Statement on anti-immigrant violence in northern Chile

Last weekend, following the violent eviction of approximately 200 people of Venezuelan origin (including children, teenagers, and pregnant women) from a public square, the city of Iquique, located in northern Chile, was the scene of various expressions of xenophobia and racism. Among these demonstrations was an anti-immigrant march that reached its peak of tension and violence with a bonfire in which the migrants' belongings were burned.

The scenes of people throwing diapers and a baby stroller into the fire became the painful icon of a predictable outcome, a result of increasingly restrictive and selective immigration policies that have pushed some migrants into irregular status; that have resorted to criminalization, the sensationalization of mass expulsions, and various situations that violate their basic rights, as denounced by migrant and pro-migrant organizations, human rights institutions, academics, and university networks. Among these situations are the deaths of migrants at the border between Chile and Bolivia, in Colchane, which have already surpassed ten in 2021.

Venezuelan migrants, fleeing an economic, political, and social crisis in their country of origin on long, perilous overland journeys, have recently become one of the national groups particularly affected by these measures. This is despite the fact that a few years ago, measures were taken to the contrary, or at least implicitly and explicitly conveyed that message, such as a visa called the "democratic responsibility visa," exclusively for Venezuelan nationals, with the stated purpose of protecting them from potential "violations of fundamental rights" caused by "exoduses of this nature" (massive and caused by a "democratic crisis," according to the circular that created this visa).

Given this scenario, the CLACSO Working Groups on South-South Migration, Collective Memories and Practices of Resistance and Borders: Mobilities, Identities and Trade We express our condemnation of the xenophobic and racist violence we have witnessed, and our concern about policies that fail to contain and prevent it, or, in the worst cases, encourage it. We also urge the authorities to take measures to address this situation, respecting the dignity and rights of those affected, and call upon the States of the region to coordinate actions in this regard.

We call on the Chilean government to amend the political path it has taken, which is creating precarious conditions for the migrant population, and to responsibly fulfill its international commitments to respect human rights and the treaties signed by this nation.

28th September 2021
CLACSO Working Groups
South-South Migration
Collective memories and resistance practices
Borders: Mobilities, Identities and Trade

This statement expresses the position of the aforementioned Working Groups and nor necessarily that of the centers and institutions that make up the CLACSO international network, its Steering Committee or its Executive Secretariat.