Boric’s government will not impose a state of emergency in southern Chile because “it is not sustainable”

MADRID, Jan. 24 (Royals Blue) –

The government of the elected president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, will not extend the state of emergency that has been in force in four provinces in southern Chile since mid-October, since it considers that “it is not sustainable” and that it has not offered the desired results.

“It is for various reasons, but one of them is because it is not sustainable and it is not giving the expected results either,” said the future minister of the General Secretariat of the Presidency, Giorgio Jackson, referring to extending the aforementioned measure.

Thus, Jackson has aimed to start a series of dialogues with all kinds of representatives of the area with the aim of achieving a reduction in tension in the provinces of Bío Bío and Arauco, in the Bío Bío region; and in Cautín and Malleco, in La Araucanía.

“We are optimistic that the strategy that we want to implement will have a predisposition to lower the level of tension and violence that we have today,” added the future minister in an interview for Chile’s National Television (TVN).

“Everyone (those) who want to generate the conditions for a dialogue for a peaceful and sustainable solution will be invited to the table. It is not us who have to define who the guests are,” added Jackson.

The southern part of the country, where the Mapuche population is concentrated, the largest indigenous group in the country, has been the scene of increasing violence, with clashes between security forces and citizens who support historic territorial claims.

The state of emergency measure was applied for the first time in mid-October and since then it has already been extended a total of seven times so, so far, it will be in force until February 9.

In the last week, four more deaths have been added in this region, including a farmer and three forestry workers. All of them would have been surprised by assailants, who attacked them from behind with firearms.

For its part, the Government of Sebastián Piñera has issued statements in defense of the extension of the measure, alluding to its good results in terms of reducing violence in the southern region of the country.

In this regard, although Jackson has valued the decrease in violent acts, he regretted that this has not been accompanied by a reduction in the severity of said incidents.