In Latin America there are various national umbrella groups called FEARAB, which means the Federación de Entidades Arabes (or roughly translated: Federation of Arab Groups/Societies). The ACRONYM only looks bad in English.
Each national FEARAB organization expresses itself differently. But, the website for Federation of Arab Groups-Chile used to have a header which denied the existence of Israel altogether. This indicated a radical viewpoint that is not always seen on other FEARAB sites for other Latin countries.
In fact, FEARAB-Chile, due to the high percentage of Palestinians among the Arabs in Chile, seems to be more involved in the Mideast conflict than the Arab organizations in other countries.
NOTE: This was a map on an earlier FEARAB CHILE website. Notice how Israel did not exist on their map.
They now run a website page with a different header: FEARAB
In Chile, the Palestinian Christians are re-discovering their Arab roots, and using their economic and political influence to shape society, and change policy.
What is noticeable with the FEARAB-Chile site is how often Islamic motiffs crop up, even though there are so few Muslims in Chile, even among the Arabs. At a rate of over 99% Christian among the Arab community, one would think Christian Holy Sites would crop up more often in their images.
Trans: Youth Group (Juach) Travel to Mideast – January 2012 – (No longer on site)
NOTE: Why would Christians show the Al-Aqsa Mosque?
Present: FEARAB-Chile website
Palestinian-Chileans are directly involved in Palestine issues. This is something you would not see so readily among the Argentine Arabs – but as noted, Argentine Arabs are not heavily Palestinian, but more Lebanese Maronite Christian, and Syrian Christian.
There was always an aspect of this in Chile. In 1938, Palestinian-Chileans created Club Palestino in the center of Santiago, Chile, apparently working out an arrangement with the British Mandatory authorities as well. In 1947, Palestinian-Chileans persuaded the Chilean government to abstain on the vote to create a Jewish state.
However, concern with Palestinian issues really seems to have taken off with the first Intifada in the 1980s, as TV images of the fighting were broadcast to Chile. Prior to this, the Palestinians in Chile had been social climbing for the most part until the 1960s; and in the 1970s were probably suffering under the Pinochet dictatorship like everyone else.
By the late 80s, the start of the Intifada, Chile was back to democracy, and prosperity; satellite TV was becoming common, and the Palestinian community was starting to get involved. By virtue of the Palestinian majority among the Arab-Chilean community, Palestinian-Chileans could swing the whole Arab community along with it.
This is often not so in other Latin countries, where Westernized Maronite Lebanese-Christians tend to have numbers and clout.
The influence of Palestinian-Chileans seems to be major, and seems to go unnoticed in the USA by American media, but it is drawing lots of notice in the Mideast and in Latin America.
Palestinians in Chile are starting to be a major player in Mideast politics.
Trans: Palestinian Congress
Arab Youth of Valparaiso and Viña del Mar
Inviting all Arab youth in the area to participate
in this Congress in order to unify criteria and
participate in the national decisions concerning
the Palestinian Cause and your community in Chile
NOTE: Notice the Islamic Symbol on the lower left
But 99% of Arabs in Chile are Christian.
Notice how these Islamic symbols crop up in Chilean sites. It might be understandable that Chilean Palestinians would embrace Palestine as a cause; but since they are roughly 99% Christian, I cannot understand why they would embrace Islamic motiffs.
One has to suspect Saudi oil money, or other Islamic Oil Money, is partly to blame here. But these Christian-Palestinian-Chileans are prosperous enough that they could finance a lot of this by themselves. I am not that surprised at Palestinian-Chilean participation; I am surprised at the embrace of Islamic symbols among their Christian community.
The Palestinian-Chilean community was never going to be pro-Israel; but now it seems to deny Israel altogether.
There is more discussion on other pages.
24 November 2017 – Made edits, corrections, and updated links.