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| Mapuche International Link | |
|---|---|
| Name | Mapuche International Link |
| Formation | 1990s |
| Headquarters | London |
| Region served | United Kingdom; Chile; Argentina; Europe; Americas |
| Leader title | Director |
Mapuche International Link is a London-based nonprofit organization founded to support the rights, recognition, and welfare of the Mapuche people of Chile and Argentina through advocacy, networking, cultural promotion, and legal assistance. The group operates at the intersection of indigenous rights, human rights law, transnational advocacy, and diaspora organizing, engaging with institutions from the United Nations to regional bodies in the Americas. It has collaborated with academic institutions, civil society organizations, and media outlets to raise awareness about historical treaties, land conflicts, and cultural revitalization.
The organization emerged in the context of post-dictatorship democratization in Chile after the Patricio Aylwin administration and amid renewed indigenous mobilization parallel to movements in Argentina under Carlos Menem. Early activity reflected influences from transnational indigenous networks such as the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas advocacy forums, the International Labour Organization's Convention 169 debates, and the work of activists linked to the International Indian Treaty Council and the World Council of Indigenous Peoples. Founding figures drew on contacts forged during solidarity campaigns around events like the Chilean transition to democracy and protests concerning the Arauco War and the Occupation of Araucanía. The group established a London base to engage with the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, liaise with European parliaments including the House of Commons of the United Kingdom and the European Parliament, and coordinate with Latin American human rights defenders connected to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
The organization is a small NGO with a board and an executive director modeled on nonprofit governance seen in groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Its advisory board has included scholars and activists associated with institutions like the University of Oxford, the London School of Economics, and the University of Chile, as well as representatives from indigenous federations such as the Consejo de Todas las Tierras and the Asamblea Territorial Mapuche in Argentina. Structural practices mirror those of network organizations such as the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs and the Minority Rights Group International, using volunteer chapters in cities like London, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and Barcelona to coordinate campaigns. Legal strategies have been developed with counsel experienced in cases before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and familiar with instruments like the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Activities include documentation of alleged human rights violations tied to land and resource disputes that relate to actors such as the Forestal Mininco corporations and government agencies in Chile and Argentina. Programs emphasize cultural promotion—organizing exhibitions of Mapuche ceramics, workshops on lonko leadership traditions, and performances featuring the kultrun—and educational outreach with universities including the University of Cambridge and Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. The group runs legal aid referrals, media campaigns engaging outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, and El País, and publishes reports inspired by methodologies used by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Training programs collaborate with unions like the Trades Union Congress and indigenous law clinics at the University of London, while youth engagement echoes initiatives by the World Assembly of Youth and the Global Call to Action Against Poverty.
International advocacy has seen coordination with the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, submissions to the Universal Periodic Review, and petitions filed with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Partnerships include alliances with Survival International, Cultural Survival, and transnational solidarity networks such as the European Network Against Racism and the Latin American Council of Churches. The group has engaged diplomats from embassies including the Embassy of Chile, London and collaborated with parliamentary friends groups in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom and the Senate of Chile to influence policy debates about land restitution and cultural rights. Academic collaborations have involved researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, the University of São Paulo, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Funding sources have included grants from charitable foundations and trusts similar to the Open Society Foundations, the Ford Foundation, and cultural grants akin to those administered by the British Council and the European Cultural Foundation. The organization has also relied on individual donations, solidarity events hosted at venues like the Royal Festival Hall, and partnerships with faith-based organizations similar to the Quakers and the Catholic Church networks engaged in human rights work. Financial oversight practices are comparable to reporting standards required by the Charity Commission for England and Wales and grant conditions from bilateral agencies like British Aid.
Impact claims cite increased visibility of Mapuche demands in forums such as the United Nations and coverage in international media including The New York Times and Al Jazeera, as well as contributions to scholarly debates published in journals affiliated with the American Anthropological Association and the Royal Anthropological Institute. The organization has been credited with helping secure international scrutiny of incidents involving police and private security firms linked to forestry and energy projects near Temuco and the Araucanía Region. Criticism has come from some sectors of the Chilean and Argentine political spectrum, including voices in the Chilean Congress and proprietors of forestry firms who accuse diaspora advocacy groups of foreign meddling similar to controversies faced by organizations like Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth. Academic critiques have debated the effectiveness of diaspora-based lobbying versus grassroots mobilization led by local assemblies such as the Lof and community organizations in the Mapuche conflict.