The spokesperson for the Mapuche political prisoners, Natividad Llanquileo, spoke about the indigenous people’s territorial claims. She also talked about the implementation of the Terrorist Act in Chile during an interview with radio station Juan Gómez Millas.
Llanquileo said the Mapuche’s main demand is the recovery of their ancestral territorial space. She criticised the way the Chilean government applies the Indigenous Act.
According to her, the government has a policy of relocating the communities, generating its division.
She also reported that the community’s ancestral lands are being occupied by multinational companies, noting that the Chilean law “always favours businesses.”
On the other hand, Llanquileo referred to the implementation of the Terrorism Act and the double standards suffered by the Mapuche who defend their territories.
It is worth reminding that last 7 August the American Court of Human Rights filed a lawsuit against the State of Chile for implementing the Terrorist Act in a selective and discriminatory way against the Mapuche.
Despite the sanctions that the court may issue against them, the government keeps unresolved territorial issues with more than 300 Mapuche communities. Furthermore, they have militarised large areas of the country in Araucanía.
The Terrorism Act was passed in 1984 during the dictator Augusto Pinochet’s regime. Its policies enable penalties for common crimes, intercepting telephone calls and using faceless witnesses.
Since the return of democracy in Chile, the Terrorism Act has only been applied against the Mapuche. At least 220 people have been convicted or sued.
