Argos – International Observatory for Migration and Human Rights expresses its great concern over the violation of human rights in regards to personal integrity and the acts of xenophobia against Venezuelans and migrants of other nationalities in Chile; as a result of the eviction operations that were carried out recently by the authorities of that country.

During the morning of September 24, through an operation by the Carabiniers of Chile police force, around 130 migrant families – including 20 children – were violently evicted from Plaza Brazil in the northern city of Iquique, where they had been living for several months. In addition to the eviction without due legal and judicial guarantees, there were people injured and detained.

Through social media, several videos were shared that depict the tension experienced in the place since the evicted migrants denounced that they were victims of human rights violations.

The events that occurred last Saturday imply a violation of human rights recognized both nationally and internationally. Chile has signed and ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its Optional Protocol, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, and the American Declaration on Human Rights.

All these instruments recognize the right to non-discrimination against people based on their nationality or social condition (including the status of migrant) and expressly establish the right to personal integrity of foreigners. Likewise, these actions contradict Article 19 of the Constitution of Chile, which guarantees all people the equal protection of the law in the exercise of their rights: noting that neither the law nor any authority may establish arbitrary differences.
Upon this situation:

● We urge the Chilean State to respect and guarantee the human rights of all people in conditions of human mobility, regardless of their immigration status or situation, and especially those of foreign migrant children.

● We request the organs and institutions of the Chilean State to put an end to the mistreatment of foreign migrants in Chile.

● We demand the cessation of all actions by Chilean government officials that involve discriminatory and xenophobic practices. In particular, those that involve massive expulsions of foreign migrants.

● We request to open diplomatic channels to facilitate the safe and expeditious return of those migrant families who wish to return voluntarily to their country.