Indigenous updates: Argentina, Bolivia, Peru
ARGENTINA: CHACO INDIGENOUS WIN ACCORD
On Aug. 22, the government of Chaco province in northeastern Argentina signed a broad accord with representatives of the Chaco Indigenous Institute (IdACH) on land and budget issues in an effort to end a nearly three-month-old indigenous protest. Since June 6, some 500 indigenous people from rural areas of the province have been camped out in front of the provincial government building in the provincial capital, Resistencia, to demand land distribution, education and health care for Chaco's indigenous communities, among other demands [see Update #855]. Chaco, Argentina's poorest province, is home to 60,000 indigenous people of the Toba, Mocovi and Wichi ethnic groups.
The accord was signed on behalf of the indigenous communities by IdACH president Orlando Charole, and on behalf of the provincial government by Minister of Government Hugo Matkovich and Minister of Economy Roberto DellOrto. Under its terms, the Chaco government is to provide titles for 140,000 hectares of land currently occupied by indigenous communities, and hand over new agriculturally viable lands. In addition, the government promised to review previous suspicious land sales to private parties, increase next year's budget for the IdACH, continue licensing bilingual teachers and create new posts for bilingual and intercultural teachers. IdACH agreed to keep using the courts to pursue action against Lorenzo Heffner, mayor of Villa Rio Bermejito, for discrimination. A complaint against Heffner has been filed in federal court.
With the signing of the accord, the indigenous protesters agreed to abandon their encampment in Resistencia and return to their communities, though they said they will resume their protests if the government doesn't fulfill its commitments. The accord also brought an end to a hunger strike by nine indigenous protesters who had been camped out on the floor in a windowless provincial government office in Resistencia for over a month. Twelve protesters began the fast on July 21, but three had to drop out over the subsequent weeks because of health problems. A group of indigenous protesters had also set up camp in front of the Chaco government's offices in Buenos Aires the week of Aug. 14, to step up the pressure. [Agencia Informativa Pulsar 8/23/06; Agencia Periodistica del Mercosur 8/23/06; Ambito Financiero (Buenos Aires) 8/23/06; Pagina 12 (Buenos Aires) 8/22/06; Article by Marie Trigona 8/22/06 from upsidedownworld.org]
According to the non-governmental Nelson Mandela Center for Research and Investigation, of 3.9 million hectares of public
land that existed in Chaco in 1995, only 660,000 hectares remain. The indigenous communities, which under the law are supposed to be the main beneficiaries of land distribution, were shut out of the sell-off. [APM 8/23/06]
*4. BOLIVIA: INDIGENOUS SEIZE GAS PIPELINE
During the week of Aug. 14, some 500 indigenous Guarani people began an occupation at the Parapeti station of the Yacuiba-Rio Grande gas pipeline (GASYRG) near Charagua, in the eastern Bolivian department of Santa Cruz, to demand that the Transierra company pay the Guarani people $9 million in exchange for allowing the pipeline to operate on their land. Transierra agreed in a 2005 accord to provide that amount to benefit the Guarani people; the company says the funding was to be distributed over a 20-year period, and it has so far provided $255,887.
Transierra is co-owned by the Brazilian state oil company Petrobras, the Spanish-Argentine oil company Repsol and the
French company Total. The protest is organized by the Assembly of the Guarani People (APG). On Aug. 19 the protesters seized a control station at the facility, but so far they are only maintaining a symbolic occupation and have not shut down
production.
On Aug. 21, the APG met with Bolivian government authorities and proposed that Transierra pay $4.5 million by Aug. 25, with the rest of the money due in five years. After five hours of meetings, in which a Bolivian government commission met
separately with the APG and the company, Transierra manager Marcos Beniccio announced he would discuss the APG's demands with the firm's shareholders and the World Bank, which is financing the pipeline.
On Aug. 22, two truckloads of activists arrived to reinforce the occupation, and the APG said it would continue to hold the
Parapeti station until at least Aug. 25, when talks with Transierra and the government of leftist indigenous president Evo
Morales Ayma were set to resume. [Europa Press 8/22/06 via Yahoo Noticias; AP 8/22/06; Reuters 8/22/06; El Nuevo Herald (Miami) 8/22/06 from AP; Terra Brasil 8/22/06]
*5. PERU: INDIGENOUS OCCUPY OIL FACILITY
On Aug. 16, members of the Shipiba indigenous community of Canaan de Cashiyacu seized nine oil wells operated by the Maple Gas Corporation in Maquia district, Ucayali province, in the Peruvian Amazon region of Loreto. The Shipiba are protesting the failure of Maple Gas to fulfill accords it signed a year ago, and demanding that the company now leave the area.
Robert Guimaraes of the Inter-Ethnic Development Association of the Peruvian Jungle (AIDESEP) said the company's unfulfilled promises include payment for the use of the land and programs to monitor the health of the population. The Shipiba say Maple Gas never obtained authorization of any kind from their community to operate in the area, in violation of Peruvian law and Convention 169 of the International Labor Organization (ILO).
Maple Gas Corporation general manager Guillermo Ferreyros claims that studies done by the Loreto Regional Health Department showed no signs of environmental or health contamination in Canaan de Cashiyacu. In addition, Ferreyros said the land was valued by the National Appraisal Commission at 58,000 nuevos soles ($17,907), while the Shipiba communities are demanding $20 million. [Adital 8/21/06; Cadena Peruana de Noticias Radio 8/18/06]
But a study by the group EarthRights International, cited in an August 2005 report from the Regional AIDESEP Organization of
Ucayali (ORAU), concluded that Maple Gas "has caused serious environmental, social and cultural contamination" to the Shipiba community of Canaan de Cashiyacu. According to EarthRights International, the local Cachiyacu River "has rainbow colored reflections and a smell of hydrocarbons," indicating "it is not appropriate for human consumption." The company barred the community from planting crops in their own territory, resulting in nutrition problems, and the study also found that Maple Gas employees had treated residents badly and had sexually abused local women, resulting in many cases of sexually transmitted diseases. A high percentage of the population also suffers from pneumonia and diarrhea, and several community members have died while suffering severe abdominal pains. [Report from ORAU 8/1/05 posted on EarthRights International website, www.earthrights.org]
Source: WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE ON THE AMERICAS, ISSUE #865, AUGUST 27, 2006
On Aug. 22, the government of Chaco province in northeastern Argentina signed a broad accord with representatives of the Chaco Indigenous Institute (IdACH) on land and budget issues in an effort to end a nearly three-month-old indigenous protest. Since June 6, some 500 indigenous people from rural areas of the province have been camped out in front of the provincial government building in the provincial capital, Resistencia, to demand land distribution, education and health care for Chaco's indigenous communities, among other demands [see Update #855]. Chaco, Argentina's poorest province, is home to 60,000 indigenous people of the Toba, Mocovi and Wichi ethnic groups.
The accord was signed on behalf of the indigenous communities by IdACH president Orlando Charole, and on behalf of the provincial government by Minister of Government Hugo Matkovich and Minister of Economy Roberto DellOrto. Under its terms, the Chaco government is to provide titles for 140,000 hectares of land currently occupied by indigenous communities, and hand over new agriculturally viable lands. In addition, the government promised to review previous suspicious land sales to private parties, increase next year's budget for the IdACH, continue licensing bilingual teachers and create new posts for bilingual and intercultural teachers. IdACH agreed to keep using the courts to pursue action against Lorenzo Heffner, mayor of Villa Rio Bermejito, for discrimination. A complaint against Heffner has been filed in federal court.
With the signing of the accord, the indigenous protesters agreed to abandon their encampment in Resistencia and return to their communities, though they said they will resume their protests if the government doesn't fulfill its commitments. The accord also brought an end to a hunger strike by nine indigenous protesters who had been camped out on the floor in a windowless provincial government office in Resistencia for over a month. Twelve protesters began the fast on July 21, but three had to drop out over the subsequent weeks because of health problems. A group of indigenous protesters had also set up camp in front of the Chaco government's offices in Buenos Aires the week of Aug. 14, to step up the pressure. [Agencia Informativa Pulsar 8/23/06; Agencia Periodistica del Mercosur 8/23/06; Ambito Financiero (Buenos Aires) 8/23/06; Pagina 12 (Buenos Aires) 8/22/06; Article by Marie Trigona 8/22/06 from upsidedownworld.org]
According to the non-governmental Nelson Mandela Center for Research and Investigation, of 3.9 million hectares of public
land that existed in Chaco in 1995, only 660,000 hectares remain. The indigenous communities, which under the law are supposed to be the main beneficiaries of land distribution, were shut out of the sell-off. [APM 8/23/06]
*4. BOLIVIA: INDIGENOUS SEIZE GAS PIPELINE
During the week of Aug. 14, some 500 indigenous Guarani people began an occupation at the Parapeti station of the Yacuiba-Rio Grande gas pipeline (GASYRG) near Charagua, in the eastern Bolivian department of Santa Cruz, to demand that the Transierra company pay the Guarani people $9 million in exchange for allowing the pipeline to operate on their land. Transierra agreed in a 2005 accord to provide that amount to benefit the Guarani people; the company says the funding was to be distributed over a 20-year period, and it has so far provided $255,887.
Transierra is co-owned by the Brazilian state oil company Petrobras, the Spanish-Argentine oil company Repsol and the
French company Total. The protest is organized by the Assembly of the Guarani People (APG). On Aug. 19 the protesters seized a control station at the facility, but so far they are only maintaining a symbolic occupation and have not shut down
production.
On Aug. 21, the APG met with Bolivian government authorities and proposed that Transierra pay $4.5 million by Aug. 25, with the rest of the money due in five years. After five hours of meetings, in which a Bolivian government commission met
separately with the APG and the company, Transierra manager Marcos Beniccio announced he would discuss the APG's demands with the firm's shareholders and the World Bank, which is financing the pipeline.
On Aug. 22, two truckloads of activists arrived to reinforce the occupation, and the APG said it would continue to hold the
Parapeti station until at least Aug. 25, when talks with Transierra and the government of leftist indigenous president Evo
Morales Ayma were set to resume. [Europa Press 8/22/06 via Yahoo Noticias; AP 8/22/06; Reuters 8/22/06; El Nuevo Herald (Miami) 8/22/06 from AP; Terra Brasil 8/22/06]
*5. PERU: INDIGENOUS OCCUPY OIL FACILITY
On Aug. 16, members of the Shipiba indigenous community of Canaan de Cashiyacu seized nine oil wells operated by the Maple Gas Corporation in Maquia district, Ucayali province, in the Peruvian Amazon region of Loreto. The Shipiba are protesting the failure of Maple Gas to fulfill accords it signed a year ago, and demanding that the company now leave the area.
Robert Guimaraes of the Inter-Ethnic Development Association of the Peruvian Jungle (AIDESEP) said the company's unfulfilled promises include payment for the use of the land and programs to monitor the health of the population. The Shipiba say Maple Gas never obtained authorization of any kind from their community to operate in the area, in violation of Peruvian law and Convention 169 of the International Labor Organization (ILO).
Maple Gas Corporation general manager Guillermo Ferreyros claims that studies done by the Loreto Regional Health Department showed no signs of environmental or health contamination in Canaan de Cashiyacu. In addition, Ferreyros said the land was valued by the National Appraisal Commission at 58,000 nuevos soles ($17,907), while the Shipiba communities are demanding $20 million. [Adital 8/21/06; Cadena Peruana de Noticias Radio 8/18/06]
But a study by the group EarthRights International, cited in an August 2005 report from the Regional AIDESEP Organization of
Ucayali (ORAU), concluded that Maple Gas "has caused serious environmental, social and cultural contamination" to the Shipiba community of Canaan de Cashiyacu. According to EarthRights International, the local Cachiyacu River "has rainbow colored reflections and a smell of hydrocarbons," indicating "it is not appropriate for human consumption." The company barred the community from planting crops in their own territory, resulting in nutrition problems, and the study also found that Maple Gas employees had treated residents badly and had sexually abused local women, resulting in many cases of sexually transmitted diseases. A high percentage of the population also suffers from pneumonia and diarrhea, and several community members have died while suffering severe abdominal pains. [Report from ORAU 8/1/05 posted on EarthRights International website, www.earthrights.org]
Source: WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE ON THE AMERICAS, ISSUE #865, AUGUST 27, 2006
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