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The aim of the "Human Rights Archive of Chile" is to ensure that the historical memory of human rights violations and defence, which is documented in various archives of national institutions, is not lost. The archive seeks to safeguard this memory in order for it to be recognized and valued, because it captures a specific historical moment of actions of solidarity and defence of persons persecuted and arrested during the military dictatorship that ruled Chile between 1973 and 1989.

The fonds of non-governmental institutions that constitute the archive originated as a form of preserving information and supporting the search for those disappeared during the military regime. The archive is essential for the internal dialogue of a society that has yet to overcome the legacy of human rights violations of the recent past.

All the documents are unique and authentic, reflecting the work of the various institutions dedicated to the defence of human rights in Chile during the military regime. In the new millennium, the time has come for Latin America to recover its memory. There is conviction that after so many authoritarian and totalitarian governments, what matters most for the collective future is to respect fundamental human rights. Conserving the archives is key in order to set forth a public debate in our societies to enable them to question the presence or absence of memory of human rights violations.

The future cannot be built on oblivion, on concealing what has happened. This applies to individuals, societies and humanity. To understand the raison d'être of democracy and the respect for human rights, it is necessary to know and remember how dictatorships operated. Only by knowing and reflecting upon their past will countries be able to choose a future free from terror and the mistakes of the past. 

This nomination was inscribed on the Memory of the World International Register in 2003 and on the Regional Register for Latin America and the Caribbean in 2011.