Protests paralyze southern Chile

Protesters in the southern Chile region of Magallanes y Antártica Chilena have erected road blockades, halting traffic in response to a government hike in fuel prices.

Argentina: “national hero” recast as mass murderer of indigenous people

Indigenous groups in Argentina are lobbying for Julio Argentino Roca, the army general who conquered Patagonia, to be recognized as a political criminal who exterminated indigenous peoples.

Rulers fear “anarchy” in Argentina squatter riots

Police in Argentina sealed off the Villa Soldati area of Buenos Aires following violence between squatters, authorities and local residents in which at least three have been killed.

Inter-American Human Rights Court rules for indigenous people in Paraguay

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruled that Paraguay must return lands to the Xákmok Kásek indigenous community—but the Paraguayan government has ignored such rulings before.

UN blasts Brazil over slavery

The UN expressed concern over forced labor in Brazil, asserting that businesses treat workers as virtual slaves with “impunity.” Days earlier, authorities rescued 95 forced laborers from plantations.

Argentina: anarchist bomb blast protests Mapuche repression?

A Chilean anarchist cell claimed responsibility for a bomb blast that damaged airline ticketing offices in Buenos Aires, saying it acted on behalf of the Mapuche indigenous people.

Argentina: student protests commemorate “Night of the Pencils”

Thousands protesters led by high school students marched on Buenos Aires’ Plaza de Mayo, following weeks of high school and college campus occupations to protest budget cuts.

Chilean miners won’t get paid while they’re buried alive

The 33 trapped Chilean miners may not receive any wages while they are trapped underground, a union official has claimed. The miners are expected to be trapped until year’s end.

Chile: Mapuche occupy radio station

Indigenous community leaders staged a take-over of Santiago-based Radio Bío-Bío to protest the station’s failure to report on the hunger strike of 32 Mapuche activists.

Chile: Mapuche political prisoners on hunger strike

Twenty-three imprisoned Mapuche indigenous comuneros in Chile are on hunger strike to demand dismissal of cases brought against them in military courts under a Pinochet-era anti-terrorism law.

Argentina: indigenous march arrives in capital

Following a cross-country march, some 15,000 indigenous protesters established themselves in Buenos Aires’ Plaza de Mayo to demand the establishment of a “pluricultural” state.

Paraguay paranoid as guerillas re-emerge

Paraguay is moving towards a “state of exception” in response to the emergence of the rebel Army of the Paraguayan People (EPP), with speculation of ties to Colombia’s FARC.