Defamation and Online Harassment Laws in Chile

Chile is a civil law country. The Constitution protects the honor and private life of every person and their family (Article 19, No. 4), while guaranteeing free speech subject to liability for crimes and abuses (Article 19, No. 12), and anyone whose honor or privacy is arbitrarily or unlawfully disturbed can file a protection action (recurso de protección) before the Court of Appeals (Article 20). The Criminal Code defines calumnia and injuria (Articles 412 to 431), the Press Law (Law 19.733) adds rules for statements made through the media, and the Civil Code governs compensation for harm (Articles 2314, 2329 and 2331).

Sources1Political Constitution of the Republic of Chile, Articles 19 No. 4, 19 No. 12 and 202Criminal Code (Código Penal), Articles 412 to 4313Law 19.733 on Freedom of Opinion and Information and the Practice of Journalism4Civil Code (Código Civil), Articles 2314, 2329 and 2331

Calumnia is a false accusation of a specific crime that could currently be prosecuted by the state, and injuria is any statement made or act done to dishonor, discredit or belittle another person (Criminal Code, Articles 412 and 416). Penalties include fines and, in many cases, short custodial sentences (reclusión menor), and they are higher when the statement is spread in writing and in public (Articles 413, 414, 418 and 419), with higher fines when committed through a media outlet (Law 19.733, Article 29). They are private-action offenses, so only the victim can bring the case (Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 55).

Sources2Criminal Code, Articles 412 to 4193Law 19.733, Article 295Code of Criminal Procedure (Código Procesal Penal), Article 55

Chilean law does not split defamation into written and spoken forms for time limits. A civil claim for damages expires four years after the harmful act (Civil Code, Article 2332). A criminal complaint for calumnia or injuria must be filed within one year from when the victim learned, or reasonably could have learned, of the offense, and never more than five years after it was committed (Criminal Code, Article 431).

Sources4Civil Code, Article 23322Criminal Code, Article 431

Chile does not use the common law idea of defamation per se. The closest equivalent is the list of serious injurias in the Criminal Code, which includes accusing someone of a crime that cannot be prosecuted by the state, or of a vice or immoral conduct that could seriously damage their reputation, credit or interests (Article 417). On the civil side, Article 2331 of the Civil Code allows money damages for insulting statements only if a measurable financial loss is proven, but the Constitutional Court has declared that rule inapplicable in specific cases, as in Rol 13.822-2022.

Sources2Criminal Code, Article 4174Civil Code, Article 23316Constitutional Court of Chile, Judgment Rol 13.822-2022 (September 14, 2023)

Any person or company offended or unfairly mentioned by a media outlet has the right to have a clarification or correction published free of charge in the same outlet, with similar placement, up to 1,000 words or two minutes of broadcast (Law 19.733, Articles 16, 18 and 19). The request must be sent to the outlet's director within 20 days of the publication or broadcast (Articles 18 and 20). In a criminal case, a judgment finding calumnia can be published at the offender's expense if the victim asks (Criminal Code, Article 415), and the victim's pardon can release the offender from the sentence (Article 428).

Sources3Law 19.733, Articles 16 to 212Criminal Code, Articles 415 and 428

A person accused of calumnia is cleared by proving the crime they alleged (Criminal Code, Article 415). For injuria, proof of truth is normally not allowed, except for statements about public officials concerning their duties (Article 420); for injuria through the media, truth may also be proven when specific facts were alleged to defend a real public interest or about a public official's duties (Law 19.733, Article 30). Under the same law, personal opinions in specialized political, literary, historical, artistic, scientific, technical or sports criticism are not injuria unless they clearly show an intent to insult (Article 29). Statements in official documents about public service matters that are not meant for publication cannot be prosecuted (Criminal Code, Article 427), and proving the truth of an insulting statement also blocks civil money damages (Civil Code, Article 2331).

Sources2Criminal Code, Articles 415, 420 and 4273Law 19.733, Articles 29 and 304Civil Code, Article 2331

The Criminal Code does not contain a general stalking or cyberstalking offense. Related conduct may fall under other crimes, such as credible, serious threats to harm a person, their family, honor or property, where making the threat in writing is an aggravating factor (Article 296), and using private recordings, images or documents to pressure someone into handing over money or doing something they are not legally required to do (Article 161-B).

Source2Criminal Code, Articles 161-B and 296

Insulting or degrading messages can be prosecuted as injuria, which covers any expression or act made to dishonor or discredit another person, whether stated openly or through allegories, caricatures, emblems or allusions (Criminal Code, Articles 416 and 421). The sexual harassment offense in Article 494 ter punishes non-consensual acts of a sexual nature, such as verbal remarks, gestures or following someone, but it is written for public places or places open to the public.

Source2Criminal Code, Articles 416, 421 and 494 ter

Chile has no offense that specifically targets doxxing. Article 161-A of the Criminal Code punishes capturing or copying private conversations, documents or images in private places without consent, and also spreading them, with a higher penalty when the same person obtains and spreads the material. People can also ask organizations that hold their personal data to delete it when there is no legal basis for keeping it (Law 19.628, Article 12).

Sources2Criminal Code, Article 161-A7Law 19.628 on the Protection of Private Life, Article 12

Showing a recording of a sexual act involving another person, or intimate images of a sexual nature, without their express permission is a crime no matter how the material was obtained, and sending, spreading or publishing it carries a heavier penalty (Criminal Code, Article 161-D). Secretly filming or photographing someone's genitals or other intimate areas in public places for sexual purposes, and spreading those images, is also a crime (Article 161-C), as is recording and spreading private images taken in private places (Article 161-A).

Source2Criminal Code, Articles 161-A, 161-C and 161-D