Diego Muñoz's contribution to the ESFO 2025 conference

« Misunderstanding about the “cession of sovereignty”. Usus and misuses of the treaty of Rapa Nui (Easter Island, Chile) »

Abstract :

In this paper, I trace the history of the bilingual treaty of Rapa Nui by which Chile incorporates this island into its territory. I focus on its material dimension and in its different uses to justify Chilean or Indigenous sovereignty. First, I analyse its history from its arrival in Chile after the annexation in 1888 to its loss in the national archives and its return to Rapa Nui in 2024. Second, I discuss the different uses and misuses of the treaty to justify Chilean sovereignty and ownership over the island as well as the impact of its rediscovery on the Rapanui community. The rediscovery of the bilingual text has prompted a significant critique of the Chilean interpretation of the cession of sovereignty, generating responses from Rapanui leaders through the creation of Indigenous institutions. It has also led to the emergence of a new narrative regarding the relationship with Chile in which sovereignty could be recovered by Rapanui people.