| March 24, 2011 The Mapuche in Chile: Indigenous Communities in Modern Latin American States Brussels, Belgium |
UNPO, in collaboration with Oriol Junqueras Vies MEP, is organising a conference in the European Parliament on 24 March 2011 that will highlight to deputies and the public the issues of discrimination and marginalisation facing indigenous peoples in Latin American and in particular the impact of Chile’s Pinochet-era state antiterrorism law on the Mapuche people. Thursday, 24 March 2011 14.30 – 18.00 Room A1E3, ASP Building, European Parliament Brussels, 15 February 2011 – The impressive number of ethnicities in Latin America has a long history of interaction and coexistence which while not always harmonious, has been based on mutual respect. But today, legislation is disproportionately discriminating indigenous communities in areas of human rights, social justice, economic inclusion, and land rights. The case study of Mapuche discrimination in the face of Pinochet-era antiterrorism legislation in Chile is one example of the challenges to ethnic coexistence in the whole of Latin America. There is a pressing need to assess the depth of such discrimination and to identify ways to end it. To address this urgent need, Oriol Junqueras Vies MEP will convene a conference, ‘The Mapuche in Chile: Indigenous Communities in Modern Latin American States’ at the European Parliament in Brussels from 14.30–18.00 on 24 March 2011 in collaboration with the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO). The conference will provide an introduction to the issues of ethnicity and indigenous culture in South America, drawing on the Chilean Mapuche issue in the perspective of European values of tolerance, peace and justice. Expert contributions will detail the Mapuche situation and the inappropriate use of antiterrorism legislation on the continent before discussion on ways to redress the impact of past injustices and how best to introduce reform that can protect the human, civil, and political rights of Latin America’s indigenous peoples. More information on the event is available from http://www.unpo.org/article/12281 ______________________________________ For media queries please contact: Andrew Swan (EN) Fone: +32 (0)472 577 518 Email: aswan@unpo.org. Registration is required and must be submitted before 18 March 2011 Please send your full name, date of birth, place of residence, nationality, organization to nklymova@unpo.org |