El Ciudadano
Reform of Indigenous Law Faces Interest from Forest Contractors and Strong Rejection from Communities
The proposal announced by President José Antonio Kast to amend the Indigenous Law, allowing leases and mortgages on Indigenous lands, has sparked a heated debate that highlights conflicting economic and territorial visions regarding Indigenous lands in Chile.
According to Radio Sago, the Chilean Association of Forest Contractors (Acoforag) claims that this measure could reintegrate between 130,000 and 150,000 hectares into the productive circuit of the Southern Macrozone, a model that has faced significant criticism due to its social and environmental impacts, including the severe water crisis in areas with high concentrations of monoculture forestry.
Forest Contractors Project Reactivation of Up to 150,000 Hectares
The publication states that of the approximately 260,000 to 270,000 hectares transferred by the state to Indigenous communities in recent decades, nearly half are either abandoned or have little economic activity. Acoforag’s manager, René Muñoz, stated that “at least 50% is abandoned. They were given, they took what there was, and that’s how it stayed”.
The forest industry argues that the current regime of communal ownership makes individual investments difficult. Muñoz pointed out that “if any community member wants to invest… they cannot go to a bank alone, apply for a loan, or lease that land”, suggesting that relaxing the regulations would allow for access to financing, new technologies, and lease contracts.
According to Acoforag, reactivating these lands could benefit agricultural, livestock, and forestry activities in the central-southern area of the country. Radio Sago reported that the sector sees an opportunity to reintegrate extensive areas into productive development, provided the process includes the Indigenous consultations required by ILO Convention 169.
The guild’s position has been observed by various organizations as indicative of the economic sectors that could benefit from the reform. The debate gains importance as some of the potentially marketable lands could be allocated to the forestry business, an activity that has historically faced opposition from many Mapuche communities due to its impacts on the land, environment, and water resources.
Communities Warn of Risks of Dispossession and Commercialization of Land
However, reactions from the territories have predominantly been negative. According to El Ciudadano, Mapuche communities from Ercilla and Collipulli have denounced that the reform could open up new forms of territorial dispossession. In a public statement, they asserted: “For our people, land is not a commodity: it is the material, spiritual, cultural, and communal basis of our existence. Weakening its legal protection opens the door to new forms of dispossession, indebtedness, internal division, and loss of rights acquired by the communities”.
These communities also questioned any weakening of mechanisms for land restitution and Indigenous consultation. In their statement, they argued that “territorial reparations cannot be subjected to political calculation or the will of the incumbent government” and warned that “no consultation process will be legitimate if it excludes communities, authorities, or leaders based on their political thought, territorial defense, or refusal to comply with institutional obedience”.
Criticism Targets Land Market and Forestry Model
The rejection was also expressed by Mapuche leader Danko Mariman from the Txawun Temuko coordination. Quoted by El Ciudadano, he remarked: “Once again, outsiders want to decide over Mapuche territory”, adding that there seems to be an attempt to incorporate Indigenous lands into market logic. He emphasized that “The land, the territory is the material basis for the development of the Mapuche people. Do not be deceived”.
Mapuche lawyer and human rights defender Natividad Llanquileo also criticized the initiative. According to El Ciudadano, she warned that “Attacking this is attacking life. We cannot allow them to dispossess us of the little we have left. Selling or mortgaging the land not only impoverishes us but also ends our customs and traditions”. She also stated: “I hope that when we open our eyes, we don’t end up with metaphors while they keep the little we have left”.
Critiques have also been voiced by representatives of the Colla People, the Mapuche Women’s Network, and MP Ericka Ñanco. Cindy Quevedo, president of the National Council of the Colla People, asserted that “Indigenous lands cannot be sold, mortgaged, or negotiated. They are part of our history, our identity, and our future”. Meanwhile, the Mapuche Women’s Network questioned: “Should the State eliminate the protections created specifically to prevent new processes of territorial dispossession?”, while MP Ñanco argued that “Indigenous lands are not merely an economic asset; they carry cultural, historical, and collective value” and any discussion on the subject “must be constructed alongside the communities and not over them”.
La entrada Government’s Proposal to Amend Indigenous Land Law Sparks Controversy: Forest Contractors Project «150,000 Hectares for Productive Use» se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.
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