| Description: | The Mapuche people are an indigenous group in the Araucanía region of Southern Chile, who have endured colonisation for over 500 years, first at the hands of the Spanish settlers and later by the Chilean state. On the 12th July, 2010, 34 peasant Mapuche prisoners went on hunger strike, in protest against being imprisoned for defending their land. They were seeking a fair trial and demanded that, in their case, the anti-terrorist law should not be applied.
In this arpillera, the second by Aurora on this landmark hunger strike, we enter into the interior of one of the prisons where the hunger strike took place. Women supporters in their traditional dress tend to the men lying on the floor, against the backdrop of their beloved Mapuche flag. Aurora has prominently stitched their names and “Strength Compañeros”, both strong symbols of identity. Through the window, memories of their native homes are visible: volcanoes, monkey-puzzle trees and flowers; the land and home they defend to death. A pot of bean soup has been prepared; perhaps it is to sustain the women or in readiness for the men at the end of their hunger strike.
These 10 men ended their hunger strike after 81 days, on 1st October, 2010, after charges brought against them under the anti-terrorist law were withdrawn.
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