Denuncia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en contra del Estado de CHILE

The complaint argues that the State of Chile facilitated the forced eviction of Mapuche-Pehuenche communities from their ancestral lands in the Alto Bío Bío region to allow ENDESA to build the Ralco Hydroelectric Project. The petitioners claim that the state bypassed the Indigenous Law (Ley 19.253) and environmental conditions set by CONAMA, which required voluntary land swaps (permutas) approved by CONADI. Instead, the state used the 'Electric Law' (Ley Eléctrica) to impose flood easements and monetary compensation, which the petitioners describe as a form of 'ethnocide' that destroys their cultural, spiritual, and physical existence. They further allege a denial of justice by Chilean courts, which they claim have been ineffective or biased in favor of the company.

• The construction of the Ralco dam is described as an 'ethnocide' by the National Corporation for Indigenous Development (CONADI), as it threatens the total destruction of the Pehuenche culture and its extinction as a people within a decade.
• The Ralco Hydroelectric Project is estimated to flood 3,467 hectares, including 638 hectares of ancestral indigenous lands, affecting 600 Mapuche-Pehuenche people directly and seven indigenous communities indirectly.
• The petitioners allege that the State of Chile bypassed the Indigenous Law (Ley 19.253) and CONAMA's Resolution No. 10/97, which mandated that land relocation must be voluntary and approved by CONADI, by instead applying the 'Electric Law' (Ley Eléctrica) to force evictions through flood easements.
• The complaint details a crisis within CONADI in August 1998, where the President of the Republic allegedly removed the National Director and two council members who intended to reject the land swaps proposed by ENDESA, subsequently using public force to close the CONADI headquarters.
• The petitioners argue that the transition from land-for-land swaps to monetary compensation under the Electric Law is a grave cultural violation, as their worldview holds that 'the land has no price'.
• The document claims a systemic denial of justice by the Chilean judiciary, citing a specific case where a protection resource filed on April 20, 2002, was declared inadmissible as 'extemporaneous' despite being filed within the legal 15-day window.
• The project's environmental impact involves the destruction of indigenous cemeteries and sacred sites; specifically, 14 out of 19 identified archaeological sites with funerary components are affected by flooding.
• The petitioners request urgent precautionary measures from the Commission, including the immediate suspension of the Ralco Hydroelectric Project and the cessation of the land appraisal process conducted under the Electric Law.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (n.d.). Denuncia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en contra del Estado de CHILE. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/RALCO_Denuncia_CIDH.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Denuncia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en contra del Estado de CHILE. n.d. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/RALCO_Denuncia_CIDH.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Denuncia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en contra del Estado de CHILE |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/RALCO_Denuncia_CIDH.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallawnddenuncia, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Denuncia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en contra del Estado de CHILE}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/RALCO_Denuncia_CIDH.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }