More than 600 hectares taken that during years of Kirchnerism were ceded to the violent Mapuche communities
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The firm judicial decision to evict two Mapuche communities that have been illegally occupying a private property for 14 years in Bahía Huemul, 35 kilometers from Villa La Angostura, marks a turning point in the national policy regarding respect for property rights. The land, 624 hectares in size, was seized in December 2011 by members of the Kinxikew community and later by members of the Quintriqueo lof.
Despite having all the property titles in order, the owner, María Cristina Broers, was unable to recover it for more than a decade due to the lack of political will of previous governments.
Now, with a Judiciary that acts efficiently and in a different political context, the eviction order issued by Judge Francisco Astoul Bonorino gains unprecedented strength. The magistrate rejected all the appeals filed by the occupants' defense, led by attorney Luis Virgilio Sánchez from the Argentine Republic's Lawyers Guild. Even the Supreme Court might refrain from intervening, paving the way for the eviction to be carried out in the coming weeks.
Maniobras judiciales de los gobiernos kirchneristas para invisibilizar la toma.
The owner bought the lot in 1973 and has legitimate documentation. However, on December 27, 2011, a group of people broke the access lock and entered the land, claiming a supposed territorial recovery based on law 26.160. This regulation, which suspends evictions while a territorial survey is conducted, was abusively interpreted by those who occupied the property, despite its application being limited to seizures prior to 2005.
The complainant herself, accompanied by a notary, recorded the violent entry and the makeshift construction that was erected on the site. In that first encounter, one of the occupants confronted her with a machete, claiming that the entire pastoral lot was being "recovered."
Over the last 14 years, up to nine judges have ruled in favor of Broers's claim. However, the eviction was delayed by judicial maneuvers and political omissions characteristic of Kirchnerist governments, more inclined to validate seizures than to protect legality.
In 2016, a civil judge from Junín de los Andes had already ordered the restitution of the property. The Court of Appeals confirmed the measure, and in 2023, judges Alejandra Barroso and Pablo Furlotti from Chamber 2 of the Neuquén Court of Appeals rejected all appeals from the Mapuche communities. The main argument of the occupants is based on an alleged family preexistence since 1928, something that was never documented.
El predio en Villa La Angostura está ocupado hace 14 años.
Broers's defense argues that "the occupation is absolutely illegal and contrary to law", and that not even a supposed permanence of the usurpers' ancestors would justify an illegal act in a democracy. "No person can bypass legal requirements to seize land by force," the argument emphasizes.
After the ratification of the sentence by Judge Bonorino, the communities anticipated that they would resist the entry of security forces and described the measure as "unjust". However, the application of the law is clear and categorical.
