Grassroots Organizations Across Latin America and the Caribbean Condemn States of Emergency and Curfews in Chile and Ecuador
More than a hundred grassroots organizations in Latin America came together to denounce human rights violations in Chile and Ecuador. The Argentine Commission for Refugees and Migrants (CAREF) is one of the signatories of this denouncement. Below is the text of the declaration.
Democracy is Not Protected When it is in Fact Suspended
The state of emergencies, curfews, and militarization are authoritative responses that provide for the suspension of human rights and cause very serious violations. These events do not resolve social conflicts and put at risk decades of democratic construction, which sought to banish those very injustice practices.
Latin America is the most unequal region in the world, where the majority suffer disproportionately from the costs of policies that restrict access to rights and benefit markets in the short, medium, or long term. Now in some countries of the region, the distrust towards the political parties and the institutions of the state has increased. In addition to the very serious declaration of states of emergency in Ecuador and Chile, the figure also flies in other countries in diverse situations.
In Ecuador, the protests escalated after the government negotiated with the IMF measures that did not have any citizen participation or consultation mechanisms, such as the removal of the fuel subsidy, which implied the rise in the cost of living and the consequent social discontent. On October 4, President Lenín Moreno (Ecuador) moved the government from Quito to Guayaquil and announced a state of emergency throughout the territory for 60 days. With the decree, he mobilized the Armed Forces, suspended the rights of freedom of association and assembly, and limited the freedom of transit for 24 hours. Protests continued for another ten days with this police and military repression at left eight dead, 1,340 injured, and 1,152 detained, according to figures from the Ombudsman’s Office of Ecuador. The level of conflict yielded—due to the assistance of the United Nations and the Episcopal Conference –when President Moreno left without effect the removal of subsidies on October 13. On October 14, the state of emergency and curfew were lifted; but in the following days, the criminalization of political and social leaders advanced with judicial accusations of rebellion and insurrection, and arrest warrants were issued.
On October 18, social conflict erupted in Chile. This country has one of the highest inequality rates in the region, constitutional frameworks inherited from the military dictatorship, and an index of around 60% of voter absence, the highest in Latin America. The protests began against the increase of the tariffs of the Metro, which resonated in the accumulation of social demands of wide sectors, with massive manifestations, fires, and looting throughout the country. As in Ecuador, the response of President Sebastián Piñera (Chile) was to proclaim states of emergency and curfews in numerous regions and localities, including the capital of Santiago. As a result, military tanks circulate throughout the city, and the armed forces took to the streets intending to make arrests, a definite sing of restriction of fundamental rights. In this context of militarization, serious allegations of torture and sexual violence were recorded in several of the detentions. As of October 27, the National Institute of Human Rights (NHRI) confirmed the death of 19 persons, 5 of them caused by police and military operations. The NHRI figures, constantly updated, indicate 3,193 arrests—of which 343 were children and adolescents—and among the more than 1,000 injuries recorded, at least 570 shot by different types of firearms.
International human rights standards determine acts of violence, in the context of a protest, can never be invoked to characterize it as violent in its entirety. The contexts of widespread protests generally involve situations of conflict and tension. These situations are widely labeled “non-peaceful” to deny the rights which protect social protest and protesters. The total overview of any protest as violent should not blur its underlying claims: growing social inequities and deficiencies in a region, which decades ago, strived to consolidate its democracies.
On the contrary, the strength of democracies is displayed in their ability to articulate and channel conflict in a political matter. Assuming responses through states of emergency and suspension of human rights to respond to social conflict threatens the rule of law.
As human rights, political, and social organizations in Latin America:
We request the immediate cessation of states of emergency and curfews in Ecuador and Chile and the withdrawal of armed forces from security tasks.
We reiterate the obligation of States to investigate deaths and other human rights violations promptly, effectively and impartially, and not to criminalize social protest.
We call on the OAS and the UN and its human rights protection mechanisms to take a clear position on the empowerment of exception measures and suspension of rights.
We express our concern about the statements of other leaders in the region regarding the possible use of such measures in response to political and social conflicts, which end up eroding the legitimacy of democratic processes and popular project.
Argentina
- Cooperative Lawyers
- ANDHES—NOA Lawyers in Human Rights and Social Studies
- APDH—Permanent Assembly for Human Rights Argentina
- Association of Labor Lawyers
- ACIJ—Civil Association for Equality and Justice
- Red Viva—Civil Association Network of Victims of Violence
- ACDA—Association of Congolese of Argentina
- Association of Research Artists, Teachers of the National University of the Arts
- Lola Mora Association
- APL—Legislative Personnel Association
- ATE Capital
- Athenea of Haras
- Chrysalis Popular Library of Gender and Affective Diversity of Tucumán
- Campaign to Emigrate is not a Crime
- Town of Catamarca Against Torture and State Repression
- CELS—Center for Legal and Social Studies
- CLADEM—Argentina
- CAEL–Argentina Coalition for a Lay State
- YoNoFui Collective
- MECoPa—Colombian Migrants and Exiles for Peace Collective
- Andean Collective
- CAREF—Argentine Commission for Refugees and Migrants
- Billinghurst Neighborhood Memory Commission
- Trans and Transvestite Federal Call of Argentina
- Autonomous CTA
- CTA of the Workers—Province of Buenos Aires
- Corps of Feminist Lawyers of Córdoba
- ELA—Latin American Justice and Gender Team
- FALGBT—Argentine Federation of Bisexual and Trans Gay Lesbians
- FELRA—Argentine Legislative Federation
- FOCO—Citizen Forum for Participation of Justice and Human Rights
- TLGBI—Province of Buenos Aires Front
- Argentinian Migrant Homeland Front
- Dario Santillan Popular Front
- Time to Work Protestant Foundation
- Foundation of WomanxWoman—Tucumán
- Grouped Tenants
- Exchange of Civil Association
- IARPIDI—Argentine Institute for Equality, Diversity, and Integration
- INECIP—Institute of Comparative Studies in Criminal and Social Sciences
- INSGENATE—Institute of Gender, Law and Development
- UNLa—Institute of Justice and Human Rights
- ILSED—Latin American Institute for Security and Democracy
- Institute Prisma San Martin
- CGT, CTA-A and CTA-T—Several Unions of Human Rights of Argentina
- The 49 Tucumán
- The Casildas
- Matria—Institute on Gender Issues—Tucumán
- National Board for Equality
- Migrants x Migrants
- Plurinational Migrant Movement
- Free Cities Movement—Ama Yunqo
- SMA–Strong Women
- Women Movement, San Martin
- Rosario Memory Museum
- Our Deep America
- OTRANS—Argentina
- SMA–Migration Ministry
- Platform of People Exercising Sex Work
- Town in March
- Network of Feminist Lawyers
- Migrant and Refugee Network in Argentina
- National Network of Migrant Leaders in Argentina
- Network of Survivors of Ecclesiastical Sexual Abuse of Argentina
- Red Viva, civil association
- PECIFA—Civil Service Union of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic
- Sitraju RA—Union of Judicial Workers of the Argentine Republic
- Suteba—Unified Union of Education Workers of Buenos Aires
- Xumek—Association for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights
Brazil
- ABRASME—Association of Mental Health of Brazil
- Artigo 19
- Popular Brigades
- Brazil Cooperative Center—Unisol
- Collective The Lamp Uprising
- Youth Together Collective
- We are Nature Collective
- Direct Human Connections
- FIAN—Brazil
- FNDC—National Forum for Democratization of Communication
- IDDD—Defense Institute of Law
- Vladimir Herzog Institute
- Intervozes—Brazil Collective of Social Communication
- Global Justice
- Activist Bench Movement
- MNDH—National Movement of Human Rights
- MTST—Homeless Workers Movement
- Many through The Street We want—Belo Horizonte
- Popular Emancipate and Education Network
- Antifascist Resistance Joseense, São José dos Campos, SP
Chile
- Citizen Observatory
- UDP—Migrant and Refugee Clinic
- Humanas Corporation—Chile
- Migrant Action Movement
Colombia
- CAJAR—Lawyers Collective “José Alvear Restrepo”
- Elemental Human Rights
- ILSA–Latin American Institute for Alternative Society and Law –
- Women’s Movement for Peace
Ecuador
- CSMM—Human Rights Documentation Center “Segundo Montes Mozo SJ”
- CEDHU—Ecumenical Commission on Human Rights
- Humanas Corporation—Ecuador
El Salvador
- FESPAD—Foundation of Studies for the Application of Law, Guatemala
- CAFCA, CALDH, IACHR, ECAP, ICCPG, ODHAG, SEDEM, UDEFEGUA, and UNAMG –Convergence for Human Rights ().
Honduras
- COFAMICENH—Committee of Migrant and Disappeared Family Members of the Center of Honduras
- Reflection, Research and Communication Team of the Society of Jesus, Honduras
Mexico
- CAFAMI A.C.
- Fray Matías de Córdova Human Rights Center
- Miguel Agustín Human Rights Center, Pro Juárez
- Elementa Human Rights
- FIAN—Mexico
- Institute of Studies and Outreach on Migration, Mexico
- IMUMI—Institute for Women in Migration, AC
Paraguay
- TEDIC—Association of Technology, Education, Development, Research, Communication
- Amotocodie Initiative
Peru
- APRODEH—Association for Human Rights
- CAAAP—Amazon Center for Anthropology and Practical Application
- IACHR–Center for Drug and Human Rights Research
- EQUIDAD—Center for Public Policies and Human Rights
- National Human Rights Coordinator of Peru
- Demus—Study for the defense of Women’s rights
- Peace and Hope
Uruguay
- Civil Association El Abrojo
- CDNU–Committee on the Rights of the Child of Uruguay
Regional and international
- MARCOSUR—Feminist Association
- Rumiñahui Association, Madrid, Spain
- Associates for What is Fair, JASS, Mesoamerica
- Latin American Block on Migration
- CLADEM—Latin America and the Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights
- CONTLAC—Confederation of Legislative Workers of the Americas and the Caribbean
- FIAN International
- Greenpeace, Andean Office
- IWGIA—International Working Group on Indigenous Affairs
- DAWN—Women for Alternative Development for a New Era
133. OMCT—World Organization Against Torture - Gender and Trade Network
- Latin American and Caribbean Network for Democracy
- Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
- POWER—Project on Organization, Development, Education and Research
- Tatu Latin American
- WOLA—Washington Office on Latin America