May 3, 2013
In the early hours of 29 April 2013, several families including children from the Freire and Xapilwe area in the Araucania region have suffered a series of acts of violence perpetrated by the Chilean civil police.
Below is an article published by Alianza Territorial Mapuche (translation from Spanish by UNPO):
Below is the poignant testimony of Eulogio Painevilo, cousin of mapuche political prisoner Jorge Painevilo, who was attacked in his home by the civil police of Chile in the Mapuche área of Mawizache in Freire, Araucania as part of a larger plan of attacks on Tuesday 30 April 2013. In the light of such events, the Mapuche people call on human rights organizations to visit the area as soon as possible.
"It was before dawn when I heard several vehicles stopping in front of my house. They immediately burst the door open and within seconds we were surrounded, blinded by flashlights. They dragged me outside, handcuffed me and threw me on the floor where they started to hit me and shout at me, asking about armament that I should give them right away or I would face the consequences.
As they were beating me up only 20 meters away from my house, I realized the large number of vehicles surrounding my property, but the most painful was to hear my children of 5 and 6 years old screaming and crying in the house. This was the answer to the police officers who were shouting at my children, threatening them to kill their father if they [the children] did not tell them [the police] where I hid the arms. Later on, both my children and wife, told me how the policemen offered them sweets, lollipops and even their flashlights as presents if they would say where were the weapons.
Another group of policemen was in the shed, from where they threw outside all of our most recent crops. It was about to rain when they finally took me in one of their trucks. I told them to search the house but that I did not have any weapons. They did not listen and just turned the house upside down, even my children’s schoolbags. My wife and children cannot sleep because of the trauma.
For around five hours I was handcuffed, unable to defend my family, especially my children who suffered psychological mistreatment. I therefore call on the defenders of life, and other supporters to help me in denouncing the violations of my children and wife’s rights as well as those of my community more than mine.
Eventually, they released me after not finding any weaponry however they did find and take cell phones and cash, a repeated scenario in the other houses of the community attacked that same morning [30 April 2013].
Source: UNPO