Chile declares state of emergency as conflict between state and indigenous minorities escalates | World News
Chile has declared a state of emergency in the southern regions after being shaken by conflict between indigenous and state Mapuche groups.
President Gabriel Boric’s administration has declared a state of emergency after the violence escalated.
The army has guarded roads and highways in areas at the heart of the conflict after Interior Minister Izkia Siches declared a constitutional state of emergency on Monday.
Some Mapuche groups demand the return of ancestral land where forestry companies currently operate.
Citizens including Mapuche activists, security forces and forestry workers have been killed in the conflict, with vandalism and burning of homes, trucks and machinery increasing in recent years. .
“We’ve seen an increase in violent acts on the streets recently,” Siches said at a press conference from La Moneda palace.
The Home Secretary added: “We have decided to use all the tools of the state to provide security for our citizens.”
She said President Boric’s leftist government would allocate about $470 million for public works projects in the area along with previously announced plans to promote land reclamation and establish a sets for natives.
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Tensions have raged for decades over land reform and discrimination.
According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) project, the indigenous community is an ethnic minority that makes up 12% of Chile’s population and 79% of these are members of the Mapuche ethnic group, making it They became the largest indigenous community in the country.
ACLED says the rights of indigenous peoples are not recognized by the Chilean constitution as they continue to face racial discrimination and live in impoverished rural areas in the south of the country.
