The decades of the ‘70s and ‘80s were witnesses to the implementation of an estate of terror across the Latin-American continent, leaving in its wake a trail of rape, terror and torture. In Chile the State sponsored regime of repression left hundreds of thousands of victims, over 3500 ejecutados-politicos (political-executed) and 1119 detenidos-desaparecidos (“disappeared”). Moreover, there was a policy of systematic destruction of the native forests and the indiscriminate pollution of the environment. As an integral part of this socio-economic policy has been the implementation of a policy of “cover-up”, aimed at hiding all evidence of the crimes and the destructive environmental policies.
As part of the
on-going movement to counter-act this campaign of “institutionalised
amnesia”, human rights groups have come together to put in progress a
project that encompasses both the human rights and environmental violations
perpetrated by the military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.
At the heart of this project is the creation of a forest of native trees that will represent all of the victims of the military dictatorship. We propose to plant a tree for every political-executed and “disappeared” in Chile. With this symbolic act of union, ECOlogy and MEMORY (ECOMEMORIA), we propose to create a “living memorial” in homage to the victims and as a living testimony for future generations.
This project will take place in its first phase by planting trees in different cities and towns across Europe, Australia and the Americas and then in a pre-determined area of Chile with the participation of the local communities, human rights and ecological groups.
The main objectives of this project are:
a) The creation of a forest of native trees that becomes the “living memory” of all the victims of the military dictatorship.
b)
The conservation of native trees particularly those that are in danger of
extinction. In Chile these include the Araucaria, Quillay, Laurel, Alerce,
Canelo, Espino etc.
c)
To provide a source of re-generation and re-oxygenation for the
community.
d)
To counter-act the indiscriminate exploitation of the environment that
has endangered the native flora and fauna.
For further information and full documentation of this project please contact
The Human Rights
International Project
PO BOX 32776
London SE1 1AX
e-mail: ecomemoria@yahoo.com
Main web page:
www.memoriaviva.com