A Special Juridical Status for Jews: Chilean Immigration Policy During the Third Reich

Abstract

This chapter examines the evolution of Chile’s immigration policies during the first half of the twentieth century, considering their impact on the issuance of visas to Jewish refugees fleeing Nazism. Despite Chile’s initial policy of welcoming foreign immigrants and promoting the settlement of its southern lands, the global crisis of 1929 led to the imposition of new barriers. These barriers were implemented through private communications between the Ministry of Foreign Relations, ambassadors, and consuls. In 1937, the Confidential Circular Letter No. 3 introduced particularly restrictive norms based on racial criteria, which significantly curtailed the immigration of Jews persecuted by the Nazis. This chapter analyses how these policies, marked by strong anti-Jewish prejudice, were developed through administrative measures by the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Relations in Chile. It also explores how these policies influenced the responses and antisemitic attitudes of Chilean consuls in Europe.