Rapa Nui Overwhelmingly Rejects Government’s Special Statute Proposal Amid Indigenous Consultation

Original article: Amplio rechazo en Rapa Nui a propuesta de Estatuto Especial impulsada por el Gobierno

This week, Rapa Nui decisively rejected a proposal for a Special Statute put forward by the government, aimed at granting Easter Island a special governance framework and administratively separating it from the Valparaíso Region.

The «INA» option (left untranslated) won with an overwhelming majority of 87% (959 votes) compared to 13% (114 votes) in favor of the proposal. This occurred during an indigenous consultation held last Sunday, which sought to determine the community’s stance on the initiative.

The proposal aimed to detach the island from the Valparaíso Region politically and administratively by establishing a Special Territorial Government, which would possess legal autonomy, its own assets, and an independent budget.

Furthermore, the government’s initiative sought to transfer the planning and management of the special territory’s development, as well as its cultural heritage, to this body, ensuring that these responsibilities would be managed exclusively by members of the Rapa Nui community.

It is important to remember that, as part of commitments made by the government, the preparatory process for an indigenous consultation began in mid-August 2025, aiming to construct a bill that would grant the island its own legal status. This initiative sought to lay the groundwork for a new institutional status for the territory.

Rapa Nui Communities Decry Imposition and Lack of Consensus in Indigenous Consultation

In a statement, the Honui community—made up of 32 families from the island—asserted that the outcome sends a clear political message, as the Rapa Nui people who participated in the process did not grant their consent to the Special Statute proposal.

“Self-determination means we define our political status and development model freely, without pressure, without imposition, and without institutional designs that do not arise from a true consensus of the Rapa Hui people,” stated the communiqué.

They also emphasized that “the result of this vote cannot be interpreted as a renunciation of our historical demands, nor as a rejection of autonomy or self-governance. On the contrary, it reflects a political objection to how the State has conducted this process, pointing to the inadequacy of guarantees, the lack of broad consensus, and the absence of a genuinely decolonizing approach in constructing institutions for Rapa Nui.”

On the other hand, Jorge Edmunds, the former mayor of Rapa Nui, noted that the proposal does not align with what the Rapa Nui people have demanded: “We do not want independence; we are not crazy. We want to remain Chilean. We love Chile, and if we need to defend the Republic, we will do so, but with respect for us as indigenous peoples,” he stated.

Edmunds pointed out that the island is part of Chilean territory and that communities have not sought imposed autonomy but rather a space for dialogue to build agreements appropriate to the current context. In this framework, he stressed that the central demand is recognition of the territory as their own, allowing for a model of administration alongside the State of Chile without separating from it.

“This current government, led by Boric, seems to want to tick off a checklist in its management, posing for a photo saying ‘here I fulfilled’, pushing us to accept a proposal that is being imposed on us. We do not accept that because those are not the conditions we have always put on the table,” he emphasized.

The outcome highlighted a rift between the state’s proposal and the demands of the Rapa Nui people. Communities are reiterating that the rejection does not imply giving up on self-determination but instead calls for legitimate processes, with guarantees and real consensus. The vote marks a turning point in the relationship between the State and the island territory, reopening the debate on how to advance without impositions.