Chile: The National Socialist Action Movement (Movimiento de Acción Nacional Socialista, MANS), including its objectives and membership; whether its members have been accused of crimes (2008-January 2015)

Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa

Information on the MANS was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

According to the website of the MANS, [translation] "National-Socialism is a nationalist and social world vision that aims to unite all Chileans through the solidarity, collaboration and cooperation of all social classes for the well-being of the community over the individual, partisan and economic interests of its individuals" (MANS n.d.a). Moreover, the website indicates that:

[translation]

The MANS, inspired by nationalist and social principles, has set the patriotic mission to alert the public about the threats that endanger the life, independence, stability and sovereignty of our nation. These threats are represented by the solvent ideologies of globalization, internationalism, capitalism, liberalism, Marxist socialism and international Zionism. Ideologies whose main objective is to weaken the national power so our nation submits to the internationalist mandates and dictates, with the consequent moral, spiritual, political, economic, military and territorial disarmament of the nation, to transform us into mere pawns of the international economic power. (ibid. 20 Apr. 2012)

According to the website of the MANS, an individual who would like to become [translation] "an activist of the MANS ... must support the principles of National-Socialism in its political, ethnical and cultural aspects and must be ready to fight and work for Chile, given the threats posed by Zionist globalization, liberalism, multiracism, individualism and international Marxism" (ibid. n.d.a). The website provides an electronic form to fill out in order to join the movement (ibid. n.d.b).

A 12 October 2014 article by Radio Bío Bío, a radio network in Chile, indicates that five members of a group called the National Socialist Movement (Movimiento Nacional Socialista) held a public demonstration on the Day of the Race (Día de la Raza) [1] in the city of Concepción (Radio Bío Bío 12 Oct. 2014). The article includes a picture of the event, in which two people are holding a flag bearing the acronym "MANS" and the logo of the organization (ibid.). On the website of the MANS, there is a webpage that shows the same logo and explains its symbolism (MANS n.d.c). According to the Radio Bío Bío article, Peter Swanston, a member of MANS, indicated that the group [translation] "promote[s] the respect for the diversity of peoples, which is threatened by globalization" (Radio Bío Bío 12 Oct. 2014). Corroborating information on this event could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

According to the MANS's website, the group is not a neo-Nazi movement nor does it have links to neo-Nazi organizations; their political activity is based on the [translation] "peaceful spreading of the National Socialist ideology and does not use violence as a means of political action" (MANS n.d.a). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, an assistant professor of political science at the Institute for the Study of International Development at McGill University, who has done research on Latin America, political parties and political systems, indicated that the MANS is a "right wing very small movement that is both antisemitic and nationalistic" (Assistant Professor 20 Apr. 2015). In the "Frequently Asked Questions" section of MANS's website, it asserts that it is possible for National-Socialism to exist outside of Germany and it cites a definition of National Socialism that it attributes to the National Socialist German Workers' Party Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, NSDAP) (MANS n.d.a). The NSDAP is known as the Nazi Party and came to power in Germany in 1933 under Adolf Hitler (Encyclopædia Britannica n.d.). The Assistant Professor added that the MANS "defends its positions based on the right to freedom of speech" (Assistant Professor 20 Apr. 2015). The bottom banner of MANS's website quotes Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which relates to freedom of opinion and expression (MANS n.d.a; MANS n.d.b; MANS n.d.c).

Sources report that on 11 December 2012, the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movimiento de Integración y Liberación Homosexual, MOVILH), an LGBT non-profit human rights organization in Chile (MOVILH n.d.), filed a complaint with the National Intelligence Agency (Agencia Nacional de Inteligencia, ANI) against the MANS's Facebook page (24 Horas 11 Dec. 2012; MOVILH 12 Dec. 2012). According to a MOVILH news report, the MANS [translation] "'spreads hate messages against various groups'" through their Facebook page (ibid.). MOVILH also indicates that the MANS's Facebook page [translation] "'treat[s] sexual minorities as people who are perverts and have a sickness; promote[s] racism and xenophobia, especially against Peruvian citizens; and project[s] Hitler's image'" (ibid.). Further information on the status of the investigation concerning the complaint could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Note

[1] According to Encyclopædia Britannica, in "many of the Spanish-speaking countries of the Americas, the landing [of Christopher Columbus] is observed as Día de la Raza ('Day of the Race' or 'Day of the People'). Rather than celebrating Columbus's arrival in the New World, many observers of Día de la Raza celebrate the indigenous peoples of Latin America and the culture that developed over the centuries as their heritage melded with that of the Spanish explorers who followed Columbus" (n.d.).

References

24 Horas. 11 December 2012. Jorge Miranda. "Denuncia ataque de neonazis a pareja lésbica." [Accessed 23 Apr. 2015]

Assistant Professor of political science, Institute for the Study of International Development, McGill University. 20 April 2015. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate.

Encyclopædia Britannica. 8 April 2014. "Nazi Party." Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. [Accessed 29 Apr. 2015]

_____. N.d. "Colombus Day." Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. [Accessed 29 Apr. 2015]

Movimiento de Acción Nacional-Socialista de Chile (MANS). 20 April 2012. "Declaración de Principios y Programa Político." [Accessed 24 Apr. 2015]

_____. N.d.a. "Preguntas Frecuentes." [Accessed 28 Apr. 2015]

_____. N.d.b. "Únete." [Accessed 29 Apr. 2015]

_____. N.d.c. "Nuestro Símbolo." [Accessed 29 Apr. 2015]

Movimiento de Integración y Liberación Homosexual (MOVILH). 12 December 2012. "Presentan querella en Viña del Mar por violento ataque neonazi a pareja lésbica y su familia." [Accessed 24 Apr. 2015]

_____. N.d. "Presentation." [Accessed 24 Apr. 2015]

Radio Bío Bío. 12 October 2014. Ignacia Jiménez. "Movimiento Nacional Socialista de Concepción realiza ofrenda floral en el marco del día de la raza." [Accessed 24 Apr. 2015]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: The following were unable to provide information for this Response: Associate Professor of Latin American politics, University of Calgary; Chile - Instituto Nacional de Derechos Humanos; Comunidad Judía de Chile; Movimiento de Acción Nacional-Socialista de Chile; Movimiento de Integración y Liberación Homosexual; Professor of Comparative and Latin American politics, Cornell University; Professor of political science, Universidad Diego Portales; Professor of politics and international affairs, Wake Forest University.

Attempts to contact the following were unsuccessful within the time constraints of this Response: Associate Professor of political science, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; Chile - Agencia Nacional de Inteligencia, Biblioteca del Congreso Nacional de Chile; Professor of Latin American politics, McGill University; Professor of political science, Universidad de Chile.

Internet sites, including: Amnesty International; Associated Press; BBC; Chile - Tribunal Constitucional; ecoi.net; El Mercurio; El Mostrador; Factiva; Freedom House; Human Rights Watch; International Crisis Group; International Federation for Human Rights; IRIN; La Nación; La Tercera; Political Handbook of the World; Reuters; The Santiago Times; UN - High Commissioner for Human Rights, Refworld, ReliefWeb; US - Department of State.