Some fifty Chilean and international organizations have sent a letter to the President-elect of Chile, Michele Bachelet, asking her to address grievances from the Mapuche people as soon as she takes power in the South American country. The organizations call for "unconditional freedom" for "Mapuche political prisoners" through a "law of general pardon". Signatories also request the "recognition of self-determination and forms of representation and self-government for the Mapuche people", which includes, according to them, the "recovery of their territories" by the Mapuche communities", which are now mainly "held by forestry companies, and mining and energy projects." Another key demand is the repeal of the Chilean Counter Terrorism Act, in force since the days of  dictator Augusto Pinochet.

The petition has been signed by Chile's Commission for the Observation and Shelter of Native Peoples' Human Rights (CORHPO), and has been joined by several international organizations such as the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), Service for Peace and Service (SERPAJ) and Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR).

Electoral commitments by the new president

During the election campaign, Bachelet acknowledged that the application of the Counter Terrorism Act during her previous term (2006-2010) had been a "mistake". The President-elect said then that she was open to discuss not applying it in cases of territorial claims by indigenous peoples. Similarly, the Bachelet's manifesto promised to approve "special statutes of autonomy" for indigenous peoples.

And while Bachelet has not yet assumed the presidency (she will next month), several trials against Mapuche activists in Chile are ongoing. One that has attracted most interest is Celestino Córdova's, a traditional Mapuche authority that is charged with the death of Werner Luchsinger and Vivian MacKay. Mackay and Luchsinger lived in a property that Mapuche activists say that lies in ancestral communal lands. Last year the house was burned, and the couple died.

In a statement, Córdova has said that the Chilean judiciary "has no evidence" against him. According to Córdova, his process is being used by the Chilean Government to "frighten" the Mapuche only because they have spoken out "without fear to reclaim and defend our territory and natural environment".