1 12 1 https://www.abyayalanews.org/files/original/452deb7b60e4489040d8d7c20ccd4124.pdf f257d6c5f9c8a8d15ca4e85ef164fa9b PDF Text Text OR G ANIZ A T I ON AND COMM U NICA T I ON • URACCAN Offers Degree 1n Indigenous Rights ''For more than five centuries others have spoken for us. Today we want to begin to speak with our own voices on this October 12. when we commemorate once more the histof}' of resistance of Indigenous peoples of the American Continent and as we launch a Degree Course in Indigenous Rights in our own university ..- URACCAN, the University of the Autonomous Regions of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua th that invocation 10 the more than 500 )'Cars of ndig-enous resistance on the W: American Continent, Dr. Mirna Cunningham, Rector of the new univer· sity URACCAN, began her address inau· gurating a degree course in Indigenous Rights-a speech that showed that this new post-secondary educational institution in Nicaragua is dedicated to take the forefront of the struggle to defend and extend the lights of the Caribbean Coast peoples. Above all. URACCAN wi1t be innovative and open to serve the real needs of the Caribbean Coa.~t mosa· ic of minority peoples-Miskito, Sumu, Rama, Gar!funa. Blacks-who have been historically marginalized and oppressed by the Nicaraguan state. It will also rein· force the autonomous status of the Caribbean Coast area of Nicaragtta by fo1m1nglocal cxpens in the fields of nat· ural resource management who can prevent the exploitation of coastal resources by outside forces. The degree course in Indigenous RightS. inaugurated in Bilwi {Puerto Cabezas), capital of the RAAN (North Atlantic Autonomous Region), is sup· poned and financed by a coalition com· posed of the internal budget of URAC· CAN, the Nicaraguan state. and International NGOs. It is a Bachelor level diploma that will be recognized as a basis to enter Master or Doctoral level degree courses in Nicaragua. The URACCAN Depanmem supervising this course is headed by Yuri Zapata; cours· es will be taught by Dr. Hazell.au1 3 well known Miskito leader and lawyer. · we are merely demanding," Cunningham assened, ·a fundamental Vol. 10 No.1 right for Indigenous peoples and ethnic communllles of the Caribbean Coast...our systematic and effective par· ticipation in the development of our own educational program." The national educational system and national uni· versities, she says. have ""no roots in our culture and thus kannotl respond to the urgem problems of our communi· ties." Mirna Cunningham is well known as a continental Indigenous leader. In 1992 she presided the work of convok· ing and assembling the Third Cominemal Encounter of Indigenous. Black. and Grassroots Resistance. held in Managua. She is a member of the Nicaraguan Parliament representing the Pucno C•bezas (Bilwi) region. She is also one of the principal architects of the autonomy process that led the Sandinista government in l987 10 enact the Autonomy law, a Constitutional provision that recognized autonomous status for the north and south Caribbean Coast regions. Indigenous peoples on the Nicaraguan Caribbean Coast face severe marginaliz.11ion. Unemployment in the RAAN is now around 90%. and for the RAAS (South Atlamic Autonomous Region) it is 70%. The Atlantic Coast area has the highest levels of monaUty for early matemit)< Three out of every four unemployed persons are women, and there is an increase in rape and abuse brought about by social decom· position and drug consumption. Francisco Cambell. who rccemly travelled to the US in search of funher support for the program. spoke eloquently of URACCANs historical place in the lives of the Black and Indigenous peoples of the coast. "The Autonomy Process was the greatest historical shift from the liberal. nationalist ideology that to be Mestizo and Catholic is the only legitimate fom1 of belonging and ident it l' Now. the peoples of the region 5a)'. 'We will bttild our university." The establishment of an Indigenous Rights curriculum will further the autonomy process in the Atlantic Coast region by giving local peoples the educational training necessary to build the juridical framework for the reclaiming of the native economy and political system. In addition, the progrnm will do this in a way that respects the various cullllral expressions present on the Caribbean coast Uilit)' in diversity."' which must also integrate the cosmovi· sion of the Black Caribbean community. 1t will also decentralize the whole prcx:ess of education, taking smdents into coast~l communities for work~ shops, seminars, and open-ended, participatory sessions. The course, howev· er, is offered only on the Bil" ; campus, which will favor Miskilos over Sumus because of its location. Hence the need 10 open another program in the Bonanza region to the benefit of the Sunm communities. , . 11 Jlcfapted from a Glumeytur l. .XI f by felipe Swarr For infomtacion abouc URACCAN contact: URACCAN, &lljlcio E/ Cannen del Ctuutl 4 112c. al sur, Mar~agua. Nicaragua; Tel: 505· 2-682-HJ; Fax: 505·2·682-H5; or jsll<· arc@uugate.ulli.rain.ni; l.'ax 505·2-682145 37 � 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 URACCAN Offers Degree In Indigenous Rights Type The nature or genre of the resource Journal Article Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Spring 1996 Spring 1996 Language A language of the resource English, Spanish English Zotero Title URACCAN Offers Degree Indigenous Rights Item Type Journal Article Volume 10 10 Issue 1 1 Pages 37 Publication Title Abya Yala News: Journal of the South and Meso American Indian Rights Center (SAIIC) Abya Yala News ISSN 1071-3182 Date Spring 1996 Language English, Spanish English Abstract Note Dr. Mlrna Cunningham, director of the new university URACCAN, began her address inaugurating a degree course in Indigenous rights. The new post-secondary educational institution in Nicaragua is dedicated to take the forefront of the struggle to defend and extend the rights of the Caribbean Coast peoples. Attachment Title abyayala_v10_n1_p37.pdf Attachment URL [No URL] Caribbean Coast peoples. Cunningham Mlrna Nicaragua URACCAN