Chapter Eleven

Chile: Contesting the Lands

of the People of the Earth
How is it possible to have 37 episodes (of violence) to then continue sending in
the Carabineros (militarized police), thinking that the Carabineros will solve the
problem!
Francisco Huenchumilla, a Mapuche leader
and former secretary-general of the presidency
A majority of the native peoples of Chile are Mapuche and number between si hundred
thousand and one million people, ! to " percent of the country#s population$ %he Chilean
Mapuche territory, in a large area in the central part of the country, is more densely
populated than where their relatives, the Argentine Mapuche, livethe same people
sharing a common ancestral homethe latter numbering approimately one hundred and
thirty thousand and who reside in a vast area encompassing the &atagonian provinces of
'eu(uen, )io 'egro, Chubut and *anta Cru+$ %he very name, Mapuche, which means
,people of the -arth,. underscores the fact, as one Mapuche leader himself noted, that
,indigenous thought does not distinguish the environment from the self$. Although more
Mapuche today find wor/ in Chile#s urban areas than in rural precincts, land remains an
indispensable part of the spiritual and economic elements of the 0ndians# culture and way
of life, helping them maintain a strong cultural identity$
1
%oday more than three thousand
Mapuche communities in Chile in the country#s southern region are home to numerous
1!2
CHA&%-) -3-4-'
ethnic and emerging ethno-nationalist organi+ations, giving impetus to a ,national.
Mapuche project, united in demands for constitutional recognition of their identity,
culture and rights, together with ownership of their traditional lands$ Momentum has
rapidly increased as their ancestral territory has been steadily eroded by claims by
multinational corporations, land barons and even non-0ndian farmers$ 5ecause of this,
some Mapuche see/ a legal status similar to that of the "apa #ui 6&olynesian7 people of
-aster 0sland, to which the government in *antiago has conceded a relatively self-
governing autonomy as a ,special territory$.
8
However, the geographic isolation of -aster
0sland ma/es autonomy an easier political decision9 the geography of the Mapuche does
not lend itself to a straightforward decision$
0n 1:;1 anthropologist 3ouis C$ Faron noted that the Mapuche,one of the largest
functioning 0ndian societies in *outh America. and /nown pejoratively as
,Araucanians.have historically been viewed by non-indigenous Chileans as
hopelessly ignorant, shiftless, and la+y$ %his situation is aggravated by the fact that
Mapuche reservations occupy some of the most desirable farming and cattle-raising land
in this part of Chileland coveted by white settlers, who complain that the reservations
surround them li/e a ,ring of iron,. preventing their epansion$ $ $ $ %he government is
desirous that the land be eploited by the best agricultural methods, and regards the
Mapuche as a stumbling bloc/ to the improvements strategic white coloni+ation would
bring$ %hese attitudes are translated into ,pressures. on Mapuche society$
<
5ecause they halted the advance of the 0ncas at the )io Maule in the fifteenth century,
their foes at that time called the Mapuche ,&romaucae.a deformation of the =uechua
word ,purum auca,. meaning ,rebellious people9 . their title was reaffirmed when the
Chilean 0ndians became the only indigenous people in Central and *outh America to
successfully avoid con(uest by the *panish$ %hey signed a treaty in 1;!1 formally
recogni+ing their territorial independence and autonomy$ ,%here was a moment when the
advancing *panish army declared a truce with the Mapuches,. recalled *teven M$
%ullberg, the former >ashington, ?$C$ office director of the 0ndian 3aw )esource Center$
,)egularly afterwards, there was a formal meeting between government officials and
Mapuche leaders at the site of that agreement to commemorate it$ 0ndigenous rights
lawyers in Chile have been collecting the documentary history of those events and what
is, in effect, a treaty$.
!

After the Mapuche sided with the *panish and received recognition of their status as
an independent nation during the 0ndependence >ar 61@A< to 1@1@7, they were demeaned
and dehumani+ed by the eventual victors, who after the war was over pushed the 0ndians
ever more south$
2
%he Mapuche were definitively beaten by the Chilean state in 1@@1,
more than si decades after national independence was declared$ 0t too/ the simultaneous
effort by the Chilean and Argentine nations to defeat the Mapuche, warring, on both sides
of the Andes during the same decade and ending almost the same year$ 0n Argentina,
1!;
1!;
Beneral Culio Argentino )oca directed the Con(uest of the ?esert, the campaign ending
the 0ndian wars in 1@":, securing the southern and western &ampas and the northern
reaches of &atagonia for -uropean settlement$ Dpon assuming the presidency a year later,
)oca appeared to concede the joint interests of *antiago and 5uenos Aires in the bloody
repressionE ,0 have always thought that Chile and the Argentine )epublic, instead of
being bad neighbors ought to reach out to one another, not only to combat together and in
a single effort, the savage tribes, but also to influence, with vigor and together, *outh
America#s great ends toward progress$.
;

-ven in the twentieth century the physical mistreatment of the Mapuches in Chile
continued, with reports of 0ndians having their ears sliced off and being branded by the
same instruments used on cattle$
"
Fne authoritative author in the early 1:;As wrote that
the Mapuches stood apart from other indigenous communities in 3atin America, their
final defeat in the 1@@As 6leading7 to their placement on reservations rather than to
enslavement or forced incorporation into haciendas as laborers$ %he turning point, and $ $ $
the significant cultural base line $ $ $ is the beginning of the reservation period in 1@@!$
%his history is more li/e that of 'orth American 0ndians than other *outh American
0ndians, who were deeply influenced by the *paniards at a very early time$ 3i/e the Hopi,
Guni, 'avajo, and others, whose reservations have retarded the impact of -uropean
culture, the Araucanians have remained in comparative cultural isolation$ $ $ $ the
Araucanian culture, although now a sub-culture of Chile, continues to be a very
distinctive ethnic identity$
@
>hen Marist *alvador Allende Bossens gained the Chilean presidency in 1:"A many
thought his administration would improve how the government treated the Mapuche,
although this help was framed as owing to their membership in the ,proletariat$. An
0nstitute of 0ndian ?evelopment was created to improve the economic conditions of
indigenous peoples, recogni+ing their uni(ue status as 0ndians$ %he overthrow of Allende
in a military coup led by Captain Beneral Augusto &inochet in 1:"< put an end to the
eperiment$ 5ecause the 0ndians had been identified with the rule of the deposed elected
leftwing populist, many were singled out for repression$ &inochet#s regime allowed
corporations to encroach even further onto 0ndian lands and the law according special
status to the 0ndian reservations was abolished$ ,0n this situation, the Mapuches, deprived
of government sympathy or support, were left to survive in a free-mar/et society in
which they lac/ed the main ingredients for successE economic power, high levels of
education, and a mentality favorable to individual entrepreneurship$.
:
%he return of democracy to Chile in 1::A meant small but significant improvements
along with continued problems associated with elected authorities# decisions to maintain
the regime#s economic policies virtually intact, despite its mar/edly une(ual distribution
of wealth$ 6Chile ran/s higher than such countries as Meico in terms of economic
ine(uality$7 3aw 1:$82<, passed in 1::< and entitled, ,&rotection, &romotion and
?evelopment of 0ndigenous &eople,. established a 'ational Corporation for 0ndigenous
1!"
CHA&%-) -3-4-'
?evelopment 6CF'A?07, affirmed the right of 'ative Americans to bilingual education
and freedom from discrimination, and developed a networ/ of protected communities in
which the Mapuche could defend their cultural and archeological traditions$ A bilingual
education initiative is credited with epanding educational opportunities for the Chile#s
indigenous peoples$
&roblems continued, however$ &resident -duardo Frei 61::!-8AAA7, supported a dam
project on the 5iobio )iver, even inaugurating its operation, displacing the &ehuenche
Mapuche from their ancestral homes to mountainous terrain covered much of the year by
snow$ Frei was accused of having a conflict of interest, since he previously served as a
partner with the *igdo Hoppers consulting firm that helped build the first -ndesa dam on
the river, a fact that highlighted the narrow confines in which the 0ndian rights debate
too/ place$
1A
'ot only were the Mapuche not consulted9 two 0ndian representatives on the
planning committee were dismissed because of their opposition$ Conflicts with the
government over land use are not limited to hydroelectric projects, either$ ,For the
Mapuche, the timber epansion signals their death as a people,. claimed one sympathetic
observer$ ,-ach year the borders of the timber companies grow by one hundred twenty-
five thousand acres$ $ $ $ A study by the Central 5an/ shows that in 82 years, Chile will be
without native forests$ %hey conclude, nonetheless, that the epansion of the timber
companies is unstoppable$.
11

After nearly two decades of democratic rule, vigorous debate continues over whether
the Mapuche should be integrated into Chilean society with the status of indigenous
peoples, or merely assimilated as Chilean citi+ens$ >ith &resident Michelle 5achelet#s
election in 8AA;, the perception continued to be of a government hostile andIor
indifferent to the plight of the 0ndians$ Her inaugural speech ignored entirely any mention
of indigenous peoples, despite the strong presence of their agenda during the national
election campaign$ 5achelet#s promise to incorporate indigenous rights into the national
constitution, and to ensure consultation in areas in which they were affected led to
complaints that indigenous representatives had not been fully consulted on the proposal
and that the proposed constitutional reforms ,actually conspired against 0ndians being
granted the status of a collective people$. As the "apa #ui moved toward a ,special
territory. status on -aster 0sland, Mapuche leaders (uestioned why a similar treatment
was not accorded to them$
0f what is promised is carried out, it would be a historic step for the autonomous
aspirations of the )apa-'ui people$ However, this willingness to authori+e a *pecial
*tatute contrasts with the government and the distinct branches of the state in general to
even debate the possibility for a similar solution in the case of the Mapuche$ An
Autonomous *tatute for the Mapuche regionJ 0mpossible one hears from 3a Moneda
Kpresidential palaceL and the armed forces command, worriedaccording to what they
sayabout national security and the ,territorial integrity of the *tate$. How then can the
government concession to the )apa-'ui people be eplainedJ
18

1!@
1!@
0n April 8AA", 5achelet offered a new set of proposals, including ,new mechanisms
for the autonomous and representative participation of the indigenous peoples in society
and state,. and an amendment to the constitution ,recogni+ing the multicultural character
of the Chilean nation, the eistence of the original peoples and the eercise of their
rights$. 0n Cune 8AA@, she proposed the creation of an Dndersecretary of 0ndigenous
Affairs, and ordered each regional government ministry to create specific units to deal
with indigenous issues$ 5achelet also announced the return of twenty-eight thousand
hectares of land in the Atacama ?esert to the indigenous %alabre community$ %hree
months later, the Chilean government ratified the 0nternational 3abor Frgani+ation#s
Convention 1;: 6which had already been given constitutional status in neighboring
Argentina7 establishing a system of special protection for indigenous groups and
mechanisms for consulting with them on laws, economic projects and policies that affect
them and the areas where they live$ However, the decision by the 5achelet government to
add an ,interpretive declaration. to the ratification instrument, see/ing to limit its
application, was both rejected by the 03F and fiercely critici+ed by Mapuche leaders$
6Bovernment footdragging on indigenous (uestions can be seen, too, in their approach to
health care$ 0n an attempt to integrate Mapuche traditions, in the southern region of the
country, ,machis.Mapuche women healerswor/ in state-owned medical centers$ %he
innovation came only after Mapuche pharmacies sprung up in *antiago at the beginning
of the twenty-first century$7
1<

Meanwhile a new indigenous political party, $allmapuwen 6%ierra &apuche) was
recogni+ed by the Chilean -lectoral *ervice$ Frgani+ed around a proposal to create a new
self-governing nation in the $allmapu, etending from the Andes into Chile and
Argentina to the east, this area included the ,restitution. of &uelmapu, the easternmost
Mapuche territory in Argentina$ %he group received the eplicit support of the -uropean
Free Alliance, which describes itself as ,a -uropean &olitical &arty which unites
progressive, nationalist, regionalist and autonomist parties in the -uropean Dnion$.
$allmapuwen &resident &edro Bustavo =uilla(ueo, pointing to the autonomous regions
of *pain, openly recogni+ed the importance of the -uropean precedent when he as/ed, ,0f
inside *pain there eists a 5as(ue country or CataluMa, and no one in Chile seems to get
wor/ed up about it, why can#t a Mapuche country eist in ChileJ.
1!
Fr, some as/, why
can#t the Mapuche at least receive the same treatment as that now etended to "apa #ui
Mapuche activism today appears to transcend that of an ,ethnic. group, ta/ing shape
in a ,Mapuche-nationalist. movement whose five characteristics, identified by
Hernande+, define its transformative ethno-nationalist characterE
%he demand for recognition as a people 6pueblo79
%he demand for territory, not just land9
%he demand for political autonomy9
%he emergence of a nationalist intellectual class, and
1!:
CHA&%-) -3-4-'
%he emergence of ,national sentiment. among the Mapuche$
12
5eginning in 1::", Mapuche activists began to set fire to forestry plantations as a tactic
aimed at recovering their traditional lands, as their demands went from increasing land
ownership to creating autonomous territory$ %hey have fought in courts against charges of
setting fire to non-Mapuche houses and farmland on property they say belongs to the
community, justifying such action by claiming to defend their communal property from
the predations of outsiders$ %hey have engaged in civil disobedience and acts of sabotage
against non-0ndian companies# property and machinery, including several arson attac/s
against forestry companies, to protest the encroachment by transnational hydroelectric
plants and foreign-owned logging companies on their land and the use of their resources$
%he 'atagonian %imes recently noted that the Mapuches#
latest enemy comes $ $ $ in the form of forestry companies who are eploiting Mapuche
land to feed the booming Chilean lumber trade$ A recent &ricewaterhouseCooper study
ran/ed two Chilean businesses, A)ADCF and CM&C $ $ $ as the largest forestry
companies in 3atin America, and they loo/ on course to /eep growing$
?etained protestors faced laws 6%he Antiterrorism 3aw and the 3aw of 0nternal *tate
*ecurity7 first established in 1:@! under the &inochet military dictatorship$ %hese treat
those crimes as national security threats on the same level as terrorism, severely limiting
the basic legal defense rights of the accused$ Human )ights >atch noted in a 8AA! report,
,Dndue &rocessE %errorism %rials, Military Courts and the Mapuche in *outhern Chile,.
that the anti-terrorism statute ,doubles the normal sentences for some offenses, ma/es
pre-trial release more difficult, enables the prosecution to withhold evidence from the
defense for up to si months, and allows defendants to be convicted on testimony given
by anonymous witnesses$ %hese witnesses appear in court behind screens so that the
defendants and the public cannot see them$. %he measures meant, for eample, that some
one hundred witnesses were allowed to ,conceal their identity while testifying. against
Mapuche activists and community leaders$ 3ocal and international human rights groups
said the sentences handed down were ,far out of proportion to the activists# actions,.
arguing that ,protests by Mapuche people for the protection of their traditional lands and
in defense of the environment are not acts of terrorism$.
1;

0n late 8AA", an arson attac/ by a group of eight to ten peoplewearing s/i mas/s
and military-style camouflage uniforms and armed with shotguns and riflesagainst two
logging camps was believed to have been committed by the most radical Mapuche
organi+ation, the Coordinadora (rauco)&alleco 6CAM7, most of whose leaders accused
of participation were already in jail$ Bovernment officials claimed the group, which has
acted in the name of 0ndian rights for a decade, was lin/ed to the 5as(ue separatist
organi+ation -%A$
1"
A CAM communi(uN declared that ,because there has been no sign
from the government that it will withdraw the repressive forces from the KMapucheL
12A
12A
communities and the continuous advance of capitalist investments in our territory, we
have given freedom of action to the organs of Mapuche resistance to act against capitalist
interests KsoL the Coordinadora Arauco-Malleco assumes full responsibility for the recent
actions carried out by the weichafe KwarriorsL against forestry interests in the area of
Malleco$.
1@

-arly in 8AA@, a clash between police and Mapuche activists occupying a ranch in
the Araucania region resulted in the death of one Mapuche university student, MatOas
Catrileo, who was shot in the bac/, and a call by two senators from 5achelet#s ruling
coalition to the Frgani+ation of American *tates for mediation$

6Fn a tape-recording later
made public, a police special forces officer could be heard urging a colleague to shoot the
0ndiansE ,Fire at them$.7 Although the government continued to declare its willingness to
resolve the situation, the regional police were reinforced and complaints about rights
abuses continued$ 0n *eptember, a consortium of international and Chilean human rights
and other non-governmental organi+ations issued a report that claimed,
%he violent eruption of the uniformed police in the KindigenousL communities has become
a fre(uent phenomenon $ $ $ 6including7 racist insults, assaults and threats with firearms
against children$ $ $ $ &olice violence against the Mapuche population is one of the most
grave and unpunished, as it ta/es place in the contet of the historical discrimination this
First 'ation population has suffered and a permissive governmental policy that, together
with the criminali+ation of Mapuche demands, tolerates and justifies the police against
the communities$
1:

0n Cune 8AA@, CAM ?irector Hector 3laitul was found innocent by a three-judge
court in %emuco of charges of arson, the possession of illegal arms and receiving stolen
property$

However, the 8AA: D$*$ *tate ?epartment report on world terrorism
characteri+ed the CAM as ,a violent Mapuche group that has burned farms and attac/ed
police in lands that they claim as theirs,. showing ,improved planning. in its activities
and a more ,professional use of arms$. 0t also too/ note of Chilean claims that the
Mapuche militants were wor/ing with the 5as(ue terrorist group -%A$ %he D$*$
government report was issued as human rights organi+ations critici+ed what they said was
a pattern of government harassment of the mass media including the detention on
terrorism charges of reporters and documentary filmma/ers covering the Mapuche
conflict$ ,&eople#s belief in the recovery of these lands is very powerful, not because of
wic/edness nor out of wishing to create a problem for the state, but because there is a
permanent sense of injustice,. said Francisco Huenchumilla, a Mapuche who was
secretary-general of the presidency under 5achelet#s predecessor )icardo 3agos 68AAA-
8AA;7$ %he Chilean political class ignored the dimensions of the conflict and the fact that
its solution was necessarily political, Huenchumilla added$ ,How is it possible to have <"
episodes 6of violence7 to then continue sending in the Carabineros 6militari+ed police7,
thin/ing that the Carabineros will solve the problemJ.
8A

121
CHA&%-) -3-4-'
Meanwhile, the underlying dynamics of Mapuche discontent entered a new stage,
propelled by poverty, the continued corporate encroachment on Mapuche lands, and the
actions of a state that appeared unwilling to involve itself in the righting of a historic
injustice that continued to fester$ ?am projects in the &atagonian wilderness proposed by
a private Chilean-*panish energy company would re(uire moving Mapuche families out
of their homes, which they ac(uired after being relocated a decade ago prior the
construction of another hydroelectric damtwo moves in a decade$

Aucan HuilcamPn,
leader of the Mapuche Council of All 3ands 6Conse*o de %odas las %ierras7, warned that
some of Chile#s most important planned energy and mining projectssuch as the
mammoth HidroAysNn hydroelectric project that is also strongly opposed by
environmentalistswere li/ely to come into conflict with 03F Convention 1;: and a
new Code of )esponsible Conduct 6CC)7 slated to come into effect in late 8AA:$ %he
CC) stipulated that businesses must carry out reports on the impact of their activities on
indigenous rights, and to have their enterprises reevaluated every three years$ 0n addition
to the prior consultation re(uirements included in both Convention 1;: and the CC),
profit sharing and other benefits were also re(uired, with compensation for those
indigenous people who were displaced as a result of the economic activity$ 0f the impact
of a project was significant, HuilcamPn said, ,0t will be necessary to ta/e more radical
measures in order to slow the project down$.
81
%he bi-national character of demands by the Mapuche peoplea population that
straddles the common Chilean-Argentine border in an ancestral area they claim as theirs
may receive additional attention in 8A1A, as both Chile and Argentina celebrate their
independence bicentennials$ 0t may also create significant cross-border problems for both
countries as they see/ to address 'ative American demands$ Article <8 of 03F
Convention 1;:, signed by both nations, addresses ,Contacts and Co-Fperation Across
5orders,. stipulating thatE ,Bovernments shall ta/e appropriate measures, including by
means of international agreements, to facilitate contacts and co-operation between
indigenous and tribal peoples across borders, including activities in the economic, social,
cultural, spiritual and environmental fields$.
Although both countries are now at peace, it was just three decades ago that festering
border disputes brought them to the brin/ of a major military conflict$
88
-very proposed
solution to the Mapuche (uestion in their respective territories carries with it the potential
of renewed conflict, particularly given the national security cast in which Chilean
politicians and private analysts have usually framed the 0ndian (uestion$ 0n Fctober 8AA@,
the president of the powerful Confederation of &roduction and Commerce
6Confederaci+n de la 'roduccion , el Comercio-C'C7 called on the government to
employ a heavy hand in dealing with violence lin/ed to the Mapuche (uestion$ ,%he acts
of violence are not Qisolated incidents$ %he citi+enry has been witness to the level of
compleity, organi+ation and increase in scale that has recently become worse$. 0t was,
the business group complained, ,part of a long-term plan with ideological connotations of
128
128
a terrorist /ind$.
8<
*uch warnings had been foreshadowed already in May 8AA!, when
designated senator and retired army general Culio Canessa declared that the creation of a
new, largely &enhuenche-Mapuche community in the Dpper 5io-5io in the @
th
)egion
brought with it important security (uestionsE
%he Dpper 5io-5io is a frontier +one that is very important to national defense and, as
such, of great geopolitical significance$ 5ecause of this, it would have been prudent that
the Committee on Bovernment, ?ecentrali+ation and )egionali+ation call, in order to
hear their views, the Kmilitary high commandL, which would have given us a correct
opinion, from the perspective of the country#s security, about whether what is under
consideration is proper$
8!
Canessa#s desire to place the 0ndians# demands under a national security perspective
echoed an essay written five years earlier by military analyst Captain &aula 4idela del
)eal, who found that
?espite the measures adopted by the government, meant to alleviate the situation, these
have proven to be insufficient and ineffective regarding the Mapuche claims$ $ $ $ .n
effect, the &apuche conflict tends to escalate and could become a perturbing element
that could even affect national securit, / / / a situation that the (rmed 0orces, given their
constitutional mandate of being essential for national securit, and guarantee of the
"epublic1s institutional order, should not ignore, if abominable outcomes are to be
prevented/ %a/ing into account that historically claims, such as in this case, are followed
as an eample by other social groups, when the lac/ of effective solutions impedes the
definitive solution of the problem$ $ $ $ >hat is more, in their effort to obtain their
demands, the &apuche communities have found support in national and international
organizations for the protection of minorities, from whom the, have received support and
guidance/ %hese influences, which have inserted into the Chilean situation foreign socio)
cultural elements, have onl, contributed to the distortion of the true realit, of the
indigenous communities in our countr,$ $ $ $ %he result of the ethnic mobilizations have
been a rebellion against the current *uridical regime, promoted and underwritten b, the
aforementioned organizations and infiltrated b, anti)s,stem groups, such as the 0rente
&anuel "odr2guez 3&anuel "odr2guez 0ront-0&"4 and the &ovimiento de .z5uierda
"evolucionario 3"evolutionar, 6eft &ovement-&."/4, which together have found in
ethnic demands the mechanism by which to obtain propaganda objectives and concrete
actions by the government faced with a critical situation that affects part of the national
community lashed by the results of the current world economic crisis$
82
60talics added$7
Dnli/e the other indigenous peoples who attribute their defeat to *panish armies
during the Con(uest, the fact the Mapuche were van(uished little more than a century
and a (uarter ago means the relatively fresh wounds might serve to strengthen nationalist
feeling among the group$ Although that feeling may be attenuated by the fact that they are
relatively non-hierarchical in their social structure and political organi+ation, it should be
noted that the large number of Mapuche scholars and activists ma/e them one of the most
12<
CHA&%-) -3-4-'
articulate and vocal of the hemisphere#s indigenous peoples$
8;
%he intellectual and
community resources of the Mapuche have nevertheless not translated into acceptance in
the Chilean nation-state, even before the upswing in violence further complicated the
possibility of pluralistic respect$ A 8AA2 study by the Chilean Ministry of &lanning and
Cooperation showed that Chileans of indigenous descent are paid approimately 8;
percent less that non-0ndian Chileans occupying similar jobs, while a D'0C-F study the
previous year showed that some 2A percent of Chilean students said they thought that
Chile was superior to other nations in the region because their country#s population
included fewer native peoples$ ,#Chileans consider the Mapuche to be ungrateful,
because they do not want to integrate after all these years,. one community development
epert noted, echoing the findings of Faron nearly five decades earlier$ ,%hey thin/ that
they are la+y, drun/ards and thieves$.
8"
5y 8AA:, %he 7antiago %imes noted, in ChileRs conflicted south, ,uprisings between
members of the countryRs largest indigenous group 6the Mapuche7 and government
authorities are almost a daily occurrence$. &ress reports suggested that an anti-Mapuche
paramilitary group, el Comando %ri+ano, had reappeared to threaten Mapuche leaders$
,%he most important Mapuche leaders are going to disappear from the world, after we
put two dynamite stic/s in their belts if they continue their demands for land,. one
member of the group was (uoted as saying$ Fn Culy 1;, a year after he was found
innocent on arson charges, CAM ?irector 3laitul was again detained, charged this time
with leading an 8AA@ attac/ in which a military prosecutor was wounded$ %he same
month, some one hundred Mapuche leaders traveled some <;A miles to *antiago to meet
with 5achelet or her representative to spea/ about 0ndian issues, but were not only not
received by them, but were dispersed in front of 3a Moneda government palace by anti-
riot personnel$ Fn August 2
th
, 3uis %rancal =uidel, 3laitul#s successor at the militant
Mapuche organi+ation, was also arrested on charges of arson and attempting to /ill
policemen$ Media reports claimed that %rancal had received military training from
Colombia#s narco-guerrillas, the )evolutionary Armed Forces 6FA)C7, between Culy
8AA2 and Culy 8AA;, 6%he same wee/ %rancal was detained the Carabineros announced
that si policemen, including four who were fired, were being investigated for stealing
wood from a forestry company located in southern Chile, a crime for which Mapuche
groups had previously been blamed$7 Fn August 18, another Mapuche, Caime Mendo+a, a
one-time army conscript, was /illed under circumstancesan attempt, with some fifty
other Mapuches, to occupy a farm over which they claimed ancestral ownershipsimilar
to that surrounding the death of MatOas Catrileo, the 0ndian student, the year before$
&olice said that they shot Mendo+athe third Mapuche to die at the hands of the
militari+ed force in si yearsin ,self-defense. after being ambushed, but community
leaders said the victim had been shot in the bac/ and was armed only with a stic/$ 6%he
*panish 5as(ue separatist group, (skapena, lin/ed to the political wing of the -%A,
publicly lamented Mendo+a#s death and condemned the Chilean government for ,robbing
12!
12!
lands and committing injustice against the Mapuche$.7 %he police /illing of the young
Mapuche activist, %he 'atagonia %imes reported, ,has once again pushed age-old
tensions between the indigenous group and Chilean authorities beyond the brea/ing
point$.
8@
%hree days after Mendo+a was /illed, more than ;A 0ndian communities formed the
Mapuche %erritorial Alliance as a means to fight for political autonomy$ Cuan Catrillanca,
at the head of the combative %eumcuicui community and an activist in the land sei+ure
campaign, too/ distance from the CAM but declared in the newspaper 8l &ercurioE ,>e
do not want more bread crumbs$ >e want to reclaim our original territory, but the
government does not listen to us$ For that reason we were united$. Manuel Calfiu, head
of the Mapuche community Meli >ian Mapu, said the group would forcefully confront
the *antiago government with their demands for poverty alleviation$ ,%he government
does not want to hear us, so there is no other option than to Sstri/e the tableR to be heard,.
Calfiu told the (ssociated 'ress/
8:
2
As Chile prepared for ?ecember 8AA: national elections, conservative presidential
candidate *ebastiPn &iMera called for the application of the &inochet-era antiterrorism
laws against the Mapuche$ 8-pinochetistas even made the claim that the Chilean 0ndians
were better off during the dictatorship than they had been in two decades of democracy$
)ightwing *enator 4Octor &Nre+ charged that the government ,should have been thin/ing
about the indigenous issue a long time ago and not waited until it has gotten to this point,
where the violence is out of control$T For the past twenty years, &Nre+ claimed, ,Mapuche
communities have continued to be mired in poverty, and that is just the breeding grounds
etremists need to sow terror in the region$. %he day before, a D' commission
investigating racial discrimination epressed its concern about the use of the &inochet-era
anti-terrorism statutes against the Mapuche$ Fne panel member as/ed pointedly if, ,those
mas/ed people who violently oppose Mapuche demands have also been judged by the
anti-terrorism lawJ.
<A
122
1
$ ,Mapuche &ut -arth FirstE An 0nterview with Floriano Cari(ueo Colpihue(ue,. &ultinational &onitor, 'ovember 1::2, 4ol$ 12,
'o$ 11$ httpEIImultinationalmonitor$orgI hyperImm11:2$A:$html$
8
$ 3oren+ Bonschor, ,)apa 'ui,. %he Contemporar, 'acific , 4olume 8A, 'umber 1, *pring 8AA@, pp$ 8<@-8!!9 ComisiUn &olOtica
>allmapuwen, ,-l )eparto del %erritorio,. httpEIIwww$wallmapuwen$clItrV<b$htm9 Holectivo 3ientur, ,*obre la autonomOa del &ueblo
)apa-'ui,. Culy 8<, 8AA< httpEIIalainet$orgIactiveIshowVtet$php<J/eyW!1:"$
<
$ 3$C$ Faron, &apuche 7ocial 7tructure9 .nstitutional "eintegration in a 'atrilineal 7ociet, of Central Chile, p$ 11$
!
$ &ersonal communication with the author, March 1, 8AA;$
2
$ Fn the ,*tate-to-*tate. relations maintained by the *panish Crown and the Mapuche tribes, see
httpEIIbiblioteca$serindOgena$orgIlibrosVdigitalesIcvhyntIvViiiItViiIv<Vt8Vc8-V-;$html$
;
$ 0sabel Hernande+, (utonomia o ciudadan2a incompleta9 8l pueblo mapuche en Chile , (rgentina, p$ 18"$
"
$ Mario *+najder, ,-thnodevelopment and ?emocratic Consolidation in ChileE %he Mapuche =uestion,. in -ric/ ?$ 3anger and
-lena Muno+ 6-ds$7, Contemporar, .ndigenous &ovements in 6atin (merica, pp$ 81-88$
@
$ Culian H$ *teward, ,Forward,. in 3$C$ Faron, &apuche 7ocial 7tructure, op/ cit/, p$ viii-i$
:
$ *+najder, ,-thnodevelopment and ?emocratic Consolidation,. op$ cit$, p$ 8;$
1A
$ ,Chile dam planE ?eath of a cultureJ. 'ovember ;, 8AA8, &apuche .nternational 6ink, online atE httpEIIwww$mapuche-
nation$orgIenglishIhtmlIenvironmentalIenviro-8;$htm$
11
$ *+najder, ,-thnodevelopment and ?emocratic Consolidation,. op$ cit$, p$ <19 )$ Marhi/ewun, ,0ndigenous 3eaders *pea/ FutE )$
Marhi/ewun of Chile,. in -ric/ ?$ 3anger and -lena Muno+ 6-ds$7, Contemporar, .ndigenous &ovements in 6atin (merica, pp$ 81<-
81!9 ,%he Mapuche &eople of *outh America,. 0ndigenous &eoples# Human )ights 0nitiative 6a collaboration of the 0nternational 0ndian
%reaty Council and the Dniversity of Minnesota Human )ights Center, at httpEIIwww$hrusa$orgIindigIreportsIsami$shtm79 )aul Gibechi,
,%he Mapuche in Chile9 >hat their resistance can teach us,. :net, August 1, 8AA"$
18
$ Commission &olOtica>allmapuwen, ,-l )eparto del %erritorio,. op$ cit$
1<
$ ,Bobierno chi leno artifice Convention 1;: per insisted con Qtetra chic,. *eptember 8!, 8AA@, www$mapuepress$netIJ
actWnewsXidW<8@29 author communication with Chilean development specialist Caroline Hoch, August 12, 8AA:/
1!
$ ?aniela -strada, ,Mapuche 3and Conflict *tained with 5lood,. .nter 'ress 7ervice, Canuary <, 8AA@9 ,-l lobby mapuche en
-uropa,. 8l &ercurio, February 11, 8AA@9 information about the -uropean Free Alliance can be found online atE httpEIIwww$e-f-
a$orgIwhatsefa$php$
12
$ Hernande+, (utonomic o ciudadan2a, op$ cit$, p$ 1@1$
1;
$ -strada, ,Mapuche 3and Conflict,. op$ cit$
1"
$ 0nterestingly, Mi/el Bari/oit+ Aspia+u )ubina, the military head of the -%A, appeared to admire 'ative American warrior
prowess$ Arrested in 'ovember 8AA@ near the Catholic shrine of 3ourdes, he used the alias ,%ero/i. 6Chero/ee79 see, for eample, Fiona
Bovan, ,-%A leader arrested in France,. %elegraph/co/uk, 'ovember 1", 8AA@
httpEIIwww$telegraph$co$u/InewsIworldnewsIeuropeIspainI<!"8A";I-ta-leader-arrested-in-France$html$
1@
$ 'atalie Hart, ,5orn BuiltyChile#s Hidden >ar Against the Mapuche,. %he 'atagonian %imes, August 82, 8AA@9 ,Mapuche
radicals return to torching logging firms,. 3atin America 'ewsletters, 6atin (merican 7ecurit, and 7trategic "eview, ?ecember 8AA", p$
1<$
1:
$ ,Chilean Cop Caught on %ape %elling Comrade to *hoot at 0ndians,. 6atin (merican Herald %ribune, Culy ;, 8AA:9 ,Mapuche
ConflictE Chile Bov#t flip flops as abuses continue,. 7antiago %imes, February 1!, 8AA@9 ,Alto AhiYY 3a violencia policial en Chile,.
httpEIIwww$altoahi$clI9 see also, %homas )othe, ,Mapuche Birl *ee/s &olitical Asylum in *wit+erland,. %he 'atagonia #ews, Fctober 81,
8AA@$ According to the report, ,%en-year-old )elmutray Cadin Calfunao has been arrested and interrogated by Chile#s Carabinero
uniformed police force$ *he barely survived a mysterious arson attac/ on her house in 8AA2 and has repeatedly seen police beat her
parents and brothers$.
8A
$ -laine )amire+, ,Chilean Mapuche 3eader Ac(uitted,. %he 'atagonian %imes, Cune 1;, 8AA@9 Cathal *heerin, ,ChileE D$*$
Bovernment Heeping %abs on Mapuche Q%errorists,#. %he 'atagonia %imes, Cune 1", 8AA:9 ,ChileE Bovernment Qoversteps the mar/. on
Mapuche conflict,. 6atin#ews/com 7ecurit, ; 7trategic "eview, Cune 8AA:9 ,Conflicto con Mapuches no se soluciona con mPs
repression,. (nsalatina/com, Culy 8@, 8AA:$
81
$ ,MapucheE Fpposition to &ower &lants,. .nter 'ress 7ervice, ?ecember 88, 8AA@ httpEIIwww$unpo$orgIcontentIviewI:A!8I18"I9
Marine Comte-%rotet, ,MapucheE Codes of Conduct to Face %heir First %est,. 7antiago %imes, Cune 1, 8AA:$
88
$ An interesting perspective on the prospect of confrontation is contained in Cavier *ae+ &aiva, 6a cr2tica mapuche a la frontera
chileno)argentina9 antesala a una crisis binacional %esis &agister en 7eguridad , <efensa, (cademia #acional de 8studios 'ol2ticos ,
8strat=gicos de Chile 6A'-&-7, Fall 8AA@$
8<
$ 0van Fredes, ,-mpresarios piden al Bobierno aplicar Qmano dura# por los atentados mapuches en el sur,. 8l &ercurio, Fctober 88,
8AA@$
8!
$ *peech given by Canessa on May 1@, 8AA! in the Chilean *enate, which can be found www$senado$cl$9 Canessa also published an
article on the subject, ,-l dilema mapucheE 0ntegrar o segregar,. in the "evista >#?0(", 'o$ @, pp$ !-:$ %he maga+ine is published by the
pro-&inochet &ovimiento @A de 7eptiembre, group of retired military officers who promote the ,ideals. of the 1:"< coup in that country,
online atE httpEIIwww$movimiento1Adeseptiembre$clIinde$phpJactionWfullnewsXidW:""$
82
$ 4idela del )eal, ,-l Conflicto Mapuche y su 0mpacto en la *eguridad 'acional9. originally published by the Centro de -studios e
0nvestigaciones Militares 6C-*0M7, the paper can be found httpEIIwww$mapuche$infoIfa/taIcesim1:::$html$9 the right-wing FundaciUn
3ibertad y ?esarrollo published a wor/ in 8AA< by Andres 5enavente and Corge Cara(uemada, ,Coneiones polOticas de las agrupaciones
mapuches,. in a boo/, 6a cuesti+n mapuche9 aportes para el debate, in which the authors claimed Mapuche activists, inspired by the
Gapatista insurrection in Chiapas, Meico, sought to create a situation of ungovernability and the creation of armed groups$
8;
$ A useful >eb site containing the 0ndians# agenda is the Mapuche ?ocumentation Center 6httpEIIwww$mapuche$infoI79 the site also
includes a Canuary ", 8AA@ Al Ca+eera video ,Chile#s Mapuches fight for their land$.
8"
$ Caroline Hoch communication, op, cit$9 ,?iscrimination Against Chile#s 0ndigenous &eoples Continues,. %he 7antiago %imes,
'ovember 8:, 8AA2$
8@
$ Buillermo ChPve+, ,Aparece vocero de QComando %ri+ano# y amena+a con Qhacer volar# a dirigentes y lon/os indOgenas,. 8l
(ustral, Culy <A, 8AA:9 T-l Comando %ri+ano cuenta con dinamOta$$$ para hacerlos volar de una ve+ y con ello daremos termino al
problema o conflicto mapuche$$$T Bilapan, Culy 8:, 8AA:, online atE httpEII www$/ilapan$ entodaspartes$netIspip$phpJarticle<<19 -va
4ergara, ,Mapuches chilenos dialogarPn sUlo con la presidenta 5achelet,. %he (ssociated 'ress, August 82, 8AA:$9 ,Carabineros de 3a
)eina detiene a nuevo jefe operativo de la CAM,. 8l &ercurio, August 2, 8AA:, online atE
httpEIIwww$emol$comInoticiasInacionalIdetalleIdetallenoticias$ aspJidnoticiaW<"A<!<9 *il/e *teiml, ,Fugitive Mapuche Activist Caught,.
%he 7antiago %imes, August ", 8AA:9 0vPn Fredes, ,'ueva uniUn de grupos mapuches impulsa estrategia de tomas para presionar por
tierras,. 8l &ercurio9 %he 'atagonia %imes, ,ChileE More violence in wa/e of Mapuche death,. August 1<, 8AA:$
8:
$ Fredes, ,'ueva uniUn de grupos mapuches,. op$ cit$9 -va 4ergara, ,ChileRs Mapuches announce alliance to push fight,. %he
(ssociated 'ress, August 12, 8AA:$
<A
$ ,Conflicto indOgena vuelve a enfrentar al Bobierno y la oposiciUn,. 8l &ercurio, August 12, 8AA:, online atE
httpEIIwww$emol$comInoticiasInacionalIdetalleI detallenoticias$aspJidnoticiaW<"1"2!9 ,F'D preocupada por aplicaciUn de 3ey
Antiterrorista a mapuches,. 8l&ostrador/cl, August 1!, 8AA:, online atE httpEIIwww$elmostrador$clI inde$phpJInoticiasIarticuloIonu-
preocupada-por-conflicto-mapuchesI$
PEOPLES OF THE EARTH
ETHNONATIONALIS! "EOCRAC# AN"
THE IN"I$ENO%S CHALLEN$E IN LATIN AERICA
ARTIN E"&IN AN"ERSEN
FORE&OR" '#
RO'ERT A( PASTOR