In a decisive move just five days after assuming office, Chilean President José Antonio Kast has initiated construction on a contentious border barrier along the nation’s northern frontier with Peru. The president personally visited the construction site near the border town of Arica on Monday to inspect preliminary trench-digging operations and engage with workers, characterizing the project as fulfillment of his campaign pledge to combat illegal immigration.
The initial phase of the ambitious project consists of a modest trench measuring several feet in width and depth, carved into the arid landscape of the Atacama Desert. This excavation represents merely a fraction of what is envisioned to become an extensive border control system comprising trenches, physical barriers, and advanced surveillance technology patrolled by military personnel.
President Kast’s immigration approach bears striking resemblance to policies championed by former U.S. President Donald Trump, particularly in rhetoric and methodology. During his site inspection, Kast asserted that Chile had been ‘violated by illegal immigration, drug trafficking and organised crime,’ framing the barrier as essential to ‘build a sovereign Chile.’ He celebrated the undertaking as a ‘milestone’ for national security.
The project implementation follows Kast’s December electoral victory, where he secured 58% of the vote by promising a ‘border shield’ against undocumented migration. This policy initiative aligns with the president’s broader narrative portraying Chile as a nation besieged by chaos and insecurity, despite the country’s longstanding reputation as one of South America’s most stable and secure nations.
Statistical data reveals a substantial demographic shift underlying the immigration debate: Chile’s foreign population has more than doubled in the past decade, escalating from under 600,000 in 2015 to exceeding 1.5 million by 2024 according to World Bank figures. Government estimates indicate approximately 336,000 of these migrants lack proper documentation, with many originating from Venezuela.
The border barrier project will eventually cover roughly half of Chile’s combined 1,080-kilometer northern frontier with Peru and Bolivia. Kast’s presidency marks Chile’s most significant political shift rightward since the conclusion of Augusto Pinochet’s military dictatorship in 1990, a regime which the new president has openly praised. His alignment with Trump’s ideology extends beyond policy to symbolic gestures, with supporters adopting modified versions of the ‘Make America Great Again’ slogan.