Mercosur urged to take a stand against growing militarization in South America

In a joint statement, organizations denounce the increased use of states of emergency and curfews to respond to social unrest

Santiago, Chile, 11/21/2019 - Demonstrations this Thursday in Santiago do Chile against the government’s economic policies (Photo: Carlos Vera /Coletivo 2 +)

This Thursday, December 28, Conectas and another eight civil society organizations called on the Mercosur to speak out against the growing militarization and the suspension of democracies in South America and denounced the abusive use of states of emergency and curfews to respond to social unrest in countries in the region. 

The joint statement was made during the 34th edition of the Mercosur Meeting of High Authorities on Human Rights and Foreign Ministries, held from November 27-29 in Brasília. The meeting takes place twice a year and it is responsible for reflecting on and setting the bloc’s human rights agenda.

The institutions also requested the start of a dialogue between the Mercosur Member States to keep the borders open for Bolivian victims of persecution and violations, and they stressed the obligation of the States to investigate deaths and other violations promptly, effectively and impartially. 

The violent repression of protests in Chile, Ecuador and Colombia; the expansion of the military presence in Rio de Janeiro, Mexico and Argentina on the pretense of combating drug trafficking; the growing militarization of Venezuela; and the military coup staged in Bolivia are some of the cases considered alarming in the document. 

According to the organizations, increasing the repression instead of resolving the social unrest could put decades of democracy-building at risk. “The strength of democracy lies in its ability to coordinate and politically channel the conflict. Responding with emergency measures poses a threat to the rule of law,” they concluded. \

 

>>> Read the document in full here