UNPO on Illegal Imprisonment of Mapuche indigenous people
Four indigenous Mapuche are still held in Chilean prisons under the controversial Anti-terrorism Law (Ley 18.314). UNPO has called upon Chilean President Bachelet to urge revision of the verdict against those four people and to incorporate international standards in their domestic legal system, including the Indigenous and Tribal People Convention of the International Labor Organisation. The Mapuche have been a UNPO Member since 1993.
Background
Four Mapuche indigenous people in
It is claimed that the Mapuche indigenous people are indicted in accordance with Ley 18.314 as they fight for their land rights through means of civil disobedience, despite general lack of solid evidence to prove accusations. The Anti-terrorism Law allows the use of so-called “faceless” i.e. anonymous witnesses,violating international human rights standards. Furthermore, the
Mapuche indigenous people, appearing before c ourt, are not given the right to have free assistance of interpreters for defense in their language of Mapudungun. As a result the trials lack conformity with both international human right standards and Chilean Constitution.
Although Minister of the Interior Andrés Zaldivar Larrain had openly declared that Ley 18.314 should no longer be applied in lawsuits involving Mapuche, existing verdicts were not revised and the prisoners remained behind bars. UNPO, in support of the adoption of Ley Navarro,has strongly urged the President to intervene on the following recommendations:
to revise the verdicts against Patricia Troncoso Robles,
Patricio Marileo Saravia, Jaime Marileo Saravia and Juan
Carlos Huenulao Lienmil; and
to work to ensure
Tribal Peoples Convention (169) of the International Labor
Organization.