El Ciudadano
Original article: Histórico encuentro de Jeannette Jara con comunidades Mapuche: A 35 años del Acuerdo de Nueva Imperial
Presidential Candidate Jeannette Jara Meets with Mapuche Authorities in Nueva Imperial, Receives Document Outlining Historical Demands
Images: Profile Araucanía x Jeannette Jara
On December 1, in Nueva Imperial, presidential candidate Jeannette Jara participated in a Trawün (meeting) with Mapuche communities and ancestral authorities.
The event memorialized the 35th anniversary of the Nueva Imperial Agreement, signed in 1989 with then-candidate Patricio Aylwin, and was organized by the regional campaign team «La Araucanía x Jeannette Jara.» According to the campaign’s publication, the candidate listened «with respect and deep attention to the demands and challenges» presented, in a «fraternal space» where a letter was delivered reaffirming priorities such as the defense of acquired rights, territorial restitution, effective participation, and the pursuit of «paths to peace with justice.»
According to a report from Janekeo Medios, present at the event, the Mapuche Territorial Coordination handed Jara a document stating that «real peace is only possible with justice, historical truth, and respect for all human rights of the Mapuche people.»
The media outlet detailed, citing the document, that 35 years after the 1989 agreement—a «milestone that halted the attempt at legal extermination»—the demands for territorial restitution and political recognition remain valid. Janekeo Medios also shared a video of the event, showcasing parts of the meeting’s developments.
Janekeo Medios’ analysis of the document delivered includes specific criticisms toward the Chilean State. It highlights non-compliance with international obligations and labels Decree 66 (which governs indigenous consultation) as «ineffective and non-binding,» reduced to a «mere formality,» which is why communities rejected the government consultation held in August and September. The proposals from the Coordination are concrete: repeal that decree and Decree 701 (which promotes forestry plantations), and «ratify the historical treaties established with the Mapuche people, such as Tapihue of 1825.»
In the same historical context, Jeannette Jara signed a presidential commitment focusing on the three main axes demanded: the repeal of Decree 701, the review of Decree 66, and progress in recognizing the Tapihue Treaty. The candidate, according to the regional command, received each word «with commitment and clarity, reaffirming her willingness to move toward a Chile that dialogues with truth.» The event concluded with a strong message of support: «Jeannette Jara Román, the people of the Mapuche Nation stand with you. We will not take a single step back in the rights we have attained.»
The Letter: A Historical Diagnosis and a Roadmap
The letter delivered, signed by ten leaders of the Mapuche Territorial Coordination Wallmapu, constitutes a comprehensive document. It provides a historical overview from the «misnamed ‘Pacification of the Araucanía'» and the 1989 law that aimed for «total extermination,» to current failings of ILO Convention 169.
Addressed on December 1, 2025, in ancestral territory, the text argues that Decree 66 undermines the right to consultation and has hence been widely rejected, making it clear that «the Mapuche will not retreat from any of our attained rights.»
See comments by Eduardo Curín
Official Document Outlines Proposed Path for a New Relationship
To resolve the «state of estrangement,» the letter formally proposes to Jara the repeal of Decrees 66 and 701, working towards ratifying historical treaties such as Tapihue (1825), and establishing permanent working assemblies between the Mapuche Nation and the State. The document, transcribed in full below, concludes by reaffirming that building a new relationship is «essential for a truly democratic country.»
See the full letter below.
Wallmapu, ancestral xaixaico mapu, current comuna of Nueva Imperial,
Pewu nguen, kiñe kon antg kgyen, epu warranka epu marri kechu xipantu.
December 1, 2025
From the Mapuche Territorial Coordination Wallmapu
To Jeannette Jara Román
Presidential Candidate for Chile
Present .
With our highest regard:
The members of the Mapuche Territorial Coordination Wallmapu, which emerged to follow up on the peace and understanding commission, hereby present the following:
1.- Building paths to democratic stability for us, the Mapuche, fundamentally involves establishing a fair relationship in accordance with the standards of each and every universal human right.
2.- In 1989, the country was still living under a brutal dictatorship that systematically violated all human rights, where the Mapuche, alongside repression, were condemned by Law No. 2,568, aimed at concluding the total extermination of our nation.
The Nueva Imperial Agreement of December 1, 1989, provided a breath of respite for the genetic continuity of our existence, alongside our hopes for justice to restore our rights to the land, which had been taken and occupied by military force in 1881, during the misnamed “Pacification of the Araucanía,” which reduced us to portions of land through grants, and later were confiscated and given to private individuals and settlers. In that context, the indigenous law 19,253 emerged, aiming to return lands usurped, which successive right-wing governments have attempted to eliminate through various deceptive and artificial mechanisms.
3.- Commemorating today the 35th anniversary of that agreement aimed at building peace and justice, your presence among so many Mapuche delegations representing particular identities from each locality, such as lafkenche, nagche, wenteche, williche, etc., alongside the presence of lonko, machi, werken, and weupife, carries deep significance.
4.- However, after three and a half decades since that agreement, the world is rapidly advancing in diverse directions, and organized society within the international concert is debating and achieving new rights, including the right to non-racial discrimination, the right for women, and for indigenous women in all their forms, as well as the obligation to ratify universal human rights conventions. Within this context, for indigenous peoples, the ILO Convention 169 was ratified in 2008, while previously, in 2007, the United Nations declared the right to self-determination for indigenous peoples, which the Organization of American States recognized in 2016.
5.- However, the state of Chile has been failing to comply with recommendations and obligations to progressively promote those rights. Thus, the ILO Convention 169, which compels the state to consult affected peoples, contains a completely ineffective decree, straying disgracefully from the spirit of building a society of respect, given that Decree No. 66, which regulates consultation, is non-binding and only becomes a mere formality concluding the process, even when not all affected parties grant consent.
6.- This is why the majority of present delegations, and many others who could not attend today, have completely rejected the consultation implemented by the current government during August and September, leaving a signal that must be corrected in future administrations committed to respecting Mapuche human rights.
This massive act of rejection highlighted that the Mapuche will not retreat from any of our attained rights; thus, it poses a significant challenge for this coordination to convey that to achieve peace and democracy, we must together seek mechanisms to overcome the legal and cultural obstacles that keep us in a state of estrangement. For this purpose, we propose the following:
1.- Repeal Decree No. 66 and seek consensus with extensive Mapuche participation and other indigenous peoples to construct a negotiated instrument.
2.- Repeal Decree No. 701, which promotes the planting of exotic species such as radiata pine and eucalyptus, as these are contrary to the objectives of fighting global warming and climate change, in addition to being a species that indiscriminately consumes water.
3.- Seek the most appropriate mechanisms to ratify treaties established by the Mapuche both with the Spanish crown and with the state of Chile, particularly the Tapihue Treaty of 1825. These treaties are heritage that contributed to world peace and should be regarded at the highest level of policy by the state of Chile.
4.- Finally, we propose generating working conditions for permanent assemblies between the Mapuche nation and your administration to review and develop targets for economic, social, cultural, and political rights with the broadest participation of interested parties.
Leader of the Mapuche Territorial Coordination Wallmapu
Agustin Eduardo Curín Paillavil
Pablo Huenteleo Colil
Armando Marilao Paillalao
Domingo Colcoy Caniulao
Juan Patricio Huilcal Reyes
Elena Cayuqueo
Patricio Mellico Ranguleo
Kalfulikan Soñan Curín
Ramón Francisco Curivil Paillavil
Galvarino Gallardo
Francisco Kaquilpan Licuante
La entrada Historic Meeting Between Jeannette Jara and Mapuche Communities: 35 Years Since the Nueva Imperial Agreement se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.
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