Indigenous Rights

Power in Bolivia’s Gas-Rich Chaco Region Thrust into Indigenous Hands

By Rafael Sagarnaga Lopez
Due to the intense political polarisation in the Chaco region, home to Bolivia’s oil and natural gas wealth, three indigenous lawmakers who entered the legislative assembly of the southern department of Tarija as representatives of their people have quickly come to wield decisive power.

Indigenous Chileans Still Fighting Pinochet-Era Highway Project

By Marianela Jarroud
For more than two decades, Mapuche indigenous people in the Chilean region of Araucanía have been fighting the construction of the Ruta Costera (Coastal Highway), a megaproject initially conceived during the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship (1973-1990) which has already caused significant archeological and cultural losses and damages.

Bolivia’s Ayoreo Indians, Devoured by the City

By Anna Infantas
No one knows exactly when they will show up, but when they do, it’s impossible not to notice them. In one of the busiest street markets in this bustling city in eastern Bolivia, a handful of members of the Ayoreo indigenous community periodically take over a portion of the sidewalk.

Big Landowners Block Rural Development Law in Guatemala

By Danilo Valladares
An “integral rural development law” to promote access to land, employment and other rights for small farmers is bogged down in the Guatemalan Congress due to opposition from large landowners, who see it as an attempt at land reform.

Bolivia’s Tapiete People – a Culture in the Hands of 38 Families

By Natalia Seas Yelma
Three and a half hours away from the nearest town along a dirt road, 38 families are struggling to preserve their land, customs and language in Bolivia’s Gran Chaco region. They are the Tapiete Indians, who refuse to disappear.

Native Communities in Peru Take Charge of Environmental Monitoring

By Milagros Salazar
At the end of every month, with the skill of an environmental engineer, Wilson Sandi prepares a work plan that will be used by Achuar indigenous people, like him, to document the scars left by 40 years of oil drilling in the Peruvian Amazon region of Loreto.

Off the Blacklist Doesn’t Imply Improvement in Human Rights in Colombia

By Constanza Vieira
Colombia will be removed from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights “blacklist” next year. In exchange, the government of Juan Manuel Santos facilitated a visit to the country by a delegation from the Commission.

Reaching Bolivia’s Native People on the Airwaves

By Franz Chávez
Every morning from 6:00 to 8:00 AM, native people in this sprawling working-class suburb of La Paz, Bolivia listen to the programme broadcast by former education minister Donato Ayma in the Aymara language.

Mining Saps a Thirsty Desert

By Michelle Tolson
The Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in the southern Gobi desert in Mongolia has become a symbol of a looming crisis: a limited water supply that could be exhausted within a decade, seriously threatening the lives and livelihoods of the local population.

Mapuche Indians Fight New Airport in Southern Chile

By Marianela Jarroud
“This is a project that reflects the occupation…of Mapuche territory,” said Iván Reyes, an indigenous leader staunchly opposed to the construction of an international airport in the southern Chilean region of Araucanía.

Settlement Begins in U.S. Mismanagement of Native Funds

By Carey L. Biron
After 17 years in litigation, the U.S. government has announced that hundreds of thousands of Native Americans will soon be receiving payments from what has been described as the United States’ largest class-action lawsuit, which accused the government of massive mismanagement of trusts covering indigenous peoples’ monies and lands.

Using the Airwaves to Empower Quechua Women in Bolivia

By Jenny Cartagena Torrico
"Atispa mana atispa ñawpajman rinanchis tiyan" ("Power without power, we have to keep moving forward”) in the Quechua language, Ruth Rojas told her listeners at the end of a series of radio programmes on political culture, broadcast to indigenous women in Bolivia.

Guyana Seeks to Shield Gold Miners from Mercury Ban

By Bert Wilkinson
As regional delegates meet to discuss a legally binding ban on the use of mercury this week, Guyanese officials are arguing that an exception should be made for the South American country's lucrative gold mining sector until an acceptable alternative is found.

World Bank Launches Review of Social, Environmental Safeguards

By Carey L. Biron
The World Bank has begun a highly anticipated reappraisal of its social and environmental “safeguards” policies, a process that is slated to take place over the next two years.

Soy and Sugar Cane Fuel Native Land Conflicts in Brazil

By Fabiana Frayssinet
The threat of mass suicide by native Guaraní-Kaiowá people in southwest Brazil brought to light a new formula for worsening conflicts over indigenous territory: the expansion of the cultivation of soy beans and sugar cane, two top export crops.

Getting an Education – a Heroic Feat for Native Children in Bolivia

By Marisabel Bellido
Even before the sun comes up, Reinaldo starts out on the two-hour journey to the school he attends in a small native village in Bolivia, hiking along steep, narrow paths that take him across ravines and rivers.

People’s Tribunal Defends Native Villages from Dams

By Daniela Pastrana
"What do we stand to lose because of the dam? We will lose everything!" said Maria Abigail Agredani, a member of the committee for this indigenous community in the western Mexican state of Jalisco, reporting the damage that will be caused by the hydroelectric complex being built nearby.

New Era Augurs More of the Same for Impoverished Maya People

By Danilo Valladares
The Maya Indians of Central America and Mexico will have little to celebrate when the current era comes to an end on Dec. 21. The extreme poverty and marginalisation they face contrast sharply with the plans for lavish celebrations to lure tourists.

Rights Community Welcomes First U.N. Statement on Tibet

By Carey L. Biron
Human rights workers and Tibet-focused activists are hailing a strongly worded statement by the United Nations' top official on human rights, drawing attention to growing public discontent in Tibet just ahead of a major leadership shuffle that will reverberate throughout the Communist Party of China.

New Media Law, New Voices in Argentina

By Marcela Valente
"We don't need other people to speak for us any more. We have our own voice now," Armando Kispe of Queta, a Kolla indigenous community, said enthusiastically at the Pachakuti radio station high on the puna plateau in the northwestern Argentine province of Jujuy.

Indigenous Seek Profits From Forests

By Peter Wahwai
Kenya’s Ogiek community, the indigenous group of hunter-gatherers who were evicted from the Mau Forest three years ago, say they will no longer sit by and watch logging companies profit from the resources of their traditional home while they live in poverty in tented camps around the forest without even the most basic of services, like sanitation.
« Previous Page — Next Page »
*#*