Picture: Salto de Agua Klen Klen - Nahuelbuta - Chol Chol.
February 25, 2013
Mapuche communities demand that the company Forestry Mininco and the Chilean State restore their usurped rights
The company, which has about 700,000 hectares of forest plantations and which occupies a considerable area of ancestral lands claimed by communities and, at the same time, holds in its property important and ancient sacred and ceremonial Mapuche areas, is summoned to restore the rights of communities and end with the displacement of communities due to its expansion.
In the commune of Tirúa, Caleta de Quidico was initiated a recovery process of lands for productive purposes and the community said "We communicate that Forestry Mininco is holding in its hands the farm Labranza, land which is part of what belongs ancestrally to us as Mapuche and to our Mapuche community Maria Colipi widow of Maril, (...) a territory covering about 13 thousand hectares of land ... "The community says that this is reduced to approximately 2000 hectares. Which are occupied by 250 families, "which compose the entire community," they said and added: "So today and from here on, we the new Mapuche generation, raise our voice and start the territorial productive recovery process, because we are living in overcrowded conditions, destined to live in the homes of our parents or grandparents ... "
The Community reported that the territorial recovery process was initiated with the erection of a Rewe on the site, noted as the backbone of the spirituality, "in addition we built a ruka in the territory declared in conflict, for daily work involving land clearing and the beginning of cultivation of this land, which is necessary for growing food for our families ... "
In the initiated process, participate 60 families with women and children and brothers and they anticipate that "the remaining families will join with the advancement of this process, as we are all part of the need to recover our ancient territory ..."
Some of the disputed lands that have come to the public light as part of the historical claims are:
- Fundo Rukañanco of 300 hectares; La Posada of 200 hectares in Contulmo; Lleu Lleu of 78 hectares;
- In Tirúa: Fundo "Cerro Negro"; Fundo Tirúa Sur of 300 hectares; Fundo El Cardal of 1,600 hectares.;
Property Forestry Mininco of 400.00 hectares.;
- In Collipulli: Fundo Rucañanco of 1,090 hectares;
- In Puren: El Rincón of 590 acres;
- In Victoria: El Ulmo and El Arco of 200 acres each;
- In Traiguen: El Santa Ana of 440 hectares;
- In Lumaco: El Pichi Cautín;
- In Temuco: El Litre of 106 hectares;
- In New Imperial: El San Alberto;
among several others more, concentrated mostly in the Bio Bio and the Araucania area.
To this background information are added multiple others who have been recorded in recent years and several of them were incorporated into the background information that the Rainforest Alliance consultant observed and in its turn omitted, who, contradicting the FSC values and principles, outrageously awarded the seal with international environmental standard to the company Mininco for their forest plantations over an area of 656,738.2 Hectares of Pinus radiata, Eucalyptus nitens, Eucalyptus globulus, encluding in those areas many lands that are claimed by communities.
It is noteworthy that several international human rights organizations have referred to the need for policies of redress of lands to communities. A few years ago, the Human Rights Committee of the UN recommended the Chilean state to work on the demarcation of the ancient lands that are claimed. The Governments, however, have denied and systematically violated the Rights of the Lands of the Communities and imposed policies that alter the socio-cultural perspective.
Its controlling group
The company belongs to the group Matte (the siblings Eliodoro, Patricia and Bernard) with a fortune according to Forbes of last year of over U.S. $ 10,400 million dollars mainly obtained through the benefits and privileges granted by the Chilean state, whose base is centered in Pinochet's military dictatorship.
Some of their companies are: CMPC Holding (55.4% ownership): integrated forestry company, producing wood, pulp, paper and other industrial products and consumer goods. Empresas CMPC has a market capitalization of over U.S. $ 7,200 million. Along with cellulose - stationery one of its main businesses is Forestry Mininco. In energy they have Colbún (49% ownership), which is one of the largest power generation companies in Chile, with an installed capacity of 2,521 MW and a market capitalization of approximately U.S. $ 2,600 million. In commercial banking (Banco BICE): Corporate and Commercial Bank of people with assets of approximately U.S. $ 2,700 million, which also has activities of leasing, factoring, mortgage and foreign trade. Also in life insurance, securitization, real estate, investments, among others.
Sacred Places of the Mapuche people under the control of Forestry Mininco:
The dispute for Justice on the land tenure, has been answered by the company with the foolish positions contrary to the social peace that it proliferates, instead of searching for solutions and peaceful outcomes it has been intervening the public apparatus for the militarization of communities, the enforcement of the Anti-Terrorist Act and criminalization further intensifying the conflicts. Added to this are numerous sacred spaces of the Mapuche people which are in the illegal possession of the company.
The the FSC certifier own consultancy, Rainforest Alliance, registered some of these spaces with the estimated surface about 300 hectares and some of those identified as "sites of significance to indigenous communities" are:
Lil y Elkatuwe Puchacay, Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a historical ceremonial nature.
Eltun Puchacay, Site of Mapuche cultural significance,, funeral type. It is a family cemetery. Property Puchacay Lot 1.
Futa Mawiza Lolenco, spiritual and ceremonial religious complex. It's a big natural forest. Property Lolenco III.
Menoko Las Hermanas. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a ceremonial nature. It is a wetland and a water source. Property Las Hermanas and Others.
Menoko Napañir. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a ceremonial nature. It is a wetland and a water source.
Guillatuwe / Paliwe Napañir. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a ceremonial nature. Property Napañir.
Trayenko Elicura. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a religious ceremonial nature. They are waterfalls or cascades. Property Elicura.
Trayenko / Kelen Kelen La Esperanza. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a religious ceremonial nature. There are waterfalls or cascades. Property La Esperanza and Others.
Tren Tren Lanalhue. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a religious ceremonial nature. They are hills or peaks. Property Lanalhue.
Tren Tren Buenavista. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a religious ceremonial nature. They are hills or peaks.
Trawunwe Buenavista. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a ceremonial and sociopolitical type. They are peaks or promontories. Property Buenavista 1.
Eltun Puchacay, Site of Mapuche cultural significance, funeral type. Property Puchacay.
Menoko El Chequén, Site of Mapuche cultural significance of a ceremonial nature. Property El Chequén.
Trayenko San Ernesto, Site of Mapuche cultural significance of a religious ceremonial nature. They are waterfalls or cascades. Property San Ernesto.
Trawunwe Buenavista. Site of Mapuche cultural significance, of a ceremonial and sociopolitical type. They are peaks or promontories. Buenavista Property 1.
Eltun Puchacay, Site of Mapuche cultural significance, funeral type. Property Puchacay.
Menoko El Chequén, Site of Mapuche cultural significance of a ceremonial nature. Property El Chequén.
Trayenko San Ernesto, Site of Mapuche cultural significance of a religious ceremonial nature. They are waterfalls or cascades. Property San Ernesto.
Malal Menoko San Narciso I, Site of Mapuche cultural significance, type "fort" with a highly defensive character (fortification) and a "Menoko" of a ceremonial type, it is a wetland and source of water. Property San Narciso I.
Trayenko Las Praderas, Site of Mapuche cultural significance of a religious ceremonial nature. They are waterfalls or cascades. Property Las Praderas.
In addition to those indicated by the aforementioned consultant, there are several other places of ancestral ceremonial use, of enormous importance to the territorial forces and energies that are located to the interior of the lands of their domain. For example there is the case of Klen Klen, it is a waterfall in the middle of a ceremonial field of invocation to the spirit of the waters and the forest that that is located within a tree farm, surrounded by pine trees and with serious damage to the environment in the area of Nahuelbuta, commune of Chol Chol. The same goes for Kuel in Alto Bio Bio, a place in the shape of a hill, pyramidal, identified as an area of energy concentration in the vicinity of Santa Barbara.
It is noteworthy that the protection of the sacred spaces of the communities is not only covered by the Indigenous Act itself, but also by rules and indigenous rights treaties that are binding to the Chilean state, such as the ILO Convention 169 and the UN Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Just for reference, Article 13 of Convention 169, concerning the protection of sacred sites, which provides that "governments must respect the special importance for the cultures and spiritual values of the peoples concerned and their relationship with the lands and territories they occupy or otherwise use. "And in this regard, in Chile, there are precedents and jurisprudence of courts of appeal, and the Court of Appeals establishes that "there is no doubt that the intervention and destruction of cultural heritage leads to a feeling of lack of respect for their social identity, their customs and traditions."
At present, various places are claimed by the Communities and the company and the state continue without repairing the enormous damage to the spirituality, culture and lands of the Mapuche people.
