Patricio Aylwin Inaugurated — Democracy Restored After 17 Years

Patricio Aylwin is inaugurated as President of Chile on March 11, 1990, in the National Congress building in Valparaíso. The ceremony is attended by heads of state from across the Americas. Pinochet hands over the presidential sash and sits in the front row as Commander-in-Chief of the Army — a reminder that the transition was negotiated, not complete. Aylwin immediately creates the Rettig Commission to investigate human rights violations and promises 'justice to the extent possible'.