From Monday 28 to Thursday, July 31, the bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Chile are gathered in Santiago to share their annual retirement, and received a report to advance in the path of reconciliation with the Mapuche community.
This time of reflection and prayer is accompanied by the Argentine cardinal Ángel Sixto Rossi, Archbishop of Córdoba, and is part of the Jubilee Year of La Esperanza convened by Pope Francis and headed by Leo XIV.
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Within that framework, the bishops received the Final Report of the Commission for Peace and Understandingwhich reflects the territorial problems in the regions of Biobío, La Araucanía, Los Ríos and Los Lagos, related to the demands of the Mapuche people.
The conflict between the Mapuche people and the Chilean State focuses mainly on the dispute over ancestral territories and the recognition of their rights as an original people.
Prepared by the Presidential Commission for Peace and Understanding, the report has the purpose of advising the National Government in the search for long -term solutions, through dialogue and agreements.
The person in charge of delivering the report was the executive secretary of the commission, Fabián Salas, and was received by the president of the Episcopal Conference, Mons. René Rebolledo Salinas.
The document contains 21 proposals for a long -term solution to the Mapuche territorial problems, given the demand of the indigenous community of land restitution and repair.
The material focuses on justice, recognition, reparation to victims, territorial development and guarantees for the implementation of the measures, thus establishing a new relationship between the Chilean State and the Mapuche people, always within the framework of the search for peace and prosperity for all.
The realization of the report took two years and required meetings with various social, union and cultural sectors, and the final work was delivered to President Gabriel Boric on May 6.
With the delivery of this work to the bishops, it is also sought Salas saidbut it transcends the barriers and is key in the peace process and the path of reconciliation in the mountain country.
The prelates, on the other hand, “expressed their total disposition for it, understanding the importance of the institution and how they can help boost peace (…) giving an answer as a state and country to all the inhabitants, be Mapuche and not Mapuche,” added the secretary of the Presidential Commission for Peace and Understanding.
The withdrawal of bishops continues under the invitation of Pope Francis so that this year Jubilee “can be for all a living and personal encounter with the Lord Jesus, a door of salvation.”
The meeting will culminate with a Mass in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Santiago, chaired by the new Apostolic Nuncio in Chile, Mons. Kurian Mathew Vayalunkal.
Julieta Villar
I am a journalist, a graduate in Communication from the National University of La Matanza in Argentina. I have work experience in non -governmental organizations. Since 2016 I dedicate myself to Catholic journalism, first in the Argentine Catholic Information Agency (AICA) and, since 2022, as a correspondent for ACI Press for Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Bolivia.