7 12 1190 https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/03b31eb63ef9e1c8d4ab0d4f5f10a67f.pdf 41917f6f35fe99fc1a6fc8cac60bfd3c PDF Text Text P ERSPECTIVES ON BIODIVERSITY AND I NT.,_LL EC_,_UA L_,__,,O PE,R_,_' -- - - - - - - - - - - E, , o, T"'= P R , _, TY Biodiversity, Community Integrity and t he Second Colonialist Wave He whare maikhi tu ki roto ki te tuwatawata. he tou no te rengatira: he whare maihi tu ki te wa kie te paenga. he kai na te ahi. An ancestral house standing inside the community is the sign of chiefliness: one standing in the open is food for fire. - Maori Proverb by A T P roha e areake M ead M the Maori proverb above indi- tes. an ancestral house. or any pe<:t of heritage which restS within its home community. holds in itself and brings lO its people numa- AroJta Tt Pm·wkc Mead is a Maori aclivi.st and works wi1h Taonga Umittd in Ac>tcoara, Nt."W Zealand. 6 respect and sovereignty. If the house or any other aspect of heritage. either tangible or intangible, is taken away from its community and from its context, it becomes at risk of destruction. "food for the lire."' And its people are confined to • destiny of mourning for the loss of a beloved and irreplaceable pan of their heritage. For Indigenous communities. the underlying meaning in this pro\·erb is that the life force of that heritage still exists regardless of the physico! circum- stances around it An ancestral house will always be part or the heritage or ilS own tribal community even if it now fomlS pan of a national or imemational museum collection. #Jya Yala News �PERSPECTIVES ON BIODIVERSITY AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY An Indigenous plant. its extracts and seeds. will always be part of the heritage or the community, who have imerncted with it for so many generations that the plant has become j>art of the language of that community, its significance reafGrmed daily in (waiata) songs. (whakatauki) proverbs and (whaikorero) traditional greetings. The Second Wave of Colonization The first wave of colonization consisted of the forced misappropriation of Indigenous lands and resources. most often through ,·iolence, resulting in mass alienation of Indigenous peoples from their homelands and heritage. The denigration of Indigenous vah,tes and practices was sanctioned by religious and social beliefs that tribal peoples (non-Christi:ms) were savages and barbarians, and 1heir cuhurnl traditions "'heathen'" and evil. Settlers claimed that theft of Indigenous lands served the .. public good'" and that new technology promised more effective land usc. improved farming methods. and new crops. Time proved, however. lhat new farming technology kept being impro\'ed until most farmers could no longer afford it. New methods also brought soil erosion. pesticide pollution. and the final insult. ha'"ing to buy seeds which were prc,riously 53.\'Cd ftom the harvest. Where Mother Earth used to be the equalizer for those who used her resources to feed, clothe. shelter and heal themseh'es and others, technology has turned her imo a factory. The second wa\'C of colonization sets its sights on mis.'1pptopriating what little remains after the first wave. the "'intctl'\gibles" of Indigenous cultuteslndigenous knowledge of the environment. pre"entative and curative healing practices. and panicularly traditional uses of Indigenous plants (medicines. dyes. complimentary crops to name but a fcw).\Vhere the first wave of colonization was made possible by nonnalizing the violence against Indigenous peoples Vol. 8 No.4 as in the service of "the public good," the second wave is accommodated and encouraged through national and intcrn:nional legal instruments which allow st~ucs and privme companies to exercise-through legal and financial nonns and standards~xternal private and exclusive ownership of 1he tangible and imangible heritage of Indigenous communities. liS not at all coincidental that the jus1ification of this misappropriation is the s..1.me: "It's for humanit)'. for the public good ." Before. it was land acqui· s1tion. Now. it is acquisition of knowledge and resources. No matter how one · looks at it, the result is the s..u ne: outsiders forcing the concepts of commodification of resources and acquiring ownership of the ancestors· gifts-lands, resources and knowledge. Cultural and Intellectual Property Rights Governments as well as private companies are now clamoring to copyright and patem Indigenous an forms. medicinal plants. languages and even genetic materials. Signatory states to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN Conference on Environment & Developmem's Agenda 21 (1992) are now required to respect and take measures to protect the Intellectual Propcny Rights (IPR) of Indigenous peoples and local communities with respect to bio· logical diversity. Many States have inter· preted these international directives as justifying the redesign of their national IPR legislation to legalize State governance of community assets. but Indigenous peoples around the world view such measures as unnecessar)' intrusions into the integrity of their communities. h is neither logical nor practical that the best system for the protection of the cultural and intellectual property or Indigenous peoples resides with states or even with the international community. Protection can onty be designed and implemented by Indigenous commul1ities themselves in panncrship with individuals and organizations (local, national. regiomll and international) of their choosing on an informed consent basis. The body most c.•pable of respect· ing and enhancing the unique needs of an Indigenous community is one initiated. developed and staffed by the community itself. National and international instruments cannot possibly prepare communities for the challenges upon theit own stro.ctures of leadership and accountability. State instro.mcnts should focus on the activities and proccdtu·cs of companies, bm it is clear that many States would prefer to regulate the activities of communities. At a funda· mental level there is al.s o the problem of states. as well as the international comrnunity. assuming that they have a right to develop standards and legally binding instruments for assets which do not belong to them. New threats facing Indigenous Communities: A Case Study The attack on Indigenous communi~ tics is constant and significant. Indigenous communities cannot afford to ignore external pressure and simply to hope that ignoring the threats will in time make them go aw-a)~ A brief examination of the national activities and c.xpericnces of the Indigenous communities living in just 01'e UN member State-New Zealand-demonstrates the diversity of IPR issues facing Indigenous communities. The human genome contains the heritage not just of an individual but of that person's community. for many Indigenous peoples. the concept of "'ownership"' of a human gene e\'en by the individual is just not accepted. The ownership of a human gene by a company is therefore reprehensible. \ Vithin the Pacific. two attempts have already been made to patent Indigenous human genetic material (Solomon Islands and the Hagahai or Papua New Guinea). The Human Genome Diversity Project has targeted over 200 South PaciGc Indigenous communities for genetic 7 �PERSPECTIVES ON BIODIVERSITY AND INTELLECTU~~ P R O P E~ TY ------------A L....!'-!~::!:.! R~~ sampling. Maori arc one of the few not on che lise (See arcicle on HGD Projccc pg. 13, eds.). However. che a11cmpced recommendation to the New Zealand government by Maori-that New Zealand discuss with other Pacific nations the itnplications of the collection of human genetic materials in the Pacific-fell on deaf cars. Research within New Zealand on cancer. alcoholism and otitis media (gl\lc car) has been reponed to focus on Maori genetic predispositions lO such conditions. In the hands of health insurance companies. genetic screening on the basis of ethnicity involves fundamental human rights issues which have yet to be c., plored. Copyright of Indigenous Languages In November 1994. che Oxford University Press attempted to secure an cxcl\lsivc copyright or che \Vi/limns Maori Umguagc Dicrionary. First pub· lished in l$44. the dictiOI''I:U)' remains the most authorilative dictionary of the Maori language. ll has been reprinted twelve times (seven editions) by the New Zealand Go'"ernmcnt Print Office, an agency established to promote the recording and publishing of New Ze3land hiscory for the benefit of all New Ze~landers. Many of che first Maori language and ~...laori history publications were financed and p11blished by a state- owned Printing Office on the underscanding that such publications were "held in trust~ as vital components of the national herilage. Prh'3tization of state agencies, including the Print Office. has opened 11p Maori publicatior\S to copyright by the privace sector. There are currently no mechanisms by which Maori can regain ownership. We will have to fight for each publication individually. Traditional Uses of Indigenous Flora and Fauna Several New Zealand companies 8 have developed successful cosmetic products using tradicional knowledge of nora and fa\llla. A ncdging phannaccucical induscry is also being developed. but at this point the cos1nctic propcnics of native plants are the primary ulrget of commercial exploitation. ln some cases the traditional knowledge comes from Indigenous informants. in other cases through research in historical records kept by early senlers-includingchosc of Capcain james Cook himself-which provide detailed and illustrated accounts of the properties and uses of native plants. The Body Shop recently negotiated with a small tribal company their extraction process for the oil of the native Manulla plant. Manuka is a native plant common to most of the North Island and of significance 10 many different tribes. such that songs, proverbs, weavings and other art fonns record the plant's special relationship to each tribe. Thus. from a tribal point of view. it is diffic\llt to accepc the validity of any IPR agreement bet ween two companies involving what most Maori would consider "common propcny."' Exploitation itself is easier to understand than the attempt to patent the process. or tO seck plant variety rights on the Manuk..1. Already. plant variety rights have been granted to national and international companies for thincen plants by the New Zealand government. In response, the Maori have filed a Treaty of \.Yaitangi Tribunal Claim against the go'"erntnent . seeking confirmation that all native plams are the heritage of Maori tribes in the first place. and that any decisions relating to the conmlercialization of native plants must by made by Maori tribes themselves. This historical case is due for consideration in mid-1995. Capacity Building: More Questions Than Answers The righcco intellectual property. as a western legal invention. was never designed co cope with the myriad ·properties"" now being thrust upon it. Indigenous knowledge and Indigenous resources simply do not fit into che IPR regime. Protection of heritage must be addressed through alternative mechanisms. but it must be a mechanism robust enough to apply to the diverse range of activities now thremening the heritage and livelihoods of Indigenous communities. Indigenous communities need to son out amongst themselves-without the interference of non·members-the tribal. sub-tribal and ramily "ownership.. of knowledge. \ \That is common property? Who has the right to give consent? Elders or youth? Tribal political structures or new additional specialiSt tribal organizations? \Vhat structures will they put in place? Should regional and national scruccures also be established? By whom? Indigenous communities should also make greater use of the infonnation highwa)' and strengthen national, regional and international networks in order to exchange information. offer advice and experience. and keep informed of the growing swell of che second wave of colonization - misappropriation of Indigenous knowledge and biodiversity. The most appropriate and resultsoriented contribution that states and the imernational community could offer is to provide additional financing for com· munity capacity-building. and to focus regulatory attention on external compa· nics. agencies, and individuals. As the Maori proverb scates. the heritage of Indigenous communities rests with those communities. If any aspect of this heritage is removed, it becomes food for the fire. Similarity. the proverb reminds us that che incegrity of a commul'lity requires us to hold firm and protect the treasures of the ancestors. If pans of our heritage have been lost. it is our responsibility to get them back. no matter how long il takes. Abya Yala News � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 8, no. 4 (Winter 1994) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Biodiversity, Community Integrity and the Second Colonialist Wave Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Aroha Te Pareake Mead Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1994 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title Biodiversity, Community Integrity and the Second Colonialist Wave Item Type Journal Article Author Aroha Te Pareake Mead Volume 8 Issue 4 Pages 6-8 Publication Title SAIIC Newsletter ISSN 1071-3182 Date 1994 Language English Abstract Note Indian communities are now faced with the task of defending their cultural and intellectual property rights in the areas of agriculture, language, genetics, etc. Attachment Title Biodiversity_community_integrity.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Colonialism Copyright Intellectual Property Rights https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/bf258061e055e15245aaf6de366cdba7.pdf 3dbe01b9011d5fa1d98c3c12765939cd PDF Text Text CICA: A Pan-Indigenous Organization in Central America by Atencio Lopez (Kuna) On July 21, 1995, in the city of Guatemala, the Indigenous Council of Central America (CICA) was founded, which integrates indigenous representatives from Guatemal to Panama, including Belize. The initiative to found the Council was born during a reunion in Panama held in June, 1994. There, attendants agreed on the urgent necessity for Indigenous peoples in Central America to coordinate their efforts on a regional level to defend their rights in the face of the political and economic structural changes stemming from the democratization process. The founding of CICA is particularly important as it occurs during a time when dialogue and pacification follow the civil wars that have impoverished our countries and impacted most strongly in Indigenous communities. CICA will also facilitate the Regional Program for the Support of Indigenous Peoples in Central America (PAPICA) organized with the European Community which makes available approximately 8 million dollars. CICA staff includes : Leopoldo Tzian (Maya-Guatemala), President; Mauricio Castro (Zicaque-Honduras), General Secretary; William Borregon (Embera-Panama), Treasurer. For more information, contact: CICA, in care of COMG, 2a. Calle 3.40, Zona 3, Chimaltenago, Chimalt. Guatemale. Tel/Fax: 5029392709 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 9, no. 1 (Spring 1995) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource CICA: A Pan-Indigenous Organization in Central America Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Atencio López (Kuna) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring, 1995 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title CICA: A Pan-Indigenous Organization in Central America Item Type Journal Article Author Atencio López (Kuna) Volume 9 Issue 1 Pages 19 Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring, 1995 Language English Abstract Note On July 21, 1995, the Indigenous Council of Central America (CICA) was founded, which integrates indigenous representatives from Guatemala to Panama, including Belize. Attachment Title CICA_A_Pan-Indigenous_Organization_in_Central_America.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] CICA Indigenous Council of Central America self-determination Territory https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/1bb2efbe8cd349e7daa403d0bf711eb5.pdf f352b0e5fe8a6d35655c754210b87d6e PDF Text Text PERSPECTIVES ON B I ODIVERSITY A ND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY - - - - - - - - - - - - The Guaymi Patent One of the best known cases of attempts to patent and commer· cialize human tissue is that of a still unidentified Ngobe (or Guaymi) woman of Panama. In 1993 and 1994. this case captured not only the attention of the international community of scientists. but also that of Indigenous people world-wide. by Atenciolopez M . I n 1991 . ~ very ill 26-ye:>r old Ngobc woman sought medical treatment in a hospital in ~anama City. Doctors there diagnosed her with a fatal case of l. uktmia. This woman could not have e lmagined that the Panamanian doctors. with the complicity of US sciemists, would then remove s.1mples of her blood for experimentation and finally StOre her genetic material in biological laboratories several thousand miles away in the US. The doctors who set this in motion have refused to divulge the woman$ name. As a resuh we have been unable to locate her. nor do we know if she is Still alive. Even if she were alive. it is doubtful that she would be able to make sense of the fact that two sup· posed inventors. Michael Dale Laimore and jonathan E. Kaplan, nearly acquired monopoly rights over pan of her body, or that this action was supported by the US governments Secretary or Commerce through its branch that regulates the patenting of scientific innovations. These scientists claimed to be search· ing for dues to understand aborigina.l peoples in the Americas and to generme grea.ter understanding of HLV, the \rims thought to cause AIDS. But their actions point to different. and significantly more commercial. iotcmions. In 1993. they filed a '"high priority" palent claim. which was given the number Alcncfo Loptt is a Kuna Indian and wo,.k.s with the OpXanitation Ktmas Unidos per Napguana in Panama City. 16 U$612.707. and t itled • Human Lymphotrophic Virus Type 2 from the Guayrni Indians of Panama... According to the application it was based on the "cell line of a 26·year old Gua)'mi wom{ln who lives in Panama'". Irnernarionally. the patent request is reg· istered with the World lmelleetual Propeny Organization as number U$9108455. Not only this unidentified woman, but hundreds of Indians in Panama ,..,crt treated as guinea pigs for genetic e~per­ imemation during this ~me time peri* od. Kaplan describes the researchers visit for s.-1mple collections., "'We spent six days in Canquinlu. Some of the doc~ tors worked in the heahh ctnter a<hnini.stering medicines to the Guayrni pco* pie. while others worked with nurses interviewing the residems of the village and obtaining more blood samples."' The lndigneous community was never infonned of the intent or implications or these collections: the purpose o f the blood samples was known only tO the researchers. One witness affinns 1hm doctors of the Gorgas 'Memorial Laboratory of Panama collaborated in this research. that they used the blood samples of hundreds of Ngobe I>Cople. and that the blood samples collected in the process were subsequently sent to the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia, and tO the American Type Culture Collection in Maryland . The ostensible purpose wns to investigate the cause of a fatal form or blood cancer. as well as forms of the Human l.ymphotrophic Virus. but the patent application followed shonly thereafler. This Guaymi case was denounced in international human rights forums and before the United Nations, but received little alttlllion in P~nam.a. due in pan to a 1:-tck of familiarity with the issues. Only a small percentage of the main· stream culture understood what had taken place. Worst of all. the Panamanian government sided with the US scientists and even utilized some Indigenous organizations itl an auempt to discredit the protests. Nonetheless. the Ngobc-Bugle General Congress. the Kuna General Congress. and other Panam3nian indigenous organizations issued strong statements agains1 the patent application. Following public protests in the Geneva meeLings for the GATT in October of 199~. in Canada and the United States, as well as widespread international solidarity. the patent claim wttS withdrawn in the United Sta.tes-:lt least that is what we believe. based on a statement in the NO\'Cmber 5. 1993. issue or Science magazine. There. in sharp contradiction 10 earlier humanit:uian claims, Kaplan is quoted as s.1ying that the daim was being dropped as it "'has no comrnerci3l interest ."' These researchers shield themselves and their actions with the claim that their work is for the benefit of humani.. t)'. and that they are innocent of any ir'lcnt to harm the ln(ligenovs communities invoh·ed. Yet. it is undeniable that the rights of an Indigenous woman, as well as the rights of an cnlire community. wert violated. The national sovereignty of Panama was also violated in this pl'ocess. although the government comim,u~s to deny this. \Nhat will happen when the results of th is research are finall)' patented. or the rights are sold to a muhinational corpo* ration? Shall we always continue to be the objects of research. with no rights in the mauer? Abya Yala Ne.NS � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 8, no. 4 (Winter 1994) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Guaymi Patent Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Atencio Lopez M. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Winter 1994 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title The Guaymi Patent Item Type Journal Article Author Atencio Lopez M. Volume 8 Issue 4 Pages 16 Publication Title SAIIC Newsletter ISSN 1071-3182 Date Winter 1994 Language English Abstract Note Between 1993 and 1994, a group of American scientists attempted to patent and commercialize a sample of human tissue collected from an unidentified indigenous woman. Indigenous groups and international human rights forums denounced the effort and the scientists subsequently withdrew their patent claim. Attachment Title The_guaymi_patent.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Guaymi Human Rights Intellectual Property Rights Ngobe Patent Law https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/5e4bfa92a1d45d2eba6f35ce47858f9a.pdf 9da88db5d6c711b92795f4f09fb9a0c9 PDF Text Text INTERNAT I ONAL Free-determination and the States: Commentary on Barbados Ill by A ucan H uilcaman read with interest the "Declaration of Barbados Ill" reprinted in the last issue o f Abya Y News (Voi:S no.3). ala Considering the breadth of material included in the declaration. I will only comment on the portion of that docu· I ment which begins with suggestions to the governing l.1tin America.n states, the United Nations and its various specific bodies such as the OIT, UNESCO. UNDP. and FMI. Second. I also want 10 comment on the declarationS final sec· The promises which L'ltin America:S governing states have made through documents in summits such as those held in Mexico and Spain respond 10 Indigenous peoples· undeniable reality, but these resolutions are very far from being implemented in practice. In the meeting in Spain, the governments promised to establish a Development Fund for Indigenous Peoples of latin America and the Caribbean. Now, when \ Ve are in agreement in relation to Indigenous peoples petition the fund for economic assis1ance. they are told that the fund has no resources and that it is only a negotiating table between some international organizations and the identification and historical analysis of factors wh ich have made the political and cultural oppression of Indigenous peoples possible. as well as the ' "e'vs on ideological, political. religious. and eco- legitimize their actions, they have established an an oversight council with Indigenous representation. However, Indigenous delegates have to be ac redit~ tion related to the self.detemlination of Indigenous peoples and the nationally constituted states. nomic colonialism and neocolonialism. However. the declarations call to the Latin American governing states seems misplaced. The Slates are fully aware of the reality in which we Indigenous peo· pies live. Th ey know that this reality has been constructed by force and violence. The denial of our physical and cultural existence produced by the political constitutions and legal systems responds to the homogenizing nature of the govem- ing states, and is the resuh of organized political decisions. not of coincidence or circumstance. Aucan fhiilcaman is \Verken. or spohc..sperson, for the Mapuehe organitation Auhin \Vallmapu Ngulam-C<>uncll of All the Lands rn S<>ulhcm Chile. Vol. 8 No.4 Indigenous communities. In order to ted by each countrys chancellor. They this ·democratic panicipation." but il is nothing more than state colonialism under the guise of recognition and democracy. Similarly, the governing states came to a set of agreements at the Eanh Summit in Rio de janeiro in 1992. If we try to verify compliance with these agreements. we do n ot find any concrete means in the legal. political or eco· nomic arenas to ensure better adminis· tration of natural resources. It is easier to identify the thousands of hectares of land. mountains. rivers. and lakes which have been destroyed and contaminated. Un doubtedly. as it has become impossible 10 evade the Indigenous reality. the governing s.tates will make a declaration C.."lll regarding Indigenous peoples whenever they hold a continental meeting. but in no case does this imply compliance with their promises. I belie,·e that any demands or exhor· tations require precision. We Indigenous peoples are fighting for the recognition of our rights, rooted in our historical and political condition as a people. with all powers in the areas of rights, ideology. politics. and culture which this implies. such as the restilu· tion of fundamental rights and freedoms such as free·determination and the resti· nuion of ancestral lands. These condi· tions are precede any fonn of recognition. otherwise. the states will continue lO determine the framework for recogni· tion and relations between Indigenous peoples and the governing states. 1 consider out of context the cttll to the United Nations and its various spe· cial bodies. as if these were something separate from the constitution. control. and intervention of the governing states. ll is time to state what the United Nations is and what it truly represents. The United Nations does not exist; what truly exists are "Concerted States.. which are simply institutional structures whh a legal. political and ideological base and with defined interests. Taking into account that the ideological base and sustenance o£ a nation is fundamentally cultural. It is no longer possible to con· tend lhal the "states are polilically·orga· nized nations." States in America (Wallmapu in the Mapuche language) have no corresponding socio-<:ultural reality. Therefore. the United Nations 23 �t< T E R t< AT I 0 t< A L arc the s.-~mt govemmg states that have been COI\SIIUCicd wnhou1 uking into account the cultur.ll d"·ersny of the con- unent The I LO (lnternouonal Labor Orgamzauon). UN Oe\'elopment Program ond UNICEF are not independent of the United Nations or of the governing s1mcs. Thus. their actions are not :lU10ttomous. All of their plans. progmms. nnd projects require govern· mental approval. It is sufficiem that an lndagcnous organization comes into confltct wtth the stotc in the process of then struggle, for these org:mizations to hmtt the help chey gwe. Relaung to 1he declarauonS State· ment, '"\Vt btheve u necessary to appro\'e the Chaner of Indigenous Peoples Raglns promoted by the UN: it 1S wonh menuontng that af1er thineen ye01rs of dtscussaon lxtween members of the UN Workeng Group and Indigenous reprcscnt:tllv<:s. the governments are not willing to recognize fundament:tl rights such ns frec-deurminacion and the restitution of nnccstml territories. Frcedctcrmmmlon is a right prior to. or condicional for. enJoynlCnt of the ocher rights. Before demanding prompc racificauon or thiS feg.1l instrument, it is esscnual to be sufficaently informed of the fundamental nghts chac lndagenous peoples are defendmg m che '"'rious spaces 3.\"31lablt to us, as well as posi· uons t3kcn by thr states in relation to chcsc nghts. Wuhouc mcorporacing these COnditiOnS, new ronns or dominaliOn could spnng from international law, even ash IS rr:1med as the recognition of Indigenous peoples and cheir righcs. Dunng che Working Groups' fino( session (July 25-29, 1994), they did not permit rc,•lsion of the declaration. and merely received Indigenous represencatives ·comments." chereby pre,·cnung full recogmuon of che confltcl becwcen lndtgcnous righcs and che states The nghc co free-<ltcerminacion, formulated by the Indigenous peoples. shows che d"•de between the historical 24 legacimocy of lndtgenous peoples" inahenable nghts and che legaluy that sustatns che staces The lnd1genous people ma1ntam wuh all our comiction that 1hc states, do not ha,•e more nghts than we do. nor have we au1horized them to 1m·oke our exclusi"c rights, nor intervene II' OUr I)COpltS' rulUre. Since the dcclarat•on olso calls on the lntcrnmionnl Lnbor Organiza1ion (ILO) and refers to its Covcnanc 169, I have to comment that this Covenant renects the st:ue-govcmments' politics of juridiClll colonialism as well as chat of the UN'$ agenc•es. Although che Co\'eMnt rccogmzes us as peoples. it samultaneously r<J<CIS che righcs chac stem rrom thiS r«OgJ'IIliOO, SO that it remams purely symbolic. The Co"enants most SlgntfiCllnc element lies in pro'"dmg lndagenous people che right to '"consultauon and panicipauon: Howe,·er. th1s ng.ht becomes ind· recuve when we remain polhica11y o ppressed by the scates. Indigenous consent In 1his context is rel:uive. At the UN World Conference on ~Iuman Rights in june of 1993 where I served as spokesperson for che Indigenous represemauvcs. we Slated "\Vc call on the States to mufy Co"enant 169 of the ILO pro,1dtd chat the Indigenous peoples are 1n agrt-c:ment \Ve understand this 1nstrumcnc as che first step co establish new and better relauons between the stales and chc lndtgenous peoples: In rdercnce to the international development and rinnndal organizations such ns the World llMk, IMF. lnteramer•can Oe,·elopmem Bank, it should be noccd chat che developmenc chey hove imposed is unilateral, and has assaulted Indigenous cuhuml identities and the economics of reciprocity. These are the snl'nc orgnnizntions that appro"ed projeccs for conscntccion of hydroeleccrac dams and ocher such endea,·ors wuhm lndtgenous territories. for example, chc hydroeltctric dams on the Rt\'er B1o-Bao \\ithm Pehuenche Mapuche lands. Any '"''ilation to change pohcaes made co chest institu- tions is \'Cry for from bemg mec, especially stnce chey respond co che tntere.sts of the gcn·emmencs ond are not independenc bod1es. The dedarauon ends refemng to che democmtizauon or Lattn America. of geopolhacal reorganizouon, and che rccogni1ion or the Indigenous territories. I reiterate that we arc in agreement on this: it continues. however, whh a call for recognition o f Indigenous righcs "'in a rramcwork or n sclr-dctermination compotible wlch, and complememary 10 the 50\'CI'Cigmy or national Slates.. 1am not sure af I should conclude chac in chis passage the dcdar.auon presencs a sec of contradacuons oorely compouble with the prev1ous am'llysas. or whether it is the poliucal onentauon of che Signatory Org.1111%3UOn. \VhaCe\'Cr the case, I \VIIl emphastze che 1mphcauons thts essen· cialaspecc has for posstble solucions and new rclationshtps between Indigenous peoples and states. It is incongruent co propose che compatlbilhy Indigenous sclf-dccermination and the sovereignty of the nationally constituted states. ItS worth reicerating 1ha1 Indigenous people are fighcing for fru dcl<rrninatlon and not self-determanauon. These concepcs ha,·e different meantngs and amphcations tn the legal, poltucal, 1deologacal, hisconcal. and culturol fields. lndagenous peoples h•,-e yet co determine whether we want to develop our· seh-es '"tthm or outstde of the SU\ICtures of che so-called nnuon-states. Funhcrmore. ns I poinced out above. nation-states don 1t extst. \\'hat exists are state-governments. The homogenizing and unilateral n:uure or the St:Ue•gOv· cmments is what maintains the lnck of cuhural understanding ond social incolerance. Complen>cncarhy wilh che Scaces as they are is imposstble. 11 will only be passable when both instiluuons recognize each other reciprocally under the baste pnnc1ple th:u neuher is more valid chan the othtr, and th3t eoch system of orgamzauon 1S the most adequace for ats own culture. ~aYalaN<M � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 8, no. 4 (Winter 1994) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Free-determination and the States: Commentary on Barbados III Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Aucan Huilcaman Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Winter 1994 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title Free-determination and the States: Commentary on Barbados III Item Type Journal Article Author Aucan Huilcaman Volume 8 Issue 4 Pages 23-24 Publication Title SAIIC Newsletter ISSN 1071-3182 Date Winter 1994 Language English Abstract Note A spokesperson for the Mapuche organization Aukin Wallmapu Ngulam-Council of All the Lands comments of the "Declaration of Barbados III," especially the sections relating to the self-determination of Indigenous peoples and the nationally constituted states. Attachment Title Free_determination_and_the_states.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Autonomy Human Rights Indigenous Rights self-determination United Nations https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/360b13882b74b7028d3cf8cea3dcbba3.pdf 5cea7c5e0af964c594f5ffe1283dc33e PDF Text Text State Frontiers and Indian Nations: Commentary on Implications for the Mapuche and Indigenous Peoples by Aucan Huillcaman Paillama In cultures around the world, formal law often stands in antithesis to justice and rights. The Council of the Indies, an administrative structure that the Spanish colonial government imposed on what they deemed the "New World," legalized anoppressive system toward us as Indigenous peoples. Historically, oppressive laws which states imposed by force suppressed persistent Indigenous uprisings in defense of our life, rights, and freedom. Today, many claim that times have changed. However, the formation of the current state has maintained the oppression initiated by these early colonial institutions. Not only were states established ignoring existing Indigenous territories, but state institutions have not been able to administer justice among Indigenous peoples. It was not through carelessness or ignorance that the institutionalization of Spanish colonial legal systems clashed with Indigenous cultures. Many times they have made us believe, incorrectly, that through courts we can obtain justice. At other times we attempted to improve our position by submitting amendments to modify the state constitution. Although today the Chilean state has approved laws relating to Indigenous peoples, these have undermined Indigenous systems of justice. While we are claiming our rights, justice, dignity and freedom, the ideology of colonialism continues to distort our reality as Indigenous peoples. Legal language continues to define us as "ethnic minorities" without defining the nature of our· ethnic character. This ignorance reduces us to simple statistics. The state continues to deny our inalienable right to self-definition. This is a right that we as Indigenous peoples have never yielded. We have not given anyone the right to define who we are. An administrative division of lands carried out during the colonial period forms the basis of many of the current state borders. States, in turn, are founded through force and violence. In our perspective, we Indigenous peoples, as the real Nations, consider the founding of the nation-state as a perpetuation of our oppression. The Criollo (the colonial elite descended from the Spanish conquistadors) independence did not mean independence for us as Indigenous peoples. The colonial borders that were transferred to independent state boundaries are still only inventions, walls that separate Indigenous peoples. They are ideological, legal, political, and institutional walls. It is commonly said that "the walls have fallen in the modern world," and that we are quickly advancing to an integrated, developed, modem existence. Nevertheless, how do we define the walls that divide, for example, the Aymara Nation into Bolivians, Peruvians, Chileans, and Argentinians? The Mapuche Nation also has its own wall. Today, the Chilean and Argentinian border divides us. Violence mars the history of the fragmentation of the Mapuche people. The Spaniards, upon entering Wallmapuche (Mapuche territory), imposed their will, by force. Alonso de Ercilla, author of The Araucanian, describes the battles fought by the Mapuche in defense of their lives, dignity, freedom, and rights. Based in part on this information, the Spanish kings believed that there had been a war in Mapuche lands. Charles V made decisions based on the supposed War of Arauco, the name that the Spaniards gave to our Wallmapuche. In 1641, before the Mapuche uprisings, limited Spanish military capacity forced the Spaniards to meet with the Mapuche. They established the first Parliament of Quillem on January 6, 1641. At this meeting they fixed the Mapuche territorial border at the Bio-Bio River to the south. Out territory then comprised eleven million hectares of land. The Parliament of Quillem also recognized our absolute independence in the interior of our territory. The Mapuche were forced to accept the introduction of missionaries into our territories during the summers. In addition, in colonizers requested the return of the Spaniards captured by the Mapuche. The Mapuche demanded that the Spaniards retreat from Los Confines, which today is the city of Angol. Each time the Spaniards, in violation of the Treaty of Quillem, were militarily able to penetrate Mapuche territory, they did. After the Mapuches expelled them, they agreed to sign new treaties to delineate borders and support the political independence of the Mapuche people. At the time of Chilean Creole Independence (1810), the Mapuche often supported the Spanish Creoles. During that period of our history, it was inconceivable that the Mapuches not ally with the independence process from Spain. Finally, the Chileans militarily invaded the Mapuche territory. This did not happen, however, until 1881; the Mapuche maintained their independence 71 years after the formation of the Argentinian and Chilean states. To achieve the submission of the Mapuche, the two states had to coordinate their military forces. In Argentina the military campaign was called the “Conquest of the Desert” (“desert” because whites did not live there), while in Chile it was called the “Pacification of the Araucania” (or, the”Pacification of the Savages”). Both actions were nothing short of the execution of state-sponsored genocide, sanctioned by their respective legal systems. In 1883, Chile and Argentina permanently demarcated their state borders. In the logic of state structures, we Mapuches who remained under the jurisdiction of the Chilean state became Chileans. Those who remained under dominance of the Argentinian state became Argentinians. The unilateral actions of states are well known, and similar to the Papal Bull Inter Caetare proclaimed by Pope Alexander VI when he divided Indian territories between the kingdoms of Portugal and Castilla in 1532. In 1990, the Mapuche organizations existing under Chilean and Argentinian state jurisdiction began a process of decolonization. To work toward this goal, we decided to revive the emblem of the Mapuche Nation, This action provoked reactions in many different socio political sectors. Our traditional Mapuche authorities, however, were firm and clear. In their words, the “flag is not meant to deny anything to anyone, nor to impose on anyone, nor to invade other people. Rather it is a flag which reaffirms our identity as a distinct culture. We accept that the Spanish and Chilean people exist, in the same way that we the Mapuche exist. Because of this we have legitimate rights to manifest our culture, our reality. The Mapuche national flag is not a conquering symbol like the flag of Napoleon Bonaparte. To the contrary it is a manifestation of our existence within human diversity, and therefore is fully legitimate and valid.” One Lonko (a traditional Mapuche leader) said, “Now we have the following alternatives: To follow the flags of the state and of political parties, or the flag of the Mapuche Nation.” The most powerful tool that we Indigenous peoples have is that of consent. We have not resigned our fundamental rights. The day Indigenous peoples accept the concept of the state as a Nation will be the day we have given up our fundamental rights. We have consented to the state on one level when we participate in their elections. To participate in that process is equivalent to the acceptance of a system that does not recognize us. It is also an ideological contradiction of our peoples, even if, frequently, it is the efforts of some determined leaders who push us in that direction. Consent is our only tool for achieving change. States can continue to make laws and impose them; these will be invalid, for we Indigenous peoples have not expressed our willingness to conform. What states seek through their new colonialism is to involve us: They have designated “participation through conference,” as if the only right that we have is to be consulted. However, our true Indian liberation will begin when we assume our condition of immemorial identity, when we abandon the identities of the national states that dilute and disavow us. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 9, no. 1 (Spring 1995) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource State Frontiers and Indian Nations: Commentary on Implications for the Mapuche and Indigenous Peoples Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Aucan Huillcamán Paillama Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring, 1995 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title State Frontiers and Indian Nations: Commentary on Implications for the Mapuche and Indigenous Peoples Item Type Journal Article Author Aucan Huillcamán Paillama Volume 9 Issue 1 Pages 14-15. Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring, 1995 Language English Abstract Note Indigenous peoples consider the colonial and state borders as artificial barriers to their indigenous nations. The best way to maintain unity to fight state oppression is reinforce the right of consent by indigenous peoples. Attachment Title State_Frontiers_and_Indian_Nations.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Argentina Chile Consent Mapuche https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/19348addcaad0aa0abab3eef8e32d669.pdf fec3203c33313d1784ce8dcf907dbf56 PDF Text Text ED I TORIAL n light of the recent Fourth Womcns World Confere1tcc In Beijing. and the intemational aucntioll thnt is l>ei11g focused on womcns issues, we dedicate this Issue to Indigenous women. in the context of the Beijing conference nnd the International Decade or Indigenous Peoples cclebnlled by the Umted Nations. Indigenous women rOISC the or VOIC· es froon oil nauons. peoples. org.>.nizations. n11d communities 3nd call for the respect or Mother Ennh. hfe. territory. S<!lfdetermonation, and communal intellectual rights Through th1s calling. lndig,enous women also seek to gather forces for a better conscrvouon of Indigenous philosoph}~ the ethical, ~helle. and spiritual values contained In the \'lSton of our 3nastors. Women. ~long with giving binh to the new geocrauons, are the guardians and thoS<! responstblc for tmnsmittlng. devclopmg, nnd protecting the ,,.lues whtch ldcnufy us as peoples. This is why womtn have pb}'l:d such an tmponam role In histoncal struggles for life, although tl\,1l role is utmost never acknowledged. I In the llet)mg conference, despite the lomued a=ss for our vooees, we lndogenous wom<n mode n dcclnmtlolltO the mternmional community in which we e.'pressed our opposulon to all forms of social injusttce. and •11 types of violence and discrunm:UJon which aJTect our communhies. \\)t denounced the re-colonization and the thre:n to Lhe ccologicol equilibrium in our communities, which under the name or glob31iuuon. creates conditions for wenlthy n"tions to once a~,tnin 1m•nde our territories to exploit the resources that, thus fnr. we have managed to prese"·c. We spoke out against accords ond entuies such as GATT and the World Tmde o ,·gnnizntion {WTO), which help create the Instruments for the approprlntion nnd privntlzmion of our communal lntcllecwal J >fOJl<ny. We denounc-ed the "pirating• of ancestrnl resources by tmnsnnuonol companies in this age of ·ncolibcrahsm." Under such models. our value.• ond comnmnal exchange practices wllll><.>come a thJng of the past, substottued w'llh the greed required by the rules of the free Market. We are cvcu witnessing the appropriation of our genetic inhcrit:tnce, under the name of the Human Genome Oovershy Project In the mean ume. our rivers, the oir we bre.uhc. ;~nd the lond we live on are continuously fouled, leading to the slow death o( out Mother Eanh. In the: cffon to sustmn our families. we ha>-e had to tncorponue non·lndigtnOUS ways. but we strive to ~m:un in harmon}' wtth the em1ronmem. We choose ~onsclously to sllmubte those economiC octi\Ottts that strengthen our peoples. underst>nding that out communities depend mainly on lr.ldluonol systems of productiOn like fishing. hunung. famtl)•agnc-uhure, ond small cnfts enterprises. The moventcnt of Indigenous \\'Omen toda)' confronLS all $OilS of senous threatS as it places itself in the path of powerful nnd d~ructivc forces. It is uti:ent, considcnng the cttrrent sttualion. to develop better methods of communtcation between Indigenous women so as to cwrdinatc effective action.< in the defense of our peoplts. Along with this, our double. vital role ns reproducers and preservers of our people must be strengthened. Faced 'vith this histolical, trnnscen· dcmal nliSSIOn. we shou1d seek inspirnlion and wisdom m our ancestors ror our journey to the ncx1 millennium. \Ve should look for strength, coumge, and detennination m the future, which is the future of our communities. organiza· tlons, and our peoples. and their right to exist in dignity. In this issue, In which Indigenous and non-Indigenous women have conrributed anicles, we explore the \\'O}'S that Indigenous women have participated in the broader Indian movemcnLS in Latin America. the spcctnc org.1n1Zntions and programs that h:ove focused on women:S needs and activities. and. by means of interviews. the pomt of view of notive women thc:mseJ,-es; how they envision their role on n.111\·e and notional society, and the hardships they must endure when they try ond change those roles. SAIIC ll«vd of OtrectoTS Vol. 10 No.1 -3 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 10, no. 1 (Spring 1996) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Editorial Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Board of Directors SAIIC Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring 1996 Language A language of the resource English, Spanish English Zotero Title Editorial Item Type Journal Article Author Board of Directors SAIIC Volume 10 Issue 1 Pages 3 Publication Title SAIIC Newsletter ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring 1996 Language English Abstract Note In light of the recent Fourth Women's World Conference In Beijing and the international attention that is focussed on women's issues this issue of Abyayala News focuses on women's issues that specifically concern indigenous women. Attachment Title abyayala_v10_n1_p3.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Editorial https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/4f3883b4c8fcb038ff3f861f814074c4.pdf e5bacd3a1cf6f47130a0cfa4dd8c83d8 PDF Text Text • by Protop Chatterjee I �E<o-Jusri<E "Tl1e white warriors went across in their long dugouts. T he Indians said they would meet them in peace so wl1en the wl1ites landed Ll•e Indians went to welcome them ... Ge-W i-Li/1 said l1e Ll~rew up l1is hand ... but. the wl1ite man fi•·ed and shot him in d1e arm ... (s)he said when they gatl1ered d1e delld, they found all the lillie ones were killecl by being stabbed and many of the women were t~lso hilled by swbbing ... (l)l•is old lady also told c•boul (/lOw) the whites lnmg a mc111 on Emerson island ... and a lm·ge fire built under (/lim). And another ... was lied 10 a tree and burnt to death" -William lknson. Porno hisrotimt, rtcounrs m(ls.stl(rt;s. "' CleM l..ahe. Califor~~ia. May 18SC "A group of loggers cmcl miners near the town of Pontes e Lacerda ambushed and violently t1ssaulted at least 14 KaLiwulhu Indians in d•e SMare reserve. T he loggers subsec1uenLiy looted Ll•e Indians village, clmnllging a IJealth post and scl•ool ancl stealing money, Loots mul vehicles belonging 10 the lndit~ns. Supporters of d1e /ndillns, w/10 have a11empt ed 10 mobilize fed eral officials 10 comply wit/1 court orders to remove the illegal loggers and miners from tl1e reserve subsequently received delltll LhretiiS tmd inlimic/(l(iOn. The Katitau/1111 were also thre(l(enecl with f urrile!' violence by the invaders. Mediwl reports sLtlle that 14 lndicms were wounded, many by having been Lied up and bet~ten. " - T housands of kilometers. :lnd almoSt a ceotlU')' and a half, separate the two viol~m incidents againSJ the Pomo peoples of California and the Nambikwam peoples of Malo G=. Brozil. Yet the root cause for bo1h incidents 'vas exactly the s.~me: stu1ers in search of gold. The Clear lake incadcm was a direct ou1come of the arrival of Charles Stone and Andrew Kelsey. two nmchcrs who arrived at the l:lke i.n 1847. who captured and bought hundreds of Pomo. forcmg them to work as slaves. Kelsey forced Pomo men into the mountains as virtual slaves 10 help him look for gold. Evemuall)• two Pomo cowboys, Shak and Xasis, took the law into their own hands and cxe<:utcd both seulers bringing the wrath of the United States am'ly upon them in the incidents described above. The: Katitaulhu are one of l2 Nambikwara subgroups. '"'hose lands were first it'waded in the 1970s when the Vol. 11 NO.1 Envitonm~t~Wl Dfjcnsc Fund ,.tportfrom Mmo Grosso, Br~il. November 1996 World Bank-funded BR 364 rood from Cuiaba in Mo.to Grosso to Porto Vclho in Rondozlia wns opened by 8raa:iiS miht{\ry govcmmem. Decimated by epidcm:ics and forcibly relocated w make way for 1849 Cold Rush 'vas the basis of the foundation of the state of California and today the \\lorld Bank makes a prof'il sup~ paning gold mines. the road. the Nambikwarn died in great Pizarro, the Spanlsh conquistador. arri"td in Cajamarca (now pan of Pem) in 1532 to trick Atahualpa, the last Inca king. into an ambush that led to the collapse of his empire. One of the last acts of Atahualpa was an auempt to bu}' off che Spanish b)' offering them a room full of gold and two rooms full of Silver. The Spanish ace<:J>led the offer bu1 after they got 1he gold. they murdered Atohualp.' and proceeded to raze the rest or the c:ity to the ground. numbers making desperate pilgrimages in ;\11 auempl to return to their tmdition· a! lands. Some 6.000 gold miners invaded the Sarare reservation m the 1990s seriously polluting major watercourses m the ma, disrupting loco! fishing ond hunting. spreading malaria a1 viral dis· ld cases. The mcidem descnbed abo,·e is just one of many auacks on the Nambikwara in the last l wo decade-s. Foundation of empire Gold has been the foundation of emptres throughout hi5'01)' ~nd <:ontin· ues w be the root cause of many gen<><:i· dal auacks against Indigenous people around the world. The Romans founded their empire on Spanish gold, the Spanish founded their empire on Inca gold, the 1bda)' the ransom room is the only surviving monumcm to the Inca pr..:-sencc but the reg1on is Still being raped for gold: it is the Sltc ofYanacocha. the biggest gold mil'le in latin America, which is nm by NC\\IlllOill of Colorado and funded by the World Bank. Almost 500 )'Cars after 1hc Inca died defending their lands. 1he pco7 �Eco - J U S T I C E pie of Capmar<'a are dymg b<cause of 1he contamination of loc:al waters. and their l~nds are still being seized. Ycl cconomiS(S. historians and media Yanom:uru ls terrifyingl)' snnil~r. today there arc an estimated 8,000 people left. a 60 percent drop from the esumated 20,000 who lived in 1hc region just 20 years ago. alike continue to celebrntc the metal. In 1994 World Bank economists lavished pr.\ise on Peru for becoming 1he f~s1eS1 growing ccono1ny in the world by invll· ing in 1he new gold mines. In 1998 histo· rians and the media launched into 3 cc!ebr.uory frenzy over the J50th anniversary of thC' fo\.mding of the state of California after 1he famous 1849 Gold Rush. But for Indigenous communities the arrival of gold miners has always meant disease and death, whether it be among the Nomlaki peoples of nonh-westem CatironUn m the 1850s or the Yanomami of the A1nazon in the l990s as the two examples below demons! rate. Deadly diseases '"They (the Namrc Amencan.s} had been hiding in the hills. There was no min for Lhree years and fighting going on every day. No clover, no acorn, juniper ocrries or pepper gross. Nothmg for three years. Finally the Indians got smallpox and the Indian doc~orcouldn"!: cure them. Gonorrhea carne among the Indians. They died by the thousands.- - Andrew f-reeman, Nomlakl historian, recoummg 1he s1ory of his peoples in 1hc !$50s. -The biggest problem for 1he Yanomarni now are the garimpe1ro (gold~ miners) who are ifl our land. and the ill~ ne.sses they bring with them. Among them some have illnesses like U.tber· culosis and venere-al diseases. and coma· minate my people. Now we art afraid 1hey "ill bring measles and also AIDS. this illness \\thich is so dangerous that we do nol want it among us. But the worst illness for tlS is malaria, which comes in wilh the goldmlners. The governmentS National Health Foundation Sa)' th~.tt J300 Vanomami had got malaria up until ~·lay this ytnr: statement by Davi Yanomami. August 1997. nu. Some 60 percent of the esumatcd 150,000 l\3th·e peoples or Calirornia were wiped O\H by famine and disease between the years of l$50 and 1870 while anolh· cr 20 percem were killed br senlers. The ratt of destruction of the Brazilian 8 Mercury Madness Armed militia and deadly d1seases are not the only terror that stalked the Native. peoples of California m 1hc 1850s and the Indigenous communhles or the Amazon in 1he l980s. Mercury, a highly toxic metal. used for centttrirs by small· scale gold miners to extract the tiny necks of shiny metal from the ore, has also taken a rnajor toll. MCYC.\Iry c-an dJSSOivc as much as 60 percem of gold out of ore into a phys•cal soiUlion, known as an amalgam. This amalgam can oc broken down quick!)' and easily by hcaung ofT the mercury, similar to the ''JC\Y s.-tlt can be recovered from sea water. This mercury ~por gets trapped in aunos· pheric m.oisturt and precipitates down mto local water sup· plies where it can poison fiSh and ani· mats higher up i1\ 1he food chain. The California Gold Rush of 1849, perhaps the most celebrated in history. lef1 a deadly legacy or an estimated 7.600 tOns of mer· cury in the Jakes. rivers and sediments or the state while O\'er one thousand tons or mercury art currcn1ly ocing dumped by small miners in the fragile rainforests or lhe Amazon. just one gram o£ mercury poured into eiglny million !hers of water would b< cause for coneern under United States federal human health s1 andards for drinking water and enough to contaminate a smaH lake. Mercury is a persistent toxin wh1ch C\n destroy fcms.es, the huma1 ctntral r~ervous system. rcproduc· 1: tive organs and immune s~em. \:\,1 ell ovtr a century ahcr the miners invaded California, decades arter the mines were shut down, ftShing is still prcr hibiled i l''l Clear Lake. CaHronua, because or the heavy mercury contamination of the lake. Emironmental experts orl the tribal rescr,1mions in north·wcstern Cahfomm nrc realizing that lhC)' may have to seek help cleaning up the waste that contaminate. the Trinny river. s Meanwhile nobody knows 1he full extent or the problems in the Bmz11ian AmatO!\ bUL initial studies have shown that the levels of merc.:ury in Tapojos river Osh in 1995 were 3.8 pans per million (ppm), almOst eight Limes the permined federal ""''1mum of 0.5 ppm. in 1989. fish in the Madeira river tested as high as 2.7 ppm. Good news, bad news Fonunalcly. mercury is no longer used in eanromia and the small.scalc miners were recently evtcted from the (orlit c.m, S.'>oshoM ncdiliorld .W11. "/o ~ oodet tilt ot~~~b ID gtiiO rf>ol go/d. ID p!mp outlhal I>OIIt 10 !If/ ID tbcr gold, • • <time. its • ,,.,. cgoinstiJrJmoMr. .. • Yanomami tcrmory m january 1998 by the Bmzllian army. Theres more good news. the Macuxi peoples of Roraima, Brazil, blockaded roads in 1997 10 successfully demand 1he removal of gold miners rrom their lttrTitOI)'. However, today the l~nds of Nauve peoples in Nonh America are the sub;cct of a new invasion or gold miners and the Indigenous comnmnities of L1tin America arc next on the list as described below. Abya Yala News �_ Cyanide: the new t error Also poisoned by cyanide are the peoples who live on the ~quibo rh·er in In the 1960s~ Ncwmom corporation Guyana, where dead fish and hogs were of Colorado teamed up with the Unhed reponed in August 1995 after a waste Suucs Bureau of Mines to perfect a tech· water dam at the Omai gold mme broke nique to extract 97 percent or gold from and spilt 3.2 billion liters or <}'l\nidcore dug up in the dcstns of Nevada using laced waste into the river in what is a chemical called cyamde. These desen belie\'ed lObe the biggeSt such dis<tster in lands, the s.1crcd and traditional lands of history. Studie-s by the Pan Amencan the \Vestern Shoshone, are now the: Health OrgaoizaliOn have shown th:n ~11 source of half the gold in the United 3quatic life in the four·ki1omettr·long States today. creek that n.ms (rom the mine to the Esscquibo was killed. Suspicious fish. Corporations around the world have cattle and even human de-aths have also followed suit, using this cyanide tcchnol· been reported among the people of ogy together with the powerful explosives c.,_;amatca. Peru, where Newmom is and massive eartlHnovil~g equipment using cyanide to extract gold. that allows them to blast apan entire mountains, to take over the business of Meanwhile a number of other gold mining. Indigenous and traditional oomnmniue-s throughout L.1tin Americ;t nre being tar· A \Caspoonful of twO-J>et'Ccnt soluliOr'l gctcd for new gold mines like the Maroon of cyanide can kill a aduh human. community of Nieuw Koffiekamp in C)'anide blocks the absorption of OX)'gen Suriname where Golden Star of Colorado by cells. causing the ''ctim to effectively "suffocate." Adverse iml>acts of cyanide on fish have been reported at levels of 0.01 ppm, concentrations as low as five pans per billion have been found to irthibit fish reproduction, while levels of (also the JOint opemtors of the Omai gold mine in Guyana) have reponedly threat· ened and har3ssed community members by using live ammunition tO (righten thent aw:.l)' from areas in which the com· pany is e., ploring for gold. 0.03 ppm an: known to kill fish. Human beings can experience decreased respiratory and thyroid functiOI'tS, eitrdiac pa.in. vomiting. headaches and cemraJ nervous system toxicity rron'l oral exposure to low levels of cyanide. In Central America, the Panamanian Natural Resources Directorate reports that 70 percent or the :\pproximately 20.000 square ktlomcters of Panama deemed to have mining potential is on land claimed by Indigenous groups. The Shon tcnn exposures to high ltvels of government h3s already approved exten· cyan.ldt compounds can cause breathing sive copper a.nd gold mJning concessions problems. central nervous system toxicity within the Ng<)})e..8uglt and Kuna tcrrito· ries. and gastro-intestinal corrosion. __,,_0 0 E C J - U S T I C E h is high tome for people around !h< wodd to suppon these Struggles and demand an end to the stat\tS of gold as a barbaric c-ustom. As the leaders of the nrst peoples of the Amenca.s have ltSti* fied below, pure water. tmditiom\1 cultures and life arc more precious than all the gold dug up from under the ground. "\Ve have the right to put up oppOSi· lion because history has made us skepti- cal of certain white men. bcc:.use we have lOSt mitlions of human live.s, millions of hectares of land and millions of tons of gold, silver and copper with no comptn· sation,"- Atencio Lopez. Kuna, Panama. August 1996. ..\Vc want progress without destruc-uon. \Ve \\-"ant w study. to learn new ways of cultivating the land. living from its fi'Uits. We do not wa_ t to live without n trees, hunting, fish and dean water. 1f this happens misery will come to our people. I hope that yo\\ will help me in this fight" - Oavi Ko~>ena wa Yanomami, Bmzil, August 1997 "To dig under the earth to get to thot gold. to puntp out that W :.lter to get to that gold. is a crime. it's a crime againSt humanity, a crime againSt life, the very !i[e upon which all people depend, not only people but we have Other things out there-- we ha\'C the deer. we have the eagle. we ha\'e the rnbbils, we h<\\'C all life om there and the gold mining today is going to destroy that, it is destroying that. the life for the f1tturc generations is going to be gone'' - C..1rrie Dann, \Vtstcm Shoshone traditional elder, spring 1997.1) This dtadly chemical is being used today il'l No1 America on the lands of th peoples like the l'omo in California. the \\'estern Shoshone in Newtda, the Sioux in Sotnh Dakota, the Assiniboine and Gros Ventre in Montana. Also under threat art the Quccha1'l in 1\nzona. the Paiute in Nev;tda. and the Colvilles in Washington state whose lands are being targeted for new gold mines. Yet communmes are fightir'lg back :-tcross the A1nericas. The Assiniboine, the Colvilles. the Gros Ventre, the Sioux and the \Vestern Shoshone htwe gone to court to protest the gold mints while the peo· pies of l.otin America arc also putting up a spirited opposition, from road _blockades in Panama to complaints to imcma· tiona) bodies by the Surinamese Maroons. T outhor1's mining comPQigrttl let f1oje<t be Vndetgrovnd, o h11molf rights group bDud in Bttktky, Colilomio. His lattsl reporl, "Gold, G1tttl and GentKide: unmasking lhe Myth of tlrt '49el'$,"' is qrof~b/e (tQI'It Ptofo<l UnJtrgu>mJ lot USSS.OO. Project Unclcrgrowtd c:an be rictc:hed by phone ac •I 5JO 705 8970./ax m •I 510 705 8993,or e-mail at: projtct_und<rground@moles.org · or visit: hup:l!wwnwu:HtS.org. Vol. 11 No. 1 9 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 11, no. 1 (Spring 1998) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Gold, Greed & Genocide in the Americas California to the Amazon Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Chatterjee Pratap Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring 1998 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title Gold, Greed & Genocide in the Americas California to the Amazon Item Type Journal Article Author Pratap Chatterjee Volume 11 Issue 1 Pages 6-9 Publication Title Abya Yala News ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring 1998 Language English Abstract Note Settlers in search of gold have caused two violent incidents against the Pomo peoples of California and the Nambikwara People of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Mercury, disease, and cyanide have all worked against the indigenous population, and in favor of the gold seeking settlers. Attachment Title Gold_Greed_&_Genocide_in_the_Americas_California_to_the_Amazon.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Katitaulhu mining Nambikwara Pomo Resources https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/c3d63f2606e091f42c91992a7079ebc4.pdf 8915718d621ebb10efd9fbd1ced67931 PDF Text Text Indigenous Assembly Grapples with Suicides Suicides among the Guarani Kaiowa, which have been on the rise for the past ten years, were the main subject discussed this past May at an Assembly of the Aty Guassu Organizzation in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, he Assembly brought together shamans, Indian leaders and chiefs from 22 villages to try to learn why 22 Indians have committed suicide this year. The suicide rate among tghe Guarani Koaiowa is unusually high. The World Health Organization considers that an estimate of over one case in 10,000 per year is abnormal. According to FUNAI, 161 suicides, most of which were committed by young Indians, were registered among the Guarani Kaiowa from 1985 through May of this year. Extreme poverty, the gradual loss of traditional religious practices, and, above all, the lack of land are factors directly linked to the suicides, Araldo Veron, who also once attempted suicide, spoke on these factors at the Assembly. The villages of Dourados, with 8,900 Indians squeezed in 3,530 hectares of land, and Caarapor, with 2,346 Indians, have been the most affected. Information courtesy of CIMI - Conselho Indigenista Missionario Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 9, no. 1 (Spring 1995) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Indigenous Assembly Grapples with Suicides Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource CIMI (Conselho Indigenista Misionário Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring, 1995 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title Indigenous Assembly Grapples with Suicides Item Type Journal Article Author CIMI (Conselho Indigenista Misionário Volume 9 Issue 1 Pages 5 Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring, 1995 Language English Abstract Note Suicides among the Guarani Kaiowa, which have been on the rise of the past ten years, were the main subject discussed at an assembly of the Aty Guassu Organization in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Attachment Title Indigenous_Assembly_Grapples_with_Suicides.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Guarani Guarani Kaiowa poverty suicide https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/71eefac6d88b44413d2263ab4c3aa27e.pdf 4a2707a8da82d46e554f89e8326c73c7 PDF Text Text ENVIRONMENT & D EVELOPMENT Increased Oil Development Rejected in the Amazon Indigenous people throughout the Amazon ore increasingly discovering oil extraction to be om: of the greatest threats to their fond, health ond culture. In Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru. central governments ore pushing increased oil ond gos development os o solution to their economic problems. Maxus oil company constructs now pipeline into the forests of the Ecuodori.an Oriente E.CUADOR: Indigenous Federations Take Strong Stand Against Seventh Round of Oil Leasing 0 or flooded forests and rainforest. That 53 me day. llcuadonan lndogenous peoples and euvoronmcmalists responded with a peaceful takeover of the ~1imstT)' of Energy and Mines. As a result. MiniSter Fmnc~o Acosta agreed to a me<ung with the Confederation of lndlgenou:. Nationalities of llcuador. CONAIE. opening the way n Janto 24, Ecuador's presi and vast ar~as nry dent fOm•~lly opened a new round of oil leases, which will open fh·e million ncrcsohhe rainforest (an grea the so of New jersey) to ze mtemnuonal oil comp.•mes. Included m tht lands affected are the territories ortheHuaoranl,Quiehu.1,Cofan.Shuar and Ashuar peoples, the planMd Sumaco and Galems National Parl<s. Voi. 8No. 1 & 2 for discussions on the fom1atlon of a commission to design and omplcmcm oil monitoring policoe$. In March. CONAIE and the Amazon regtonallndigcnous org.•ni;rnuon. CONFENAlE both Issued suongstatements no11f}ing the Ecuadorian government and tmnsn;uoonal ool compames that the Indigenous peoples in Ecuadorwould not allow the new round 31 �ENVIRONMENT & D EV ELOPMEN T "...the 150.000 Indigenous people who make up the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecua. dorian Amazon cannot guarantee...that oil exploration or exploitation projects in our territories will be able to proceed." of licensing to proceed. In an open letter to the Ecuadorian president, Edmundo Vargas President of CONFENAIE declared. ' The Ecuadorian government's lack of sensitivity round of licensing, "during which time the country can evaluate the environmental and social impacts of oil <levelopment. and Ecuador can implant policies for oil development which include defenseoftheenvironmem,respect for the ways of life of lndigenous peoples. and an integrated orientation of the countrywhichwillbenefitall Ecuador- the 150.000 Indigenous people who make up the Confederation of lndigenous Nation. lities of the Ecuadorian a Amazon cannot guarantee, neitherto the Ecuadorian State. nor to national or foreign investors paTiicipating in the Sev· emh Oil Licencing Round, thaLOil cxploration or exploitation projects in our territories will be able 10 proceed.~ regarding the position of the lndigncous peoples and evironmentalislS of the region; the lack of a serious natural resource managmem policy which addresses the present and future needs of ians." our country and particularly those of Vargas stated. "TheOirectiveCoun- lnformcuion Sll/1/)lied by CONAIE, the Indigenous nationalities of the re- cil of CONFENAIE, together with its CONFENAIE and the Rairiforcsr Action gion: the absence of adequate laws to member federations. has resolved that Networ·ll. • control national and foreign companies; the carrying out of economic projects within Indigenous territories b}' the government and privaLe comapanies without prior consultation; al1d the lack of indigenous participation in the decisons and benefits n April. Federal Judge Vincent L zation of Indigenous People of of these projects, clearly demonstrate Broderick ruled that iflndigenous Pastaza (OPIP) and support organithat the conditions and guarantees necpeople and others suing Texaco zations. the transnational oil comessary to extend the scope of petrofor irresponsibly discarding hazard- pany ARCOagreed to negotiate their leum activities in the Ecuadorian Amaous waste in the Ecuadoriann~in(orest plans foroilcxploration in the provice :zon do nol ex.ist. 11 CONAII; supported this position can prove that decisions regarding ofPastaza in Ecuador'sOrieme. OPIP COonjune9. Asecond adding. that they hold . 'the Ecuador- these operations were made at Texaco met,vithAR heaclquaners in New York, then it meeting should be occurring in Ecian St:He and pelroleum companies participating in the Seventh Oil Li- would be appropriate for the case to uador as this magazine goes to press. censing Round responsible for the prob- be heard by the US federal court in ARCO officially Slates that it bas not lems we have and for damages both to New York. The case was brought b)• yet made the decision to pursue exthose people who have lived in the Siona, Secoya. Cofan, and Quichua ploration in the Oriente's 'Block I0'. Amazon for thousands of years and to peoples and mestizo colonists who it has nevertheless, reached seven~! live in the zone affected by Texaco's preliminary agreements \vith OPIP. their environment.• operations. Indigenous groups point out that OPIP and ARCO agreed to establish Texaco's lawyers have asked the a techical commission which ,v;u the drilling areas up for relicensing are located in the headwaters of the Ama- judge to reconsider. If the case pro· include three represematives from ceedsin NewYorkcourt, it will set an ARCO and from Petroecuador and zonian river system on the Eastern slope of the Andes. Therefore an)•spills important precedent regardingrighlS six from Indigenous organizations of foreigners to bring US based multi- in the region. Thiscomol.iSsion ,v;u and toxic dumping--which have been nationals to trial within the US. ubiquitouscompanionsof previous oil CSiablish the guidelines for an Evaluactivities in Ecuador--could potemiltlly ation of Environmental Impact for Pastaza Organizations negoaffecttheentireAmazon region through the Exploratory Period, as well as its waterways. tiate with ARCO select which company will complete. !3oth organizations called for a fif. Under pressure from the Organi· the sllldy. teen )'tar moratorium for the seventh Case against Tex aco m ay be heard in New York Courts I 32 Abya Yala News � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 8, nos. 1 &amp; 2 (Summer 1994) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ecuador: Indigenous Federations Take Strong Stand Against Seventh Round of Oil Leasing Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource CONAIE CONFENAIE Rainforest Action Network SAIIC Board of Directors Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Summer 1994 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title Ecuador: Indigenous Federations Take Strong Stand Against Seventh Round of Oil Leasing Item Type Journal Article Author CONAIE CONFENAIE Rainforest Action Network SAIIC Board of Directors Volume 8 Issue 1,2 Pages 31-32 Publication Title Abya Yala News Date Summer 1994 Language English Abstract Note In the face of further threats of environmental destruction at the hands of oil companies, Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) and Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon (CONFENIAE) occupied the ministry of Energy and Mines until Minister Francisco Acosta agreed to meet with them. The groups insisted that indigenous people be included in the decisions about what would be done with their lands taking into consideration indigenous needs as well as environmentalist concerns. Attachment Title abya yala p31-32.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Amazon CONAIE CONFENIAE Ecuador Oil Extraction https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/a1bc4e5d895143e8da5bbef28a4611fa.pdf 9b77fda7b1048e3be12fd2604570a72d PDF Text Text II Co~T I ~E~TAL ENcot:~TEH oF I ~D I GENO L ; s PEOP L ES, NATIONS A~n 0H.GA~ I ZATIONS CON I C lh the participation of more lban 300 Indigenous delegates, sup porters, and observers, the II Continenl.11 Encounter of Indigenous Peoples, Nations, and Organizations took place at the OtomiCoremoniaiConteroftheNathoNahnu people, in Ternoaya, Mexico, from the 8th through lhe 13th of October. The Encounter was organized by lhe Coordinating Comnnissionof Indigenous Nations and Organizations of the Continent (CONiq. Th.s Encounter i was a follow up to the First Continenl.11 Encounter of Indigenous Peoples, which took place in Quito, Ecuador in July of 1990. Its goal was 10 consolidate an autonomous and unified Indigenous movement throughout the Abya Yala continent A Provisional Council, responsible for pu«ing together the Third Encounter that will take place in Guatemala between the months of September and November of 1994, was fonned. During the Third Continental Encounter, CONIC will he fonnaUy oonslitutedand regional workshops will he organized around the various issues that Indigenous Peoples are faced with. The first meeting of lhe Provisional Council will lake place in Bolivia in February 1994, organized by the Coordinadora de Mujeres lndigenas de Bolivia. The following are members of the Provisional Council: Conscjo de Todas las Tierras (Mapuche, Chile); Coordinadora de Mujeres lndigenas de Bolivia; Confederaeion de Nacionalidades lndigenas del Ecuador- W 4 I. Spirihmlit~ and Tntditiun CONAlE; Consejo deOrganizaciones Mayas de Guatemala; Kunas Unidos por Napguana Panama); Frenle lndependienle de Pueblos The spirituality of our cultures and the many Indios, Mexico and Consejo lndigena de traditional forms in wllich lhal spirituality is Guerrero,Mexico,TONATIERRAandSAIIC expressod, are the deep essence of our identity. The Great Spirit that shellers aU of Abya of USA Yala unites us, protects us, and offers us the co:-;1c llrdaralion ofTemoa)a. 199.1 means to bridge our differences with mutual respoet. We conclude that a basic condition 501 years after the European invasion, the for maintaining the spirituality and traditions Peoples and Original Nations of Abya Yala of our Peoples is the recovery ofou.r territories gather together. Their song has causod the and lhe healing and renewal of ou.r Sacred heart of the Earth 10 vibrnte, given Strength to Morhe.r Earth, returning her green cover and our voices and illuminated our thoughts, nourishing her with organic life rather than strengthening the wannth of the sacred fire. with the chemicals that poison and profane her. We agree that it is vil.1lto foster, develop, and strengthen the roorsofour identity; therefore it is offundamenl.11 importance to work for the recovery of ou.r own fonns of living with and relating to ou.r Father Sun, our MOibe.r Earth, ou.r G.raodfalbcr Fire, and our Grandmother Moon We demand of lhe NationStates the recognition of ou.r religious practices and ouruse of traditional andceremonial medicines, as well as the decriminalization of Thus, every morning, we greeted our Fa- coca, peyole, mushrooms and other plants of lher Sun and welcomed the new day. His sacred and healing value... energy has united us and given us strength to II. :\loth('r E:.ulh. Tt·rl'ilor.\ , ;md progress in ou.r work. We conclude five days llarmon inus De\ l'lopmcnl of work towards agreements and consensusof dialogues and debate. With pain and with hope, wilhjoyandwithangcr, we havereached One of theprinciple agreements reached althe the following agreements and conclusions fo.r Earth Summit that took place in Brazil in the future: 1992, was the warning call that united all of Abya Yala News �lbecounuies and social sectors oflbe wo~d in face of lbe gteal dangers that confront our Planet. In add.ition, fuU recognition was given to lbe sustainable and SUstaining technologies lbat have been practiced by the Original Nations for thousands of ycaiS. For our Peoples, ecology is not a fashion statement nor a recent development. This islbewayourelderstaught us: "If you are going to cut down some trees in order to plant the seeds of your nourishment, you need to ask permissionoflbespiritsofthe forest and study lbecyclesofrencwal in order to help regenerate what you bave altered. You must ask permission and give offerings to the Earth Mother before opening any wounds in her body witb the sharpened steel of your tools. You must study the agricultural calendar for the weD-being of the other living beings who acoompany you in this life. In order to eliminate the root of the plunder and genocide suffered by our Peoj>les, it is necessary to undertake a profou'l.d territorial reorgani2ation at a continent4levellhat bas as its objective lbe redefinition and the recognition of autonomous territories. As Original Peoples, we denounce the neoliberal econontic model which continues to generate more povt(ly, buoger, and environmental degradation. We are convinced of the need to establish alliances with lbe different sectors of society in order to join our efforts and work together towards the creation of alternative ecooontic models which will 001 be based upon consumption and coltinuing ecological degradation. R<':\olutions Peoples of Honduras addressing the plenary 4) Their adverse impact on Sclf-Oetennina- 1HE F1JU. EXERCISE OF OUR SELFtion and Indigenous rights. DETERMINATION." This self-detennina5} Their elimination of smaiJ-scale agricul- tion must • ...be expressed as fuU recognition. ture in favor of multi-national agribusiness. 6) Their po!ential for aUowing the exploita· tion of child labor. 7) The lack of access our chil~n have to the basic education that wouJd allow lbem to compete intcmationaUy. We protest and express our consternation and dismay at the proposal to collect human genes on lbc pan of'ProjectHurnan Genome Diversity Project (seearticle,(l'!ge 12) We demand that tbe HGD Project cease and desist in its attempt to coUect human genes from Indigenous peoples, and that the United States government withdraw its application to patent the genes of a Guaymi woman, and any other similar applications. We also demand that GA1T not approve any Agreement about the Patenting of Human Genes or other forms of life. A) Witb the purpose of promoting a harmonious, sustainable, and community-based deIll. Sclf·l><'lrrmination. l.l•J.:.i'lation. velopment, we strongly denounce and oppose :.1nd lndi~<'llOUs Ri;:,ht-; GA1T and NAFTA for tbe following rcasons: The First Contioeotal Encounter in Quito in 1990constitutes a significant reference point I) Their adverse impact on Nature. in the actual struggles waged by the Original 2) Their exploitation of the Indigenous work Peoples of Abya Yala. In lbat occasion, we force. produccdtheQuito Declarationwhich in 1993 3) Their violation of lnd.igenous inteUectual is still very relevant We said: "We are now property rights with respoct to Indigenous fully aware that our definitive liberation CAN Oora and fauna. ONLY BE EXPRESSED BY MEANS OF VOl. 7 NO. 3 &4 TElOUROWNINDlGENOUSSELF-GOVERNMENT AND CONTROL OF OUR OWNlERRITORIES."!nordertomakereal this objective, we maintained: •rr IS NECESSARY TO HAVB A COMPLETE AND THOROUGH TRANSFORMATION OF lHESTAlEANDNATIONALSOCIETY. We ratify the understanding of ourselves as Peoples, as the Original Peoples and F'U$1 lnbabitantsof this continent Were vindicate our right to be recognized as such by the international community, and the United Nations. The opposition,of the national States to the acknowledgment of our rights has its principal origin in the very configuration of the Nation-States, wbieb by their very nature exclude our Pooples. 11 is not enough for them to declare themselves "multi-cultural" or "multi-ethnic", as these declarations do 001 modify them in the least. 11 is necessary 10 BUILD MULTINATIONAL STATES tbat will recognize the coexistence of multiple Peoples within one State. CONIC needs to work towards gnarantceing the panicipatioo of Indigenous Peoples in tbe different meetings that the UN carries out in regard to our rights and request that it consider a proposal to re-structure itself in order to include Indigenous Nations as full members. 5 �detcnnination. However, there have also been aggressions against our people as the vora· cious neolibcral appetite for our territories From remote times, our Peoples established We consider it necessary to promote the es- and resources continues. thefamilyastbcbasicunitofsocialorganiza- tablishment of an educational system in acWe must make an effort to de-colonize lion. The roles of men and women, of youth cordance with the philosophy and world view ourrelves, to recover our capacity to be indigand elders, were different in their functions, of our Peoples. The formation of one's iden- nant over any attack and any injustice combutequalintbeirim- . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - . , mined against a fellow portance. The hisPeople. We need to estabtoric situation of our lish more effective lines of peoples bas laid a communication between great burden of reTo the UN Secretary General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali the continental Indigenous sponsibilities on movement and the womcn,buttbanksto We, the members of CONIC are writing to express the following: grassroots communities ourstrengtbandconandorganizations. We also viet ion much of our At the opening ceremony of lbe International Year of Indigenous Peoples, need to be more effective traditions and cusat the UN in New York, CONIC made an effort to invite 231ndigenous in the handling of national tomswerekeptalive. delegates from aU over the world, in order to support the UN initiative in and international laws. Women play an imdeclaring 1993 the Year of the World's Indigenous Peoples. During the Anocberoftbeadvanccs portant roleasaprinffitcials expressed their which webaveacbicved in inauguration, government representatives and UNo the last three years as ciple leaders and desire for a new partnership with Indigenous Peoples. counsclorswithspiriCONIC is the relationship tuality being the thatbasgrownbetweentbe Today, ten months later, this new relationship has not yet materialized, organizations of the North source of our strength. The world regarding participation and dialogue. For this reao;on, we are requesting to and the South of the contiview of Indigenous have a meeting between CONIC members and other Indigenous Peoples nent. This brings us much women is not one of the world with the UN... joy because it also signifies which divides and the fulfillment of a propbseparatcs, but is inWritten attbe Otomi Ceremonial Center, Temoaya, October 12 1993. ecyofourancestors, lhcrcstcad a holistic one. encounter of the Eagle and the Condor. We are thus The importance of the role of women in the continuity of our tity is a fundamental part of children's and creating the basis for a true continental indigculture was higltligbted. The need to educate young people's educational process. That enous unity. our children within the family, in our own identity begins at home, but it must be reinTo this end, we must higltligbtthat this U Encounter has bad as a distinctive sign the culture and mocbcr tongue was insisted upon. forced and strengthened at school. permanent spiritual presence that accompaIt is recommended that we build even closer relationships with our children, in order to \"1. Organi1.ation - CO:>;JC nied us during all oftbedaysof the Encounter. The presence of many gf.mdpareniS, elders, transmit our spiritual strength to tbem and prevent alienation and distancing form their One of the most important achievementS of and spiritual guides made it possible for us to original cultures. To this end, it c~ considered these three years that have transpired since the have great energies to dedicate to our work, important that in tbe forthcoming year of first Continental Encounter in Quito in 1990, and contributed to the successful completion 1994, which has been declared by tbe United is the consolidation oft be Indigenous struggles of our task... A complete Report of the Second EncounNations as the "Year of the Family", funds be in each of our countries. channeled specifically for the purpose of Currently, the international community bas terwill be published in tbe next Couple months. strengthening Indigenous families. We need begun to recognize the just nature of our If you wish to receive a copy oft be Report you to promote women'sorganizations incoordi· claims, and we can affirm that we have gained can write to SAIIC, also to: TONATIERRA. nation with family and community. importantallies in support ofour right to self- P 0 Box 24009. PbeeniJ<, AZ 85074. USA. IV. \\"omen. Famil) and Communi!) 6 V. Education. Culture and Youth Aby a Yala News � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 7, nos. 3-4 (Fall/Winter 1993) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource II Continental Encounter of Indigenous Peoples, Nations and Organizations Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource CONIC Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Fall and Winter 1993 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title II Continental Encounter of Indigenous Peoples, Nations and Organizations Item Type Journal Article Author CONIC Volume 7 Issue 3,4 Pages 4-6 Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) ISSN 1071-3182 Date Fall and Winter 1993 Language English Abstract Note This article is an abbreviated report of the second meeting of Continental Encounter of Indigenous Peoples, Nations and Organizations that took place at Temoaya, Mexico on October 8-13, 1993 and the article outlines the goals the organization wishes to accomplice by the fourth meeting that is to take place in Bolivia in 1994. Attachment Title II Encounter of Indigenous Peoples, Nations, and Organizations_from abyayala_v07n03_04-2.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] October 1993 Original Peoples Temoaya Mexico https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/88c577a223ab07350d2ceb05c7dc95e1.pdf 8d81bbc709ea048625cb0f3b08161afa PDF Text Text Guajajara Murdered in Brazil Manuel Mendes, a Guajajara Indian, was killed following a land invasion in the state of Maranhao, Brazil. Mendes' assassin, Jaime Jardim, was an invader of the Krikati Indian territory, located in the Brazilian state of Maranhao. According to his daughter; Manuel Mendes had been receiving death threats for some time. Tension had been building in that area since a group of invaders prevented a team of technicians from demarcating the Krikati territory. The minister of Justice issued a directive ordering the Krikati territory to be demarcated in July of 1992. However, because of pressure from local politicians, land invaders and the family of ex-president Jose Samey, the demarcation has been interrupted. Meanwhile, Krikati land continues to be illegally occupied. Invaders have settled on about twenty farms and in a Krikati village. In December of last year, when technicians were once again sent to demarcate the area, invaders burned the entrance bridges and blocked access to the area. Information supplied by CIMI-Conselho Indigenista Missionario (Indian Missionary Council) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 9, no. 1 (Spring 1995) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Guajajara Murdered in Brazil Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Conselho Indigenista Missionario (CIMI) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring, 1995 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title Guajajara Murdered in Brazil Item Type Journal Article Author Conselho Indigenista Missionario (CIMI) Volume 9 Issue 1 Pages 4 Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring, 1995 Language English Abstract Note Manuel Mendes, a Guajajara Indian, was killed among growing tensions between invaders into Krikati Indian territory and the Indian population living there. Attachment Title Guajajara_Murdered_in_Brazil.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] demarcation Guajajara invaders Krikati https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/c6adc0da3852cb1a714d494b4d4d2c4f.pdf ee2a9af9aba62ea82302ccd08873924f PDF Text Text INTERNAT I ONAL URNG-Government Dialogue: Indians Excluded Once Again On March 31, Guatemala's govemment and the leftist umbrella guerrilla group National Guatemalan Revolutionary Union (Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca, URNG) signed an accord to protect the rights of the Maya Indian people. As we reported in the last issue ofAbya Yala News (see Estuardo Zapeta, "Guatemala Peace Talks: Are Maya Rights Negotiable~vol. 8, no. 4h these peace talks have excluded the Maya people who make up a majority of Guatemala's population. In the recently-signed pact, the govemment promised to promote constitutional reforms to recognize the Maya Indians, promote their rights, end racial discrimination and sexual harassment, respect traditional dress and languages, and promote bilingual education. Maya organizations greeted the pact as a cautious first step and stated that the effect that it would have on their sttussle to achieve their demands remained to be seen. The following statement is from the League of Organizations of the Maya People of Guatemala (Coordinaci6n de Organizaciones del Pueblo Maya de Guatemala, COPMAGUA, also l<r1<>'NTl by its Maya acronym SAJB'ICHIL) on these negotiations. COPMAGUA Statement on Peace Negotiations he se<:ond Grand Assembly of SAJB'ICHIL, the League of Organizations of the Maya People of Guatemala (COPMAGUA), in view of the agreement "Identity and Rights of Indigenous People" which the Republic of Guatemala and the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Union (URNG) signed on March 31, 1995, in Mexico City, having been asked to analyze the peace negotiations; Concludes That: 1) This accord does not necessarily fulfill all of our aspirations and demands, but it is the minimal product of five hundred years of resistance, three decades of an internal armed conflict, and above all the struggle of the Maya people together with the suppott of the civilian population. It is one of the tools to begin the eradication of the social inj ustice, discrimination, oppression and colonialism that we s uffer today. 2) This Agreement is a minimal but significant step to strengthen the hope of the Maya people to end the marginalization, oppression, discrimination, dominance, exploitation and colonialism that we suffer. 3) The Maya people will continue to work and struggle to achieve all of our rights and demands. 4) The contents of the Agreement will only be effective if all parties demonstrate the political willingness to comply with the terms of the agreement, ' vith the full participation of the Maya people. 5) The leagues and organizations present at the sigrting of the agreement endow SAJB'ICHIL \vith the power to be the representative and voice of the Maya T Vol. 9 No.1 people to all of the parties involved (the government, the army, and the URNG) to oversee the implementation and verification of the tem1s of the Agreement, as well as \vith international groups. 6) We recogni1-e that the Agreement was in part made possible by the support of the United Nations as part of its Global Peace Process, as well as by the support of the group of friendly countries. It Commits Itself To: 1) Disseminate fully the agreement, "Identity and Rights of the Indigenous Communities" to communi· ties, villages and hamlets in the Maya hmguages through all of the possible means of communication. 2) Make all of the Maya organizations as well as the civilian population not only aware of the agreement, but also to involve them in its application and compliance. 3) Conduct consultations with its base organizations and other Maya organizations for the implementation of the necessary mechanisms and the compliance of the agreement by those who signed it. Decides To: Conduct its third Grand Assembly on B'ELEJE' NO'J (May 2, 1995) 'vith the obje<:tive of making de<:isions regarding how to c.r eate work commissions to boost the agreement, as well as its functions and tasks. '(1t B'OKO', WAQI' Q'ANIU ' Chimaltenango, April3, 1995 33 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vol. 9, no. 1 (Spring 1995) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource URNG-Government Dialogue: Indians Excluded Once Again Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource COPMAGA Statement on Peace Negotiations Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring, 1995 Language A language of the resource English English Zotero Title URNG-Government Dialogue: Indians Excluded Once Again Item Type Journal Article Author COPMAGA Statement on Peace Negotiations Volume 9 Issue 1 Pages 33 Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring, 1995 Language English Abstract Note Guatemala's government and the leftist guerilla group National Guatemalan Revolutionary Union (Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca, URNG) signed an accord to protect the rights of the Maya Indian people. However, Mayans were excluded from these negotiations. Attachment Title URNG-Government_Dialogue_Indians_Excluded_Once_Again.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] COPMAGUA international League of Organizations of the Maya people of Guatemala peace