In breach of protocol, Chilean President Gabriel Boric arrived walking, not by car, this Monday (4th) through San Martín Square, in downtown Buenos Aires, where the Argentine Foreign Ministry is based, to pay tribute to General José of San Martín, hero of Argentine independence.
Accompanied by the Argentine chancellor, Santiago Cafiero, the Chilean leader opened the program for the two-day state visit he is making in the country, in his first international trip after taking office.
Issues of dispute between the two parties clashed with the air of intimacy that Argentine President Alberto Fernández and Boric expressed shortly afterwards, during the bilateral meeting, held at Casa Rosada.
In a press conference, both were asked about the conflict in the southern region of Chile, known as Araucania by the Mapuche indigenous people, who claim sovereignty over the territory — some of the Mapuche groups resort to violent means and attacks, which generate constant tension in the region.
In Chile, the Mapuche population is 1.8 million people. In Argentina, about 500 thousand. The border between the two countries is not recognized by the indigenous people, who see it as something artificial and imposed by what they classify as “invaders”, who would be occupying their lands improperly.
In his response, Fernández was cautious, calling for dialogue, while in recent days he has been pressured by opposition lawmakers to reject the Chilean demand to call the region, which includes part of Argentine territory, Wallmapu, like the Mapuche and the Boric management refer to her.
After the Peronist’s mild response, Boric said that the case “is an old conflict” and that the current rulers have to act to resolve it. “It’s a process that will annoy many, especially those who think that through violence it would be possible to solve the problem.”
Boric was also asked again about his government’s position on the dictatorships of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Although the Chilean president has already spoken out against these regimes, a part of his support base, in particular the Communist Party, has reservations about criticizing Miguel Díaz-Canel, Daniel Ortega and Nicolás Maduro, leaders of the three countries.
“There is a certain obsession among the media in citing only these three countries as condemnable dictatorships. And it is true that they are and I condemn them. But I believe that human rights should be seen more broadly, and the media have a role in that. human rights abuses in other countries and they are all reprehensible, in Colombia, in Ukraine, in Yemen,” said Boric.
“I ask that we stop using a false concern for the people who inhabit these countries, because in fact the demand that is made for us to condemn human rights abuses in left-wing dictatorships only serves to feed, in our countries, our internal disputes. “
The presidents also signed cooperation agreements on human rights, the rights of LGBTQIA+ people, and women’s equality and empowerment. They also talked about the possibility of facilitating bioceanic transport by eliminating fees. In the afternoon, Boric meets with businessmen. Afterwards, there will be a joint cultural act at the Néstor Kirchner Cultural Center in downtown Buenos Aires.
The Chilean leader arrived in the Argentine capital on Sunday afternoon (3) and went to a famous bookstore in the Palermo neighborhood, Eterna Cadencia, which opened its doors just to welcome him, as it is not open on Sundays.
Boric bought five books: “Alguien Camina Sobre Tu Tumba”, by the Argentinian Mariana Enríquez, “Perón Mediante – Gráfica Peronista del Period Clásico”, by the Argentinian Guido Indji, about the imaginary in political advertising of the Peronist period, and three international titles —” Querido Mr. Stalin”, by Susan Butler, which brings together the correspondence between Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Joséf Stalin, “Una Palabra Tuya”, by the British historian Orlando Figes, and “El Marino que Perdió la Gracia del Mar”, by the Japanese writer Yukiu Mishima .
