Chile, Mexico presidents call for democracy, Santiago protests flare on eve of coup anniversary

Chile's President Gabriel Boric and Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador shake hands as they deliver a statement to the media at La Moneda government palace in Santiago, Chile, September 10, 2023. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - The presidents of Chile and Mexico called for the strengthening of democracy in Latin America during a joint address on Sunday to commemorate the 50th anniversary of a 1973 coup in Chile, hours after a peaceful march culminated in violent clashes with police.

Monday will mark half a century since the overthrow of President Salvador Allende by the regime of General Augusto Pinochet, which ushered in 17 years of brutal military rule that saw some 40,000 people imprisoned, disappeared, tortured or killed.