INDIGENOUS RIGHTS Indigenous Brazilians demand more land reserves 26-04-2023 12:11 Thousands of indigenous Brazilians gathered in the capital this week to demand the creation of new reserves on their ancestral lands.
CONTROVERSIAL COURT RULING Mendoza Chamber of Deputies denies Mapuches’ status as indigenous peoples 06-04-2023 18:45 Mendoza Chamber of Deputies declared Mapuches “should not be considered original Argentine peoples” in a resolution last Thursday.
UNITED NATIONS UN report criticises ‘structural discrimination’ against Argentina's indigenous 23-03-2023 17:43 United Nations Working Group on Business and Human Rights highlights repeated “evictions and violent interventions” in new report. by Api Dhadda
INDIGENOUS RESISTANCE Amazonian Siekopai people battle for return to ancestral land 15-02-2023 11:09 Displaced by decades of war as well as commercial and cultural intrusions, the Siekopai people live scattered between villages straddling the Ecuador-Peru border, far from their ancestral territory, which they are fighting to reclaim.
ENVIRONMENT Lula moves to put Brazil at vanguard of climate negotiations 14-11-2022 09:43 Lula will present his vision for the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest , at COP27 on Wednesday morning.
SECURITY Twelve arrests in Villa Mascardi as security forces evict Mapuches 04-10-2022 17:06 Following weekend demonstrations by local residents, 250 members of security forces deployed by authorities in large operation to evict members of the Lafken Winkul Mapu community.
CRIME & SECURITY Opposition denounces violence in Río Negro as Mapuche conflict escalates 29-09-2022 00:18 Arson, occupation and conflict as hooded Mapuche gang seizes Los Radales lot in Villa Mascardi after fire.
Chile Constitution Vote Chileans reject overhaul of dictatorship-era constitution 04-09-2022 22:46 The new ultra-progressive constitution proposed by Gabriel Boric’s government has been decisively rejected by the Chilean public this Sunday, in a compulsory vote to choose whether to replace the dictatorship-era constitution.
Chile New Constitution Chile to vote on overhauling dictatorship-era constitution 02-09-2022 09:30 Chileans will vote on their country’s future Sunday, for the third time in two years, choosing whether to replace Pinochet-era constitution with new one with aims to enact social change.
POLITICS & INDIGENOUS RIGHTS Volcano goes from ‘sacred’ to secular in 24 hours as Mapuche tensions rise 12-08-2022 10:04 Environment Ministry’s controversial recognition of the Lanín volcano and mountain as ‘sacred’ Mapuche site sparks immediate backlash from Neuquén Governor Omar Gutiérrez and host of opposition leaders, followed by a U-turn the next day; As tensions rise, local indigenous leaders decry “fragility” of government policy.
Chile's New Constitution Chile President Boric receives draft constitution 04-07-2022 13:22 Chile's constitutional convention on Monday handed its proposed new constitution to President Gabriel Boric ahead of a planned September referendum on adopting the text.
Murder in the Amazon Fish trade's murky waters cloud double murder in Amazon 22-06-2022 11:16 The pirarucú is one impressive fish – but what has it got to do with the murder of British journalist Dom Phillips and Brazilian indigenous expert Bruno Pereira?
Indigenous Rights Military redeployment turns Chile's Mapuche areas into powder keg 27-05-2022 14:51 With military troops once again patrolling their ancestral lands, members of the Mapuche indigenous community in Chile's south are angry.
Indigenous rights Chile redeploys Army to southern region amid Mapuche tensions 17-05-2022 14:13 Chilean President Gabriel Boric's government decrees re-militarisation of troubled southern region of La Araucanía, in the face of mounting violence linked to territorial claims by Mapuche indigenous groups.
COURTS & HUMAN RIGHTS Landmark Napalpí Massacre trial begins, 98 years after indigenous killings 20-04-2022 16:00 Nearly a century on from the 1924 Napalpí Massacre, in which more than 300 people were killed, a legal milestone is reached in a court in Resistencia, Chaco Province.
BRAZIL UNDER BOLSONARO Brazil's Lula slams Bolsonaro over indigenous policies 12-04-2022 19:35 Speaking at a protest by thousands of indigenous people who are camping out in Brasilia to protest Bolsonaro's policies, Lula drew loud cheers with a promise to undo current President Jair Bolsonaro's policies on indigenous people if elected.
ENVIRONMENT Gabriel Boric wants to lead a green revolution 11-03-2022 09:33 A new generation of leaders in commodity-rich Latin America sees climate change and its link to inequality as the new political fault line, including Chile's new president Gabriel Boric.
And that reminds me Keeping up with the Jones Hualas 22-10-2021 22:09 Jones Huala is the wrong poster boy for the indigenous cause but that should not disqualify this extremely fundamental and sensitive issue. by Michael Soltys
UNREST IN CHILE Chile president declares 'state of exception' over Mapuche conflict 13-10-2021 09:11 Sebastián Piñera declares a state of emergency and deploys troops to two southern regions, after clashes break out between Mapuche protesters and security forces.
CHILE'S NEW CONSTITUION Mix of hope, scepticism among Mapuche as Chile rewrites constitution 12-10-2021 14:57 Chile's Constitutional Convention had already begun to draft a new constitution, but Mapuche leaders doubt that it will resolve the community's historic demands for land and self-determination.
ENVIRONMENT Another deadly year for Latin America's environment defenders 13-09-2021 14:01 A record 227 people were killed worldwide in 2020 for their defence of nature – more than four a week on average, and almost three-quarters of them in Latin America, said environmental rights organisation Global Witness.
ENVIRONMENT Death stalks Colombian defenders of nature 13-09-2021 13:52 Global Witness NGO says Colombia was the most dangerous country for land and environment defenders for the second year in a row in 2020, accounting for 65 of the 227 killings reported worldwide.
ENVIRONMENT The battle for Brazil's indigenous land hots up 13-07-2021 14:57 Brazil's indigenous peoples are bracing for a legal battle with President Jair's Bolsonaro's government over controversial legislation.