Mapuche International Link

Mapuche International Link (MIL) is an organization which campaigns on behalf of the Mapuche people of southern Chile and Argentina. The group was formed in 1996 and is based in Bristol, United Kingdom.

This organisation replaced the Comite Exterior Mapuche (CEM) which operated internationally since 1978 from their office located in Bristol . MIL's aims and objectives have been developed and widened with a view to enabling indigenous peoples to contribute fully to their own development, and ultimately, to achieve the right to self-determination.

On the 11th of May 1996 a group of Mapuches and Europeans concerned with the fate of the indigenous peoples and nations of the Americas, and in particular with the Mapuche people of Chile and Argentina, launched the Mapuche International Link (MIL) in Bristol, UK.

This new organisation replaced the Comite Exterior Mapuche (CEM) which operated internationally since 1978 from their office located in Bristol . MIL's aims and objectives have been developed and widened with a view to enabling indigenous peoples to contribute fully to their own development, and ultimately, to achieve the right to self-determination.

The work of our organisation continues in the spirit of the United Nations International Decade of World's Indigenous Peoples (1994/2004) which was declared to focus worldwide attention on human rights violations, the destruction of environments and cultures, and the continuing struggle for recognition of indigenous people's rights to their ancestral territories.

THEIR AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

The Mapuche International Link is an international organisation whose purpose is to promote the interests of indigenous peoples and nations of Chile and Argentina. Our aims are:

To raise awareness of indigenous peoples and their struggle for survival;

To use modern communications to inform the international community about indigenous cultures in particular Mapuche culture;

To develop contacts between Mapuche and European organisations;

To develop links between indigenous schools in Chile and Argentina, and schools in other countries;

To encourage European people to get involved in Mapuche communities' activities;

To encourage sustainable tourism by providing up to date information on the culture, politics and economics of the Mapuche people.

To promote public awareness of all universally recognised international treaties and conventions adopted by the United Nations and the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation (UNPO), which have a bearing on humanity and the rights of indigenous peoples.

To emphasize the contribution of the Mapuche to the rich cultural diversity of the world, through exhibitions, publications, regular visits to U.N conferences and other international forums.

To develop and maintain communications with other Mapuche groups and indigenous peoples of the world.

MIL will continue to promote the interests of the Mapuche nation. It will also aim to highlight the issues of all American indigenous peoples and other indigenous people worldwide.

External links

• Mapuche International Link website