Forestry contractors happy with proposal to lease indigenous lands

The Forestry Contractors Association estimates that the modification to the Indigenous Law proposed by the Government of President José Antonio Kast would allow leasing currently unproductive community lands, out of the nearly 270 thousand hectares delivered by the State in the last three decades, where they calculate that half are in a state of abandonment or without agricultural use.

"The proposal to modify the current Indigenous Law, which would allow for greater flexibility in land tenure to facilitate leasing and investment, opens the door to reincorporating between 130,000 and 150,000 hectares in the Southern Macrozone into the productive cycle," stated the Association of Forestry Contractors of Chile.

According to the contractors, since the enactment of the regulation over 30 years ago, the State has transferred between 260,000 and 270,000 hectares to communities, disbursing more than $700 billion.

René Muñoz, manager of the Forestry Contractors Association, detailed in a conversation with Radio Sago the complex situation of these properties, stating that at least 50% is abandoned. "They were given the land, they took what was there, and that was it," said Muñoz.

According to the leader, in some plots there is only a subsistence economy, while a large proportion simply registers no productive activity.

Main obstacle

The status of community property is pointed out by the guild as the main obstacle to individual economic development. "If a community member wants to invest... he alone cannot go to a bank, apply for a loan, or lease that land," explained Muñoz.

This legal limitation prevents owners from accessing new technologies or transferring the use of unproductive land to third parties through lease contracts.

For Muñoz, the reactivation of these 150 thousand hectares would directly benefit the local economy of the central-southern zone of the country, because the recovered plots could be used to boost the livestock, agricultural, and even forestry industries.

To materialize this reform, announced by President José Antonio Kast in his first State of the Nation Address, the legislative process must comply with current international regulations applicable to indigenous peoples, such as the indigenous consultation under ILO Convention 169.

Count:Araucanía Daily