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dam-l Biobio Update #10
(The following update on the situation in the upper Biobío River region in
Chile was prepared by Grupo de Acción por el Biobío in Chile. The English
translation was done by Fernando Latorre at International Rivers Network.
Article #4 will be translated and distributed in a few days.)
>>BIO BIO UPDATE #10
>>
1. CONADI URGES ENDESA TO STOP WORK AT RALCO
>>
2. PEHUENCHES CALL TO RETURN TO BIO BIO
>>
3. THEY HAND IN LETTER AND MEET AUTHORITY
>>
4. PEHUENCHE AND ENVIRONMENTALISTS STOP CONSTRUCTION FOR THREE DAYS
>>
5. ENDESA AND GOVERNMENT TOGETHER IN COURTS
>>
>>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>-----------------------------------------
>>
1. CONADI URGES ENDESA TO STOP WORK AT RALCO
>>
>>Santiago, July 23rd.
In an unexpected resolution, whose outcome was, however, unclear, the
National Corporation of Indigenous Development (CONADI) urged the electric
utility ENDESA to stop the preliminary works for Ralco hydropower station
in the Pehuenche community of Quepuca Ralco, 17 days after some Pehuenche
and around 50 environmentalists stopped transit on the Nireco and Malla
bridges at the entrance of the indigenous territory.
After intense negotiations, the 13 national counselors of CONADI, resolved
to demand an end to the work undertaken and the nullification of the rent
contracts. Moreover the corporation set July 29th as the deadline for
ENDESA to hand over all relevant files, so that it can decide on whether to
authorise or reject the land exchanges, concerning more than 80 out of 100
families that would be affected by the dam.
In a press release, CONADI announced that the 29th was set as a deadline
for declaring null and void a rent contract between ENDESA and the
Quipainan Pinaleo brothers, because it violated law number 19.253 by
obtaining rights without CONADI's permission. The press release adds that
CONADI has decided to interrupt immediately the work within Quipainans'
land, a decision which can be extended to similar contracts.
However, the exact terms which CONADI dictated ENDESA the next morning at
10am are still not clear.
In the press release, CONADI only states that if a response was not
received, it was agreed that legal proceedings should begin. In any case
these events support the direct actions that took place 3 weeks
ago in the Upper Biobio and confirms the complaints regarding the
negotiations and illegal contracts that are being acknowledged since last
year.
>>
2. PEHUENCHES CALL TO RETURN TO BIOBIO
>>
Santiago, 24th July.
A delegation of 22 Pehuenches including the leaders of the women's group
Mapu Domuche Newen and the lonko (leader) Jose Antolin Curriao handed in on
Friday 17th a public declaration which ackowledges
CONADI's resolution but adds that none of the pending permits, to continue
with Ralco dam project, should be granted. The delegation asked for the
economic support from the government that corresponds to an Area of
Indigenous Development and urged their supporters to join them on their
territories the following July 26th in order to guarantee the stopping of
the work and resolve on the next steps to take.
The declaration which was presented to the media at the Ecocenter in
Santiago points out, in its main part, the following:
"We appreciate CONADI's resolution urging ENDESA to stop the
illegal work taking place on our lands. However, we want again
to claim:
-That CONADI and the Chilean government cannot pass any permit to
continue with Ralco dam, whether that refers to the requests for land
exchanges handed in to the Corporation (because they are fraudulent and
because there are families that will never trade their lands and because
they would have to kill us to move us from our ancestors lands) or the
bidding for the transmission lines and Ralco dam.
-That CONADI and the Chilean government must soon offer without
discriminating the economic and social support which is a right of all
citizens, and especially in an area, like our lands, that has been declared
Area of Indigenous Development, so it is clearly stated that we have the
right to live better without the private companies flooding our lands and
offering us jobs for our destruction and division.
Finally, we appeal to all our Mapuche brothers and sisters and to
the Chilean men and women of good heart (will) to be aware and alert and
those who can come to meet with us in our lands the following Wednesday
July 29th to guarantee the stopping of the invasion and destruction of our
lands and that the company complies with CONADI's resolution and leave us
in peace at last. With the strength of the Pehuenche lands, with the forces
of the sky, of our Chachao that is with our Mapuche and Chilean friends,
let's walk in truth!!"
>>
3. THEY HAND IN LETTER AND MEET AUTHORITY
Santiago, July 24th.
The very same day that CONADI's resolution was made public, Pehuenche
leaders went to the Palacio de la Moneda (presidential House), in the
capital, and handed in an extensive letter at the entrance of the House,
they were not welcomed by any authority.
That afternoon, when the Pehuenche leaders tried to hand in a document on
electric bidding in the Superintendency of Electricity and Fuel, which
depends on the Ministry of Finances, they succeeded to discuss for about an
hour with the Subsecretary of this post, Oscar Landerretche. The letter,
longer than 7 pages, which is signed by Pehuenches, lawyers and
environmentalists, reminds the historic discrimination of the Mapuche
people and calls the government to protect the Pehuenche people.
>>
The letter begins by saying: "We believe that, in addressing ourselves to
the Highest Authority of the Nation, to your Excellency in person, in the
form of an open letter, the sentiments of which may be known by and shared
by all the Chilean people, we can communicate effectively to you, and to
the citizens of the entire country, the events currently taking place in
Upper Biobio."
The document calls for "a thorough investigation of the destructive effects
caused by the continuous illegal proceedings of a private enterprise,
without any respect for the Indigenous Law, and the extremely severe
consequences of these effects". The letter continues:-"in fact, this
enterprise is determined to secure in whatever way it can, written
agreements by the Pehuenche land owners, land exchanges and rights of way
pressurizing these land owners into signing these agreements quickly. In
the meantime, the company is proceeding with unauthorized construction
work, through quick contract bidding. This work could not have been
authorized in any way by the state without the consent of the members of
the affected communities and, as this consent was not given freely,
according to the demands of the law, a proper investigation is necessary to
ensure legal correctness and that any land owners must only be allowed to
sign agreements if they have a full understanding of what they are signing
and if they do so by their own free will." "The fact is that ENDESA does
not intend to wait for either the decision of the Courts of Justice, nor
the opinion of CONADI", the letter reports. It goes on:
"We, the non-mapuche collaborators of this letter believe, (Mr. President),
that we have the right to an independent voice, which is now freer of
resentment, in order to defend ourselves against the racism and class
discrimination still present in Chile, against the deeply-rooted evil and
outrage, and against those who coolly abuse their power and wealth in
order to set themselves up as leaders of the country."
"We do not believe that it is the President's wish to sell us off for $500
million of investment to a company which is all too impatient to do
business, nor that we could take second place to any sum of money, to any
enterprise, or any project which does not respect Law number 19.253. This
Law protect us, our land and our water and prevents these from being sold
or reclaimed or burdened (charged)."
Thus concludes the missive, one of a dozen or so that have been presented
to the President by the Pehuenche people since 1991, and which have not, as
yet, been answered. Following the delivery of the letter, the Pehuenche
managed to obtain an interview with the Undersecretary of Finances, who
indicated that the petitions for final concessions are at present being
carefully studied and that he would consider the opinions of CONADI and the
Pehuenches, although he could not guarantee that the concessions would be
rejected.
>>
5. ENDESA AND GOVERNMENT TOGETHER IN COURT
Santiago, July 15th.
The Sixth Civil Court of Santiago turned down a legal motion which was
presented on the same day and in the same terms by both ENDESA and CONAMA,
and which aimed to dismiss the lawsuit and to avoid the
ruling by the Court of a precautionary injunction. This injunction seeks to
put a halt to the work on the Ralco power station until the solving of the
case for the nullification of the government resolution which authorised
the Ralco project, which was brought before the Court last year. However,
the Court also accepted a petition by ENDESA which aims to dismiss three
Members of Parliament as plaintiffs in the legal action on the 18th of
June. This injunction concerned MPs Alejandro Navarro, Guido Girardi and
Mario Acuna.
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Aleta Brown
Campaign Associate
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way
Berkeley, CA 94703 USA
Phone: 1.510.848.1155
Fax: 1.510.848.1008
email: aleta@irn.org
http://www.irn.org