Brussels, 30 April 2012 – An interaction between Mapuche communities and the EU must take place in the opinion of Ana Miranda MEP (EFA), convenor of the conference ‘Economically Empowering Indigenous Communities: The Case of the Mapuche’ which she noted took place in an environment where ‘the ideal world has forgotten the human world’.

In setting the context for the conference, Victor Naguil Gomez (Wallmapuwen) spoke of the political background of the Mapuche, while Arauco Chihuailaf (Mapuche academic) noted the particularities of Mapuche culture and identity and Alexia Peyser (BIEF) concluded of the need for interplay between Mapuche and foreign identities.

Speaking from experience in South Sinai, Hugo Ruiz Taboada (TAS Europrojects) believed internal self-development could tackle very complex cultural situations.  Ellen Desmet (K.U. Leuven) stated that under ILO Convention 169, Mapuche communities have the right to participate in conservation activities by drafting guidelines on human rights and nature conservation, while Francisca Quilaqueo Rapiman (Mapuche economist), warned that gaps will not change if indigenous women continue to have limited access to education and employment.

Speaking from an institutional viewpoint, Audrey Le Guével (ILO) stated that in Latin America the International Labour Organization are in the process of adopting domestic regulatory framework in order to improve conditions for indigenous groups, while Sylvie Proveur (European Commission) remarked that two important pillars need to be achieved in order to enhance the rights of indigenous peoples: self-development and effective participation of indigenous peoples at all stages of the project cycle.

As a sequel to the first European Parliament conference in 2011 that delcared the Mapuche “right to develop in your own country”, the aim of the 2012 conference according to Andrew Swan (UNPO) was to bring viable and sustainable projects, as well as methods to implement them, to the attention of Mapuche policy makers.  Since 2010 the UNPO, supported by the Nando Peretti Foundation, has been working to raise awareness of traditional Mapuche value systems and developing this as a means of promoting sustainable, culturally sensitive development in Chile.

More information on
Economically Empowering Indigenous Communities: The Case of the Mapuche
is available from: http://www.unpo.org/article/14110

For information on
Mapuche in Chile: Indigenous Communities in Modern Latin American States
refer to: http://unpo.org/article/12281

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Background information on the conference:

Conference Programme click here

Poster of the conference click here

Speaker Biographies click here

Press Release SAVE THE DATE 21 March 2012 click here

Press Release 17 April 2012 (English) click here

Press Release 17 April 2012 (Espanol) click here

Final Press Reminder 23 April 2012 click here

Final Post-Event Press Release 30 April 2012 click here

Past events on the Mapuche:

2011 The Mapuche in Chile - The First European Conference Examining the State of Mapuche in Modern Latin American States’  click here

Organised by the Office of Ana Miranda  MEP

In collaboration with: