Public declaration by PSI’s Inter-American Committee to Combat Racism

We demand that the Chilean government show the political will to resolve these just demands based on international law, in accordance with ILO Convention 169 and the International Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

In view of the increase in racist violence in the Wall Mapu, a historic Mapuche territory, PSI’s Inter-American Committee to Combat Racism and Xenophobia declares:

Racist violence is evident in the Chilean government's lack of response to the legitimate demands of the Mapuche political prisoners who have been on a hunger strike for more than 59 days. Among the strikers are eight Mapuche prisoners in Angol prison and one, Machi Celestino in Temuco prison.

This hunger strike was organized to demand changes to the way that these and other Mapuche political prisoners serve their sentences, that they can return to their territories. The silence of the authorities is disturbing because there are lives at stake, showing that for the government, Mapuche life is worth less than murderers like the officer who killed Camilo Catrillanca Marin who is currently under house arrest.

We demand that the Chilean government show the political will to resolve these just demands based on international law, in accordance with ILO Convention 169 and the International Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

We urge the government to fulfill its mandate with the welfare of the people in mind. Alternative solutions must be generated. This requires a willingness to reach political agreements rather than continue with ineffective violent and racist practices.

Since 2011, Mapuche women gardeners have been continuously repressed by the special forces. These women are mostly heads of household and many are elderly. They all depend on small pieces of land to work with their families, providing greater welfare for their loved ones while promoting and preserving the cultural identity of the Mapuche people and the wealth of each territory, creating spaces called trafkintu, where seeds, fruits and other values are exchanged in a self-sufficient way.

We propose that international law be enforced and that the relevant international bodies intervene through ILO Convention 169 and other international instruments that protect women which the Chilean State has ratified.

Public declaration by PSI’s Inter-American Committee to Combat Racism

We demand that the Chilean government show the political will to resolve these just demands based on international law, in accordance with ILO Convention 169 and the International Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.