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To the public opinion: "La Araucanía, Dawn in Flames"

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The events that have occurred in recent months in La Araucanía and what happened in the early hours today reflect an unsustainable situation of insecurity, which remains uncontrolled and has become a permanent fixture in the region.

Despite the progress made by the Public Prosecutor's Office in enforcing the timber theft law and the arrest of some terrorists, the intentionality of forest fires, the periodic destruction of homes, schools, warehouses, places of religious worship, forestry equipment, attacks on Route 5, shootings at workers, road blockades, and cuts—that is, coordinated and planned actions that are neither detected nor anticipated by the police—make the severity of these events demand special attention from regional authorities.

In this scenario of chaos and lawlessness, the Association of Forestry Contractors A.G., the main guild affected by these attacks, declares:

1.- The development and growth of the region require conditions of security, peace, and tranquility, which we do not see in that territory today.

2.- New resources and logistics must be urgently provided to the police so they can combat the terrorist groups ravaging the area under better conditions.

3.- It is not enough to equip the Armed Forces and law enforcement with material resources; intelligence agencies capable of anticipating and preventing these acts of terrorist violence are also needed.

4.- It is necessary to decree a state of exception with expanded powers for the Armed Forces, beyond merely accompanying Carabineros and conducting preventive patrols as they do today, allowing them to autonomously conduct identity checks, vehicle inspections, and arrests of suspects.

5.- The government must ALWAYS ensure that the rule of law and responsible institutions fulfill their duties in La Araucanía.
Concepción, March 13, 2023

ASSOCIATION OF FORESTRY CONTRACTORS A.G.