Chile must stop using anti-terrorism law against Mapuche indigenous group – UN expert

[Judi Lynn]

Chile must stop using anti-terrorism law against Mapuche indigenous group – UN expert

31 July 2013 – A United Nations independent expert has urged the Chilean Government to stop applying an anti-terrorism law against its Mapuche indigenous people, who are fighting to recover their ancestral land.

“The anti-terrorism law has been used in a manner that discriminates against the Mapuche,” said the Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism, Ben Emmerson, at the end of a visit to the country. “It has been applied in a confused and arbitrary fashion that has resulted in real injustice, has undermined the right to a fair trial, and has been perceived as stigmatizing and de-legitimising the Mapuche land claims and protests.”

Mr. Emmerson warned that the situation in the Biobío and Araucanía regions is “extremely volatile” partly due to the misuse of the counter-terrorism legislation within the context of “an inexcusably slow” process of ancestral repatriation.

“In the absence of prompt and effective action at a national level, this situation could very quickly escalate into widespread disorder and violence,” he said in a news release.

More:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=45538&Cr=indigenous&Cr1=#.Ult8F-oo5kg

[Loudly]

1. May I ask if this indigenous group is on record as being in a state of rebellion?

And more specifically, armed rebellion.

[Judi Lynn]

2. Chile indigenous groups mark Columbus Day with protests

Chile indigenous groups mark Columbus Day with protests
October 13, 2013 | 2:12AM ET

Mapuche activists clash with police, demanding return of traditional lands; decry government mistreatment


Protesters clashed with police in Chile’s capital Saturday during an anti-Columbus Day march organized by Indigenous groups, with activists calling for the return of ancestral lands and the right to self-determination on the 521-year anniversary of the arrival of Christopher Columbus to the Americas.

~snip~
Though the Mapuche resisted Spanish conquest for 300 years and wish to be autonomous, in the late 19th century they were defeated militarily and forced into Araucania, south of the Bio-Bio river -- about 350 miles south of Santiago. Most live in poverty on the fringes of timber companies or ranches owned by the descendants of those who arrived to the region in the late 1800s from Europe.

Another anti-Columbus Day protest took place Saturday in Mexico City, where people from various indigenous groups marched peacefully to observe “Dia de la Raza,” or Indigenous People’s Day, as Columbus Day is called in Mexico.

“Indigenous people are in resistance because we are survivors after 500 years of the European invasion," Leonico Macuixle, a demonstrator, told The Associated Press. "They came to take from us our culture, our language, they built Catholic churches in our sacred places.”

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2013/10/13/chile-indigenousgroupsmarkcolumbusdaywithprotests.html

[Judi Lynn]

3. International court to rule on indigenous rights abuses in Chile

International court to rule on indigenous rights abuses in Chile
Tuesday, 28 May 2013 15:21
Written by Charlotte Karrlsson-Willis

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights will rule this week on cases of abuse by the Chilean government against Mapuche political prisoners.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights, based in San José, Costa Rica, is expected to give its decisions Wednesday and Thursday on several cases concerning human rights abuses against Mapuche political prisoners in Chile. The various cases were first brought to the court by the affected families in August of 2011.

The fundamental abuses cited in the claims are: the use of state repression, violence and imprisonment against Mapuche leaders, targeted at those involved in the campaign to regain Mapuche ancestral lands and rights. The claims also cite the historical mistreatment of the Mapuche people as having lasting traumatic social and cultural effects on all levels of the community.

A history of struggle

After fighting off Spanish conquistadors in the late 1500s, the Mapuche people managed to maintain their independence in the southern Araucanía Region and defend against the invasion of outsiders for centuries. It was not until the Chilean government engaged in the "pacification of the Araucanía" in the 1860s that the state finally took control of the Mapuche territory.

More:
http://www.santiagotimes.cl/chile/human-rights-a-law/26209-international-court-to-rule-on-indigenous-rights-abuses-in-chile