Tercera reported.
What It Means for You
The sources reviewed show no effect on travel to Chile, on trade with the United States or on markets. For US readers the question is political: how much a government that needs partner parties can pass while those partners trade public insults.
Kast’s Republicans won 31 of 155 Chamber seats and the UDI 18, Pauta reported, so neither can pass a bill alone. The next signals are Rabat’s meeting with the governing parties on Monday, 26 October, and the special session sought for Wednesday, 28 October.
Chile’s Congress has two chambers. The Chamber of Deputies would vote first on any accusation and hosts the special session, while the Senate would try the case and holds the enforcement-courts bill.
Background is in the Rio Times profile of President Kast and its guide to who holds power in Chile. The first article in this series, Why Chile’s Ruling Parties Clashed, explains the quarrel itself.
Connected Coverage
What Is Not Known
Squella said he would delete his post, and the reports reviewed do not show whether he has. Larraín’s message calls Squella’s words “offensive” and accepts the apology, but the reports reviewed carry no further comment from him.
The reports reviewed do not show the Chamber confirming the special session, and the opposition says its own plans depend on Rabat’s answers and on the PDG. It is also not known how the PDG would vote on an accusation.
It is not known whether the 56 decrees can be undone, since the ministry has not cancelled them and an academic told Cooperativa that, in his view, decrees that gave rights cannot be revoked retroactively. Nor is it known how many of the 56 people are still in prison, beyond Rabat’s remark that “the great majority” must have left, El Mostrador reported.
The UDI’s reported request to reverse the 56 cuts comes from Interferencia alone, while Ramírez’s public statements focus on changing the law. It is also not known which bill will move first or how long the pause on new decrees will last, since the ministry gave no end date, BioBioChile reported.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did the apology end the dispute?
Larraín accepted Squella’s apology, and Ramírez treated the row as closed, T13 and CNN Chile reported. The sentence-cut crisis is not closed, since the 56 decrees stand and the opposition seeks a special session.
What is a constitutional accusation?
It is a vote in the Chamber of Deputies, followed by a Senate trial, to remove a minister who broke the Constitution or the law. Ten to twenty deputies must file it.
What does the UDI want on sentence cuts?
Ramírez wants the law changed through urgent bills and blames the law and the courts. Interferencia reported that the UDI also asked to reverse the 56 cuts.
Can the 56 cuts be undone?
The ministry has not cancelled them. Academic Pedro Anguita told Cooperativa that decrees that already gave rights cannot be revoked retroactively, in his view.
When does Congress act?
The opposition wants a special Chamber session on Wednesday, 28 October. Bills with immediate discussion urgency give the receiving chamber six days to vote.
Sources: Law 21.421, National Congress Library; Constitution, articles 52 and 53; Law 18.918, Organic Law of the National Congress; The Clinic, apology, 24 October; The Clinic, UDI reaction, 24 October; The Clinic, La Moneda meeting, 23 October; The Clinic, opposition, 23 October; The Clinic, bills, 22 October; Emol, opposition, 23 October; La Prensa Austral, 24 October; La Tercera, 24 October; La Tercera, 23 October; La Tercera, Arenas, 23 October; La Tercera, Rubilar, 24 October; El Dínamo, 27 June; BioBioChile, 23 October; BioBioChile, 24 October; El Mostrador, 23 October; Cooperativa, 23 October; Interferencia, 23 October; Interferencia, 22 October; CNN Chile, 22 October; CNN Chile, row closed, 24 October; T13, Squella and Larraín, 24 October; BioBioChile, Larraín accepts, 24 October; Emol, accusation, 24 October; Pauta, Congress after the 2025 election; T13, the Chamber, 23 January (all accessed 25 October 2026; quotations from Spanish are translated by The Rio Times).
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief