Once again, the opportunist government of Chile, led by Gabriel Boric, deployed the military and imposed a state of emergency in the Araucanía, the Mapuche territory in Chile. The military has thus been in control in the area since 17 May, basic fundamental rights have been suspended and laws suspended. According to the Chilean Minister of the Interior, Izkia Siches, the reason for the deployment of the military and the declared state of emergency is the safety of the citizens in the area.
The Araucanía is Chile's poorest region and has been home to the indigenous Mapuche people for centuries. For centuries, the Mapuche in the Araucanía have been fighting against exploitation and oppression, in recent years especially against expulsion, land theft and the destruction of nature. In recent weeks, too, there have been attacks on corporations, blockades, looting and land occupations in the region.
Chile's President Boric described the deployment of the military as necessary to secure the free movement of goods. One of Boric's first acts in March of this year was to lift the state of emergency imposed by his predecessor Sebastián Piñera. At the time, Interior Minister Siches himself sharply criticised the militarisation of the Araucanía. During the election campaign, Boric also promoted support for the Mapuche in order to settle the conflict and promised an end to land theft and expulsions. Now Boric is doing the same as his arch-reactionary predecessor Piñera.
The current situation in the Araucanía shows the electoral farce in which many illusions were wasted again in the Chilean election. Things continue as before, the opportunist government under Boric continues to terrorise the Mapuche and all its promises turn out to be lies.
