“There Was Abandonment, Deception and Abuse”: Owner of San Antonio Megasettlement Attacks the State

After seven years of silence, Esteban Solari Bertoglia has launched a sharp attack on the Chilean state over the occupation of his land in San Antonio. “There was abandonment, deception and abuse,” he said in an interview published by El Mercurio.

Solari owns the 260 hectares of Cerro Centinela, occupied by about 4,000 families since October 2019 in what has become known as the San Antonio megasettlement. He accused the government of former President Gabriel Boric of delaying enforcement of an eviction order issued by the Supreme Court.

He also alleged that the state forced an expropriation that valued the land at less than one-tenth of its commercial price. His account challenges the official handling of the property and the administrative decisions surrounding the case.

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There was abandonment, deception and abuse.

Solari said he initially kept quiet for security reasons after businessman Alejandro Correa was murdered in Concón. He now decided to set out his institutional position in response to versions circulating about the property’s origins and the way authorities managed the dispute.

“We have been very cautious after what happened to Alejandro Correa,” he said, adding that his children had asked him whether it was necessary to keep taking the risk. The interview marks his public break with that silence.

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We have been very cautious after what happened to Alejandro Correa.