Violence in Rapanui

10/12/03

 

3rd of December 2010

 

Rapa Nui - Chilean police brutes use rubber bullets and teargas against islanders demanding the return of ancestral land   (bbc.world-latin-america)
Witnesses say police fired pellets as they tried to evict several indigenous inhabitants from buildings they occupied earlier this year.
The Rapa Nui group say the buildings were illegally taken from their ancestors several generations ago.
Easter Island, which was annexed by Chile in 1888, is a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Chilean security forces began their operation in the early hours of the morning, says reports.
When the group refused to leave and others gathered at the scene, they opened fire with pellet guns.
Officials said 17 police officers and eight civilians had been injured. But the Rapa Nui put the number of injured locals at 19, and denied that any police had been hurt.
A statement on the Save Rapa Nui website said several people had been shot at close range. It said police had used rubber bullets and tear gas.
"They injured at least 23 of our brothers and sisters, three of them seriously," Edi Tuki, a relative of one of those injured, told the Efe news agency.
"One was shot in the eye with a buckshot pellet from just a metre away."'Shooting to kill'
Maka Atan, a Rapa Nui lawyer, told the Associated Press police had been "shooting to kill". He said he was shot in the back by pellets.
"It seems like this is going to end with them killing the Rapa Nui," he said.
Rapa Nui is the official name for the remote Easter Island, which lies more than 3,200 km (2,000 miles) off the west coast of Chile.
The tiny island has a population of about 4,000 but is best known for its ancient giant carved stone heads, known as Moais.
The indigenous Rapa Nui people have been protesting for the past three months about what say are plans to develop the island, as immigration and tourism increase.
They are demanding the return of ancestral land they say was unlawfully seized from their grandparents.
"The land on this island has always been Rapa Nui. That's why we're asking for our land to be returned," Mr Maka told AP.
CHILE BOUND TO RECLAIM DISPUTED RAPA NUI PROPERTY
Protestors to be evicted before 2011

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (RNZI, Dec. 6, 2010) - The Chilean provincial official responsible for Rapa Nui – also known as Easter Island - says he wants all protestors evicted from disputed properties by the end of the year.
This follows the latest clash over ancestral lands between indigenous islanders and police reinforcements sent from Chile.
Chile’s La Tercera newspaper reports Valparaiso Mayor Raul Celis wants a peaceful retreat from all the properties occupied in the on going dispute. But Rapa Nui activist Santi Hitorangi says about one hundred people are still occupying six properties in the Chilean territory and he says they’re preparing for the worst. He says his legs are riddled with wounds from Friday’s clash when authorities fired rubber bullets and native Rapa Nui threw rocks in response.
Mr. Hitorangi says the head of the so-called Rapa Nui parliament was shot in the back and many others were injured. He says there’s a huge sense of uncertainty and the island is operating under virtual martial law. But tourism operator Conny Martin says many Rapa Nui just want a peaceful solution to the troubles and they’re calling for calm dialogue. A Chilean human rights activist and senator have spent the weekend investigating the latest clash.
[PIR editor’s note: At the time unclaimed by any foreign country, Chile annexed Rapa Nui in 1888. The indigenous peoples of Rapa Nui currently make up less than half of the population of 5,000. They reportedly feel "squeezed out" of their land by tourism interests and fear the Chile government plans to use their ancestral lands for economic purposes that would profit outside companies. However, Chile’s Interior Minister adds "we've put forth a plan to invest US$250 million in Easter Island - 20 times more than what was invested in the last 20 years".]
Radio New Zealand International: http://www.rnzi.com/
Copyright © 2010 Radio New Zealand International. All Rights Reserved
source:http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2010/December/12-07-01.htm

PRENSA RAPA NUI

Listado provisorio de los heridos provocados por la fuerte represión policial de este 3 de dicembre de 2010 en Hanga Roa, Rapa Nui
marco antonio tuki
claudio tuki
pia vargas Saavedra
rodolfo hito
pedro hito
enrique tepano
benjamin cadinali
teresa tuki
moises tepano
so araki
john tuki huke
mata atan
manuel riroroko
maori pakarati
Leviante Araki
Ricardo Tepano
Gaspar Tepihe
Rodolfo Hito (38) y
Sita Hito (50).
todos ellos con perdigones incrustados y apaleados. En el hospital hay otros 9 heridos cuyos nombres enviaremos pronto. Preocupa situación de Ricardo Hito, que esta preso en Comisaría de Mataveri, sin que se le haya permitido ser atendido. Queremos rechazar tajantemente las informaciones que algunos medios han difundido, en el sentido que habrían 17 policías heridos. Esto sin dar cuenta de nombres, fotos ni circunstancias en las que fueron heridos. Es lamentable que algunos medios se presten para las mentiras oficiales, sin tener pruebas que las respalden.Estos mismos medios que hablan de 17 policías heridos, dicen que los rapanui en la misma situación se encontrarían tres rapanui. Las fotos conocidas muestran al menos 12 heridos. Esperamos seriedad al difundir la grave situación que se esta produciendo en la Isla. Prensa Pueblo Rapa Nui

 

rückwärts

   vorwärts