The indigenous communities of Latin America have shown once again that they cannot be ignored. Violence has marred the otherwise laudable movement by Peruvian Indians to resist President Alan Garcia’s decision to open large areas of the Amazon region to logging, dam building, and oil drilling. (Of course, just who was responsible for the violence–the protesting Indians, the military, or a combination of both–remains shrouded in mystery.) But make no mistake: these Indians are a political force. Yesterday, Peru’s Congress voted to overturn Mr. Garcia’s decrees authorizing industrial activity in the region. In return, at least some indigenous leaders said they would call off demonstrations and road blockades.
This victory builds on the recent successes won by indigenous communities in Bolivia (electing Evo Morales and achieving a new constitution); the move by the Miskito people to declare independence from Nicaragua; and the growing political strength of the Indian communities in Ecuador.
-NF
Hat tip: The New York Times
2 responses so far ↓
Dajiang Jiaoshou // June 22, 2009 at 9:44 pm |
Yes, I concur, Garcia needs to respect the voice of the Peruvian Congress. It seems that many folks in this congress have respected the voice of the indigenous members of their society. Hopefully the Peruvian Congress itself is representative of the demographics of the country. Indigenous movements offer all of us–as human beings–the opportunity to pay deep attention to the communities of memory that have shaped us. We all have–if we reflect across the generations–a sense of place. We do not need territorialism, but we do need to learn from those who have a long memory and relationship with specific places and regions. This makes ecological as well as cultural sense—if we are to avoid equating what is better in our ethical map merely with what is new or innovative.
listenyankee // June 28, 2009 at 3:13 am |
And one to watch–increasingly political organization of the Mapuche in Chile.