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After Judge Jorge Criado ordered, at the request of the Chubut Public Prosecutor's Office, preventive detention for Victoria Núñez Fernández—arrested during the raid on the Pillan Mawiza lof—she was granted house arrest. 

The public defense attorney, led by Valeria Ponce, presented georeferencing evidence demonstrating that on the night of the fire, Victoria's vehicle was in Corcovado, approximately 80 km from the scene of the fire at Estancia Amancay. Given Victoria's compelling presentation and detailed testimony about her life at the Pillan Mawiza lof and her daily activities, Judge Jorge Criado granted her 60 days of house arrest.

In this context, members of the raided communities denied being part of the Mapuche Ancestral Resistance (RAM), which was recently declared a terrorist organization by Security Minister Patricia Bullrich.

The order was issued on Friday the 14th, less than 48 hours before the official press conference held in Esquel by the Governor of Chubut, Ignacio Torres, along with Mayor Matías Taccetta; the Minister of Security and Justice, Héctor Iturrioz; the Attorney General of Chubut, Jorge Miquelarena; the Attorney General of Esquel, María Bottini; and Prosecutor Ismael Cerdá, among others. 

Smear campaign

There, Torres accused leaders and members of the Mapuche Tehuelche communities of being "criminals, scammers, frauds," and "responsible for the fires." The PowerPoint presentation by the governor and prosecutors does not differ much from the report of the Mapuche Ancestral Resistance (RAM) prepared under Patricia Bullrich's administration in 2017.

For her part, the Minister of National Security also took it upon herself to disseminate the accusations on social media. The Network for the Accompaniment of Indigenous Peoples (RAPI) expressed their condemnation of the actions taken by the National Government following the fires in Patagonia. "We are concerned by the conduct and statements of Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, who, with unfounded accusations, fueling the stigmatization of Indigenous peoples seeking to claim their territorial rights, and with her biased public statements, advocates and promotes disproportionate operations against the local population, especially against the Mapuche-Tehuelche communities." Of this latter point, they noted that the violent raids in Chubut, "incited by media coverage, hate speech, and the latest resolutions and decrees issued by the national government to the detriment of the recognized and acquired rights of Indigenous peoples," are evidence of this.

Moira Millán, of the Pillan Mawiza Lof, was identified by the governor as "the self-proclaimed leader of the Mapuche-Tehuelche resistance" and linked to threats and responsibility for the fires in the region. Faced with the accusations, Millán appeared last Monday, along with her brother Mauro and members of the Nahuelpan Community, at the Esquel prosecutor's office and public defender's office. There, she was able to confirm that, at the moment, there were no outstanding charges or arrest warrants against them. Minutes later, she announced at a press conference that she would file a complaint against Ignacio Torres for slander, libel, and racist statements. 

Without freedom

Victoria remains in custody. Meanwhile, in Río Negro, Nicolas Heredia, a worker who was on vacation in El Bolsón and joined the volunteer brigades fighting the fire, is being held preventively for 30 days, accused of starting a fire in the Mallín Ahogado area. "They arrested me and threw a bottle of gasoline at me that I supposedly had on me, which I never touched or anything. In my backpack, I only had food, nothing but food," he explained to Judge Ricardo Calcagno, who, despite acknowledging contradictions in the statements of the witnesses accusing Heredia, ordered his preventive detention.

The communities denounce the existence of a network that goes beyond individual causes and that aims to disrupt solidarity between indigenous communities and spontaneous organizations in the face of the spread of fires, state neglect, and economic interests in their territories.

Irene Quilaqueo, a member of the Nahuelpan Mapuche Tehuelche community, stated at a press conference outside the Esquel courthouse: “What they're criminalizing here is solidarity. Just as we're here today, all the communities gathered against the raids, we're also going to be gathered in Trawun to see what we do as a people. How we unite, how we work, how we continue the struggle. They're going to see us all together, and it's because of the solidarity we have as a people that they're criminalizing us.”

In both provinces, faced with the lack of state response to the fires, the precariousness of workers' jobs, and the lack of funding for fire management systems, the modus operandi is repeated: Media outlets create scenarios—without evidence—that foster hate speech from governors and provincial and national officials; then the judiciary contributes its share of the media spectacle. 

The RAM in the register of terrorist organizations

Finally, the Minister of National Security, Patricia Bullrich, incorporated the Mapuche Ancestral Resistance (RAM) into the Public Registry of Persons and Entities Linked to Acts of Terrorism and its Financing (RePET).

The legal technical report that supports the resolution emphasizes that the Mapuche Ancestral Resistance (RAM), associated with the Arauco Malleco Coordinator (CAM), represents a threat to national security. The resolution identifies Mapuche lonko Facundo Jones Huala as the organization's leader.

Among other arguments, it is stated that "from 2010 to the present, when the intentional fires claimed by the RAM leaders ravaged the ancient Patagonian forests, hundreds of events with terrorist characteristics have occurred.”.

However, a few weeks ago, Jones Huala made statements distancing himself from the forest fires: "We have never attacked our environment or the people. They say we're setting fire to the forests where our people live. All lies. We have never done it, nor would we do it because it makes no sense to harm ourselves; we would never attack the poor." However, he claimed responsibility for "arson attacks and sabotage against the infrastructure of the capitalist system."

The reality of the communities 

Although the national and provincial governments insist on blaming them for the forest fires, many Mapuche communities, including those raided last week, suffered as the fire swept through their territories. 

In a recent public statement, the Cañio family stated: “During 2021 our lof was affected by the fire that came from Las Golondrinas through the Piltriquitrón mountain range. We spent a month fighting the fire behind our backs. Today we find ourselves involved in false accusations that fall apart in the face of the evidence and circumstances. I hope that racism does not cloud the judgment of those who have the power to decide and of society in general.”

They also clarified that the Lof Cañio is not part of any type of organization. "We are completely unaware of what they call RAM and have nothing to do with the person who claims to be their 'leader.' We know this is being orchestrated by the government itself to criminalize us, imprison us, and seize our lands." 

In this regard, they recalled that they have lived in the area for more than six generations and that throughout the lives of Virginio and Gladys, two elderly members of the community, they had never been "violated or involved in absurd and unjust persecution."

The Lof Catriman Colihueque community, located near Laguna El Martillo and adjacent to Los Alerces National Park, also suffered from the intense forest fires in February 2008, which devastated the area, causing irreparable damage.

The fire not only reduced the community's home to ashes, but all the sheep and half of the lof's cattle also died in the flames.

In 2023, the fire once again passed close to the community. This time, members of the now criminalized communities assisted, cared for, and built firebreaks to protect the elderly Isabel, her nephew, Gregorio, and the territory.

Meanwhile, Irene Quilaqueo told the Esquel media that her brother is hospitalized for the severe burns he suffered while trying to put out a fire that accidentally got out of control in his own community. "They keep saying we're part of the RAM, linking us to something we don't understand why or what it is. Why so much hatred for our people?" asks the daughter of the lonko of the historic community.

At the time of writing this article, flames are ravaging the forests near the Nahuelpan Community. "We ask that you please hold a guillatun to pray for rain, for the wind to calm, and for the fire to stop affecting our Nawelpangui," they requested on social media.