Indigenous Rights

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.

Foreign Farmers Undermine Food Security in Zambia

By Nebert Mulenga
Increased agricultural development in Zambia will actually compromise the country’s food security as peasant farmers continue to be driven off their customary land to pave the way for large-scale local and foreign agribusiness, according to the University of Zambia’s dean of the school of agriculture, Dr. Mickey Mwala.

Tribal Wars Threaten South Sudan Again

By Jared Ferrie
The huge Russian-made helicopter descended slowly towards conical mud huts clustered together and surrounded by endless grassland, lush and green with the season’s rains here in the South Sudanese village of Yuai.

Symbol of Native Culture to Be Bulldozed for World Cup

By Fabiana Frayssinet
One victim of the remodelling of Brazil’s Maracaná football stadium in preparation for the World Cup is the old Museum of the Indian, where people from different indigenous groups have attempted to keep their culture alive in the heart of Rio de Janeiro.

Injured Struggle in the Sahara

By Rebecca Murray
Safia’s six-year-old body is riddled with scars from the rocket that hit her home in February. With her immediate family all killed in the violent attack, this sole survivor smiles shyly as she visits the medics that fought to save her life.

Communal Land Titling at a Standstill in Peru

By Milagros Salazar
The titling of the lands of indigenous and peasant communities has been at a practical standstill for two years, with many of the corresponding files lost or incomplete. But the promotion of foreign investment is moving full steam ahead in the same regions.
Indigenous women in rural Peru have to walk longer and longer distances to find firewood. Credit: Elena Villanueva/IPS

Rural Women in Peru Cope “Where Life Is Very Sad”

By Mariela Jara
When the crops in her rural highlands community in southern Peru were covered with a thick layer of ice one night, Felícitas Quispe, 43, organised her neighbours to make an effort to keep people from starving to death.

Tribal War Simmers in Libya’s Desert

By Walter García and Rebecca Murray
A group of Tabu fighters with mud-splattered trucks rest on the outskirts of Zweila, a small historic slave-trade stop in Libya’s southwest Sahara.

Garifuna Women, Custodians of Culture and the Environment in Honduras

By Thelma Mejía
Hurricane Mitch, which devastated Honduras 14 years ago, prompted a group of Garifuna women to start organising, to help the people in greatest need of assistance.

Guatemala under Pressure to Investigate Shooting of Native Protesters

By Danilo Valladares
The deaths of eight indigenous demonstrators taking part in a protest against the Guatemalan government in the southwestern province of Totonicapán have provoked outrage within the country and abroad. The protesters accuse the army of shooting into the crowd.
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