Julia Chuñil Case: Organizations Demand Thorough and Transparent Investigation to Uncover Alleged Conspiracy

Original article: Caso Julia Chuñil: Organizaciones exigen investigación veraz y transparente para «desenmascarar este montaje»

Social organizations within the «Day-to-Day for Julia Chuñil» space invite supporters to sign a declaration framed as a counter-narrative to the so-called «national horror series» allegedly orchestrated by the Regional Prosecutor’s Office of Los Ríos. The text reaffirms their solidarity with the criminalized family and condemns serious procedural inconsistencies and denialism regarding Chuñil’s role as an environmental defender.

Amid what they describe as a «new Operation Hurricane,» organizations affiliated with «Day-to-Day for Julia Chuñil» issued a public statement demanding a «thorough, truthful, and transparent investigation» to «unmask» a «setup» intended to silence land struggles and criminalize the mapuche family, who last saw her on November 8, 2024, in the commune of Máfil, Los Ríos Region.

The declaration, designed as a counter-narrative to the «national horror series» alleged by the groups to have been fabricated by the Regional Prosecutor’s Office of Los Ríos, reaffirms solidarity with the criminalized family and highlights significant procedural inconsistencies and denialism regarding Chuñil’s role as an environmental advocate.

In the text, they mention that Julia Chuñil’s children, Zomo Papay (a wise mapuche woman and defender of native forests), are detained without clarity on their mother’s whereabouts. Pablo San Martín Chuñil and Jeanette Troncoso Chuñil await confirmation of house arrest, while Javier Troncoso Chuñil remains in preventive detention at the Llancahue prison in Valdivia.

«In the faces of Jeanette, Pablo, and Javier, Julia’s children, we see the faces of hundreds of family members who are victims of false accusations,» states the text, drawing a parallel with «Operation Hurricane» and the «setups from the dictatorship» of Augusto Pinochet.

They remind that in the recent Operation Hurricane, the intelligence officials were convicted for their falsehoods, and they do not forget the setups of the dictatorship that denied justice to the families of the disappeared and politically executed persons.

«Therefore, we tell Julia Chuñil’s family that we share their pain and indignation. And we are united, inspired by the strength of their mother and grandmother. There is a silent energy that supports those who defend life against terror, coming from the land for which Julia fought, from the fresh forest, from the seed she tended, along with the strength of the water and the spirits that inhabit the territories,» they affirmed.

They highlighted that the family of the elderly woman was internationally recognized as a victim and obtained precautionary measures from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in July 2025, urging the Chilean state to intensify the search for the activist.

«But for demanding justice, for being mapuche, for being poor, they are subjected to public ridicule following a morbid setup rejected by popular media and those who uphold critical thought,» they accused in the declaration.

Inconsistencies and Accusations Against the Prosecutor’s Office: «A New Hurricane»

The core of the document critiques the work of Regional Prosecutor Tatiana Esquivel. According to the organizations, the parricide accusation is based on a «narrative full of lies and dubious statements from secret witnesses.»

The declaration outlines seven points of controversy:

Conflict of Interest: They assert that Esquivel facilitated the detention of Jeanette Troncoso, who had previously filed a complaint against her for illegal duress. The defense highlighted this conflict to Judge Héctor Rivera, but Esquivel was confirmed in her role by National Prosecutor Ángel Valencia.

«Esquivel may have acted in her own interest,» they stated in the text.

Obstruction: It accuses that Pablo San Martín was arrested «on the day he was to meet, along with his lawyer, with international representatives of the Escazú Agreement.»

Omitted Context: Julia’s sale of animals was presented by the prosecutor as motivated by greed, omitting the fact that «the Prosecutor’s Office and the PDI ordered the family to remove their animals from ‘La Fritz’ —property of agroforestry businessman Juan Carlos Morstadt Anwandter— as it was private land.»

Double Standards Regarding Land: It questions the crime motive presented as the transfer of 2 hectares to Pablo’s name (with usufruct for Julia to apply for INDAP subsidies, «a common practice in mapuche territory»). In contrast, Esquivel is accused of never addressing «the 900 hectares of La Fritz linked to CONADI corruption and businessman Morstadt, nor the over 1.1 billion pesos not returned to the Chilean state when CONADI returned the land sold to Morstadt.»

Confession Under Duress: They claim that Julia Chuñil’s son-in-law confessed «just hours before the hearing with the judge, without the presence of a public defender, and under the threat of sending his small children to SENAME.»

Refuted Accusations: The defense proved, according to the document, that the domestic violence allegations referenced by the prosecution pertained to another son of Julia, José Luis, who was in prison at the time of the disappearance.

Blind Investigative Line: Prosecutors are reproached for not investigating «previous threats to Julia Chuñil from businessman Juan Carlos Morstadt, who contested the lands she was safeguarding.»

«Their script, delivered in a soap opera fashion over three days on TV, exposes the racist and classist bias of the investigation,» concludes this section.

Denial of Julia Chuñil’s Role as a Territorial Defender

The third focus accuses the prosecutor’s office and mainstream media of stripping Julia Chuñil of her identity as a territorial defender, portraying her merely as a «head of household,» which, they argue, deprives her of the protections afforded by international instruments to which Chile has subscribed.

From the «Day-to-Day for Julia Chuñil» movement, they questioned that «mocking a historical slogan, Prosecutor Esquivel concluded her narrative by stating that now the children must answer the question: ‘Where is Julia Chuñil?'»

For the signing organizations, the formalization «smells like a warning» against those denouncing corruption in the restitution of ancestral lands and extractive lobbying.

«We wonder: To whom does Esquivel protect? Are there other interests in Los Ríos linked to the Public Ministry?» they interjected.

With the deadline for endorsements running until midnight on Tuesday, January 20, the movement has called for continuous demands for clarifying the facts.

«We will unmask this setup to find out where Julia Chuñil is and continue demanding a thorough, truthful, and transparent investigation.»

Court Rejects Appeal, Upholds House Arrest for Two of Chuñil’s Children

On Monday morning, the Court of Appeals in Valdivia rejected the appeal from the Regional Prosecutor’s Office of Los Ríos and confirmed the precautionary measure of total house arrest for two of Julia Chuñil’s three children, who are accused of parricide and robbery with violence.

The appellate court decided to maintain total house arrest for Jeannette Troncoso and Pablo San Martín, who are also subject to national immigration control, while Javier Troncoso Chuñil remains in preventive detention.

The decision was made after the appellate court dismissed the prosecution’s appeal seeking to impose a more severe precautionary measure on all three defendants for their alleged participation in the crime against the mapuche leader.

However, the Court confirmed the prior ruling by the Lakes Guarantee Court, which ordered preventive detention only for one of the siblings.

The fourth accused, the victim’s ex-son-in-law, is under night house arrest. The prosecutor accuses him of qualified homicide as an accomplice and attempted robbery with violence.