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Acoforag: "It is the State that is failing and has abandoned the forestry workers"
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"The State has abandoned the forestry workers of the southern macrozone." With these words, the manager of the Association of Forestry Contractors (Acoforag), René Muñoz, reacted to the violent armed attack recorded on Saturday night in the commune of Victoria, La Araucanía region, which left one worker dead and another seriously injured.
The incident occurred at the intersection of routes CH-181 and R-283, in the Selva Oscura sector, when two guards providing security services for CMPC were ambushed by hooded individuals. Manuel León Urra (60) died at the scene, while César Osorio (50) suffered serious injuries. Both were in a pickup truck assigned for preventive patrols of estates and roads.
In a conversation with Biobio, Muñoz recalled that since 2014 the association has warned the State about the lack of responses to what he described as "permanent" violence. According to Acoforag figures, over the past 12 years, 511 attacks have been recorded, equivalent to an average of four attacks per month.
"The problem is that we continue doing the same thing: resources are allocated, military and police are deployed, but the attacks do not stop and are even more violent. Carabineros are not trained to face this type of fight, because their constitutional mandate is public order, not combat against organized armed groups. What is needed here is a different force, with preparation, technology, and means, because everyone knows where the violence is, but no one wants to confront it," he stated.
The leader emphasized that working in the forestry industry "is now a mortal danger," recalling that León Urra is the fifth worker murdered in the area in recent years. "There is no job in the world where a worker has to go out every day expecting to be attacked, kidnapped, or killed. No one deserves that, least of all a person who is just working for a monthly salary," he added.
Due to the lack of effective measures, Acoforag has turned to international bodies. They have filed complaints with the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights and the ILO, for the violation of fundamental rights and the State's inaction in the face of the risks workers are exposed to.
"Over 23 billion pesos have been invested in three years of a state of exception, but the Armed Forces only accompany; they have no direct involvement in procedures. That is just burning oil on the roads of La Araucanía. What is lacking here is intelligence, prevention, and real political will. If this level of violence occurred in Santiago, it would already have been resolved. But because it happens in the south, it is left as is," Muñoz asserted.
The leader concluded that the responsibility lies with the entire state apparatus: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches. "It is the State that is failing. And as long as that does not change, forestry workers will remain exposed to being massacred in their own land," he stated.
The interview on Biobio TV:
