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ECUADOR: Indigenous Community Brings Its Struggle to Argentina
By Marcela Valente
BUENOS AIRES, Nov 9 (IPS) - Buenos Aires has unexpectedly become the new
stage for a long-standing battle between an Argentine oil company and an
Ecuadorian indigenous community fighting to defend its ancestral land rights
in the Amazon rainforest.
Representatives of the Kichwa community of Sarayaku have come to the
Argentine capital to call on President Néstor Kirchner to intervene in the
conflict.
"Our people's future is threatened. We are living in a constant state of
fear," Marlon Santi, a community leader from Sarayaku, told IPS.
The community, located in the Ecuadorian Amazon rainforest in the eastern
province of Pastaza, is home to roughly 2,500 Kichwa, whose rights to an
area of 132,000 hectares were officially recognised in 1992.
The conflict dates back to 1996, when the Ecuadorian government signed an
agreement with the Argentine oil company Compañia General de Combustibles
(CGC), awarding it the concession to exploration Block 23. According to the
official property deeds, however, most of the land that falls within that
area belongs to the indigenous community.
The Kichwa, however, were not consulted before this deal was struck, as they
should have been in accordance with the Ecuadorian constitution.
The ongoing conflict has become increasingly tense since 2000, as a result
of repeated incursions by the oil company, the pressure exerted by the
Ecuadorian government, and the advance of military and paramilitary groups
on the community's territory.
The Ecuadorian government of President Lucio Gutiérrez has now militarised
the area in an attempt to ensure that the project goes ahead, claiming that
it will bring development and jobs to the region.
So far, however, the indigenous inhabitants have managed to block oil
company operations on their land with the help of international campaigns
denouncing the illegal encroachment on their territory and the potentially
devastating environmental effects.
The Gutiérrez administration acknowledges that the community of Sarayaku
owns the territory in question, but claims that their ownership is limited
to the land's surface, while the state reserves the right to explore and
exploit the resources underground by awarding concessions to private
companies.
The CGC sets forth a similar argument. Ricardo Nicolás, the director of the
company's Ecuadorian operations, told IPS in Buenos Aires that the Sarayaku
property deeds "specifically establish that the state grants them ownership
of the land, but reserves its rights to the ownership of the underground
resources."
Earlier this year, the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights expressed its "deep concern" to the Ecuadorian government
over the failure to respect the land rights of the Kichwa inhabitants of
Sarayaku, which are enshrined in the country's constitution.
The committee also voiced concern over the government's awarding of
concessions for oil drilling in the area and the negative repercussions that
could have on the local indigenous community. It consequently called on the
Gutiérrez government to ensure that the Kichwa participated in the adoption
of any decisions that would affect their territory.
The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, which forms part of the
Organisation of American States (OAS) system, then issued a series of
resolutions aimed at protecting the safety and integrity of the indigenous
community and their right to freely navigate the Bobonaza River, denied to
them since mid-2003.
These international recommendations forced the Ecuadorian government to hold
talks with the community, but the dialogue was cut off in September as a
result of verbal attacks by government officials, who accused the Kichwa of
fanning the flames of a conflict "that is only of interest to a handful of
Indian families."
In the meantime, the Southern Cross Group investment fund, chaired by
Argentine businessman Norberto Morita, recently acquired a majority share in
CGC. As a result, even though the project has been halted, developments like
these lead the indigenous inhabitants to fear that it could be revived at
any time.
"We don't know if they will use military or paramilitary forces to extend
the area of oil exploration into our land. But if that occurs, it will spark
a serious conflict, because we are going to stand our ground," Santi said.
"We will form a human shield to stop the company's operations."
Nicolás alleges that members of CGC's technical staff have been kidnapped
for ransom and other workers have been tortured. He said that the company
had invested six years in "consultations and explanations" before finally
reaching an understanding with the local population and signing agreements
with 26 of the 28 communities in the area.
After these agreements had been reached, however, armed indigenous groups
led by Santi attacked the camps set up by the company, Nicolás claimed.
"That was when the Ecuadorian army intervened, and the company pulled out,"
he said.
The executive added that CGC has 15 million dollars invested in the project.
"We're not asking for the army to be sent into the area, we just want the
government to talk with them and reach an agreement, so that we can get to
work." Any further meetings with Nicolás himself have already been ruled out
by the Kichwa.
Representatives of the community of Sarayaku and of non-governmental
organisations that back its demands travelled to Buenos Aires this month
with the intention of meeting with the Argentine authorities and leaders of
social movements, and in particular, with CGC executives and shareholders'
representatives.
Kenny Bruno travelled to Buenos Aires on behalf of the human rights and
environmental organisation EarthRights International, which has been waging
a campaign to draw attention to the struggle of the Sarayaku community.
He told IPS that their goal in coming here was to raise awareness among the
Argentine people regarding the operations of an Argentine company in another
Latin American country, where it was endangering the environment and
violating the human rights of the local indigenous people.
The community and NGO representatives have met so far with the Argentine
deputy foreign minister, Jorge Taiana, and with Nobel Peace Prize laureate
and human rights activist Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, as well as the leaders of
several local NGOs.
Taiana promised to study the matter and acknowledged the need to monitor the
actions of Argentine companies to prevent potential violations of human
rights both within this country and abroad, Bruno said.
The delegation had no luck with the CGC, however, whose executives and
principal shareholders refused to meet with them. According to Bruno, they
were offered a meeting in Ecuador with the company's "proxy", Ricardo
Nicolás, but the delegation turned it down, demanding to speak with those
who are really in charge.
To mark the end of their visit, the delegation staged a demonstration Monday
in Plaza de Mayo, the public square in front of the government palace in
Buenos Aires. They were supported by local indigenous and social
organisations.
Santi stressed that the Kichwa are the "legitimate owners" of Block 23 and
want their rights to their land respected. "We demand that they withdraw
from the area, and that they don't sell the concession to another company,
either," he said.
(END/2004)
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