by Our Foreign Desk

ACTIVISTS throughout Latin America urged Chilean President Michelle Bachelet on Tuesday to reciprocate after Israel denied entry to a Chilean citizen leading an annual Easter pilgrimage to Palestine.

Anuar Majluf, who heads the Palestinian Federation of Chile, was turned away from the West Bank on Monday based on a new law banning anyone supporting the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign.

“I feel terrible pain because I’m now unable to visit my family’s homeland as a Chilean citizen with a Palestinian lineage,” said Mr Majluf.

“I know that what I suffer is nothing compared to the suffering of the many Palestinians who, if they dare to defy Israel’s policies, often end up dead, tortured or in the prisons of the occupation,” he added.

“The Chilean government should act reciprocally and refuse entry to Israeli citizens coming as tourists to Chile.”

Mr Majluf’s call for a firm response was echoed by Palestinian Liberation Organisation secretary-general Saeb Erekat in a letter to Chilean Foreign Minister Heraldo Munoz.

He warned that, if Chileans travelling to Palestine are “threatened and treated like criminals” it would be “a tragedy not only for the community but for the future potential of relations between both countries.”

Sixteen organisations representing the Palestinian diaspora in Latin America and the Caribbean urged Chile to “repair this affront against a Chilean citizen and exercise the principle of reciprocity against a country that breaks all the rules and places itself above the law of all nations.”

Several Chilean politicians echoed the call, asking Ms Bachelet to respond in kind.