Land Is Life Calls On The Government Of Indonesia To Halt Oppression Of Indigenous Peoples Of Papua
Reports coming out of Indonesia detail an escalation of violence and an unconfirmed number of casualties following protests that began two weeks ago in reaction to reports of harassment and racial discrimination towards Papuan students by police in Surayaba. This incident is just one example in a long history of discriminatory treatment and human rights abuses by the Indonesian government against the people of Papua and West Papua. Executive Director of Land is Life, Casey Box adds, “Based on my personal experience in Papua, ongoing conversations with our partners, and reports developing daily, we know the Indonesian government is ignoring the concerns and demands of Papuans. They are reacting brutally to Papuans’ protests, continuing to propagate and promote racist tropes and biases, limiting their basic human rights, and militarizing radical groups against Papuan demonstrators.” Land is Life strongly condemns the Indonesian government’s history and current practices of racial discrimination and persecution of Papuans in the country and calls on the Indonesian government to: Halt the escalation of violence against demonstrators exercising their right to protest and for the release of all those unjustly imprisoned as a result; Immediately open up an authentic dialogue with Papuans about their concerns at the root of the conflict and their aspirations, as well as allow international authorities (namely the UN) to enter the region and evaluate the severity of the human rights violations; Restore the internet and cellular channels in the province to allow for the exercise of free speech and stop the denial of these basic human rights for Papuans and all others affected. Land is Life echoes the concerns of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet in her statement made yesterday. Michelle commented, “I have been disturbed by escalating violence in the past two weeks in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua, and especially the deaths of some protestors and security forces personnel…I encourage the authorities to engage in dialogue with the people of Papua and West Papua on their aspirations and concerns, as well as to restore internet services and refrain from any excessive use of force. Blanket internet shutdowns are likely to contravene freedom of expression and limiting communications may exacerbate tensions”. Land is Life has been partnering with grassroots indigenous partners in West Papua for years. We’re currently proud to support a partnership with YADUPA and stand strongly in support of their work towards fully exercising their self-determination.
Amazon Fires Provoke Potential Genocide for Indigenous Peoples Living in Isolation and Initial Contact
(The following statement was developed by Land is Life Special Advisor on Isolated Peoples in South America along with Land is Life’s network of grassroots Indigenous partners from across the Amazon) Facing the fiery scenario in South America, we have seen the need to express ourselves publicly and denounce the dramatic situation in which these affected groups live. We are Indigenous Organizations, Allied Organizations and specialists working to protect PIACI (Peoples Living in Isolation or with Initial Contact) living in the Amazon and the Great Chaco. PIACI are under constant threat. Current fires aggravate their situation and put at risk their physical integrity. A predatory development model, along with the negligence of the state to protect these peoples have resulted in an increase of their socio-epidemiological vulnerability. Peoples Living in Isolation have a condition of vulnerability in the context that drives Western society. Among the conditions that have created this situation, we highlight the constitutional dimension, related to the development policies implemented in the region that are associated with autonomous and / or illegal initiatives. They constitute vectors that increase the life threatening situations of these populations. For this reason, governments don’t feel the need to give special attention to PIACI. We publicly defend the PIACI and demand that the governments of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela take immediate measures to counteract such fires and, in coordination, implement special protection measures for these peoples, respecting their self-determination and decision to continue living in isolation. We are aware that behind the burning of the Amazon, the Chiquitanía and the Great Chaco there is a million dollar market In Brazil, “setting fire to an area of 1,000 hectares costs around 1 million reais in the black market.” Who pays and what do they earn? We, the Indigenous Organizations, the Allies and the experts of PIACI present in collaboration an overview of the seven countries of the Amazon Basin and the Great Chaco in Paraguay. We have identified 185 records of isolated indigenous peoples in the region, from those, the existence of 66 has been confirmed. BoliviaSo far in 2019, 1 million hectares of forest have officially burned. From the end of July to August, the forest fire of the Chiquitanía devastated 780 thousand hectares. The most affected territories comprise the region of Chiquitanía and the Ayoreo, Chiquitano and Monkoxi Territories. Dry forests have also been severely affected and have disappeared along the border with Paraguay. This area had been decreed with intangibility for Ayoreo Isolation Peoples and the Guaraní Territory. These areas represent the last refuges for the survival of PIACI and are increasingly threatened by agribusiness and the government. BrazilThe Brazilian Government’s answers to these problems have been completely disrespectful to the constitutional principles. For months, the president of the government, Jair Bolsonaro,has delivered speeches against indigenous peoples and the environmental movement. He has disrespected environmental legislation. The government is subject to international repercussions in the face of Brazilian scandals and the pressure of the G7. Given this, a crisis cabinet was instituted and thereafter initiatives were taken; discussion and contempt were the only two pronouncements of the president and his team to the international community and especially before the civil society organized in favor of Brazil. Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon since July (or prior), is 278% greater than during the same period of 2018. These are official numbers of the INPE. Between August 15 and August 20 of this year, 131 Indigenous lands have burned in Brazil. These numbers keep increasing because every day there are new fires. These data have been collected by Ananda Santa Rosa and Fabrício Amorim based on the Fire Information System. The most dramatic situation is that of two groups of indigenous peoples in isolation. In Brazil there are 114 records of communities of Peoples Living in Isolation, of which 28 are confirmed by the official indigenist government agency or FUNAI. How many fled the fire? The information collected suggests that 15 fires were counted in lands where there are records of Isolated Indigenous Peoples, especially in the states of Mato Grosso, Pará, Tocantins and Rondônia. FUNAI still doesn’t have reliable data to determine how many were affected. ColombiaIn most countries, fires are a result of the interests of the development model implemented. The Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies of Colombia – IDEAM, registered 138,176 hectares deforested in the Amazon in 2018. Although the fire season in Colombia is usually between January and February, the accelerated deforestation affects the corridor between the Andes mountain range -Amazon – Orinoquía. From 2016 to 2018 the Colombian Amazon has lost 478,000 hectares of forest of which 73% (348,000) corresponds to primary forest, and, so far in 2019, alerts indicate the additional loss of 60,600 hectares, of which 75% (45,700 hectares) was primary forest. These mainly impact four protected areas: Tinigua National Parks, Sierra de la Macarena, Nukak National Reserve and Chiribiquete mountain range. The Serranía de Chiribiquete National Park, home of at least two isolated villages still pending confirmation, the Carijona and Murui peoples, lost 2,600 hectares since their expansion in July 2018, of which 96% corresponds to primary forest. On the other hand, despite not being directly affected by the fires, the Río Puré National Natural Park, which houses the thick tropical rainforest, and pending confirmation of the peoples of the Yuri – Passé, is under pressure from exploitation and hydrocarbon exploration, the advance of the agricultural frontier, the development of road infrastructure and mining. EcuadorIn Ecuador there have been no large fires in the Southern Amazon. However, mining activities are mainly conducted on indigenous territories in the South Amazon of Ecuador, causing a huge loss of biodiversity, water pollution and the displacement of Shuar indigenous communities. It has been observed through satellite images that in recent years there has been an increase in rainfall and the creation of flood zones in the northern Amazon. In the past decades, these have been destroyed and contaminated by oil activities. The advance of
Send Your Support to Grassroots Indigenous Communities in Brazil Threatened by the Historic Amazon Fires
Millions of acres of Indigenous territory across Brazil are burning, releasing enormous amounts of carbon into the atmosphere and threatening the lands and lives of over a million Indigenous people in the region. In response, Land is Life is working with Amazon Frontlines on an urgent campaign to encourage our networks to send support directly to our grassroots Indigenous partner the Indigenous Confederation of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB) who are organizing a frontlines response to the fires to protect their lands and territories from further destruction. All funds raised will directly support COIAB’s Indigenous-led “fire brigades” currently fighting the fires and to their organizational capacity in order to protect the Amazon long into the future. The fires now raging across the Amazon are not natural. They are part of a political crisis in which the governments of the region, most notably that of Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, has enabled the destruction of formerly protected areas, including hundreds of Indigenous lands. HELP COIAB BATTLE THE HISTORIC AMAZON FIRES TODAYWe also want to make an international call for the lives of the Indigenous Peoples living in Isolation that inhabit the Brazilian Amazon. We do not have information about these groups current situations in the midst of the flames, but they live in the jungles that have been affected. The devastation is so aggressive that we have deep doubts about its ability to survive this historic crisis. A call to the Brazilian government to stop this genocide and act efficiently and respectfully to guarantee the survival of Indigenous peoples is urgently needed.
Remarks by Mr. Brian Keane, Rapporteur of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE WORLD’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES 9 August 2019 Remarks by Mr. Brian Keane, Rapporteur of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues Ms. Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, Mr. LIU Zhenmin, Under-Secretary-General of Economic and Social Affairs, Chief Thompson, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen I am honoured to be here today to celebrate the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples with the theme of Indigenous Languages. On behalf of the members of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, I would like to thank the General Assembly for proclaiming 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages. This has brought significant attention to the urgent need to promote, revitalize and strengthen indigenous languages. There are between 6,000 and 7,000 oral languages in the world today, most of them spoken by very few individuals. It is estimated that approximately half of the world’s languages will become extinct by the year 2100. Most of these will be indigenous languages. More than 50 percent of the world’s indigenous peoples are in danger of losing their languages. Data clearly show that this devastating trend is occurring all over the world: In Latin America, UNICEF estimates that one fifth of the indigenous communities no longer speak their languages; one fourth, of the indigenous languages of the region are in danger of extinction. In the United States of America, only four Yuchi-speaking elders remain. They are all over 90 years old. For the Tjwao / San people in Zimbabwe – In a population of about 2500, only a dozen elders between the ages of 65-95 now speak and understand their language. These are only a few examples. There are, unfortunately, many more. If this trend is allowed to continue, the children and grandchildren of the majority of this generation of indigenous peoples will NOT speak their Mother tongues. This is among the most critical issues that indigenous peoples face today, as it is language that allows indigenous peoples to express their histories and traditions and to transmit their knowledge to future generations. The loss of indigenous languages is exacerbated by ongoing conflicts over natural resources, destruction of indigenous peoples’ livelihoods, and forced relocation from their ancestral territories. This is intensified by assimilationist policies where indigenous peoples are required to adopt the cultures and languages of the dominant population. The lack of legal recognition of indigenous languages often results in prejudicial treatment and disadvantages for indigenous peoples, in particular in the areas of education, health and access to services. More often than not, indigenous languages are not taught in schools. In fact, in some countries indigenous children are still forcibly removed from their families and sent to boarding schools, where not only are they forbidden from speaking their languages, but they often also suffer physical, mental and even sexual abuse. This is unconscionable. We know from the history of boarding schools in the United States and Australia; we know from the work of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which was headed by Chief Wilton Littlechild and which spent over five years gathering evidence and listening to the testimony of over 7000 residential school survivors, that the purpose of these institutions is to destroy the cultural identities of indigenous children. We can and must do better than this. Indigenous languages cannot be revitalized in a vacuum. Protection of indigenous peoples’ languages requires protection of their lands, territories and resources. It requires recognition of all of their rights, as laid out in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Cultural and language rights are indivisible from all of the other rights of indigenous peoples, and are critical to the implementation of the Declaration – as committed to by Member States at the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples in 2014. Central to all of these rights, and key to the protection of indigenous languages, is indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, which includes their right to freely pursue their own economic, social and cultural development, to self-government in matters relating to their internal and local affairs, and their right to maintain and strengthen their distinct political, legal, economic, social and cultural institutions (as stated in articles. 3, 4 and 5). Further, to preserve and revitalize their languages, indigenous peoples must be able to establish and control their own educational systems and institutions, and have access to education in their own languages (as stated in articles 13 and 14). Indigenous languages have been developed over millenia and are inextricably linked to the lands, waters, territories and resources of the peoples that speak them. Each language represents a unique framework for understanding the world in all its intricacies and represents a complex system of knowledge that is vital for sustaining the Earth’s biological diversity, for finding effective responses to the challenges presented by global climate change, for maintaining the ecological integrity of the world’s remaining intact ecosystems and for ensuring long-term global health and food security. Each time a language dies, so too does a wealth of unique ecological, economic, pharmacological, cultural and spiritual knowledge. The consequences affect all of us. As the great Marcos Terena, a Xané man from Brazil, said when speaking to the world’s governments at the Earth Summit in 1992 – “the future of indigenous peoples, is the future of humanity”. So we cannot be complacent. We must all acknowledge that much more needs to be done. We must accelerate our efforts towards the full and effective implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. In closing, I reiterate the call of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues to proclaim a Decade on Indigenous Languages. We are joined in this call by the other indigenous-specific UN mechanisms – the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; and the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples. Looking to the future, I urge you all to be bold, to invest in inclusive, rights-based approaches to sustainable development that go far beyond 2030, and to
Land is Life Condemns “Decree 751” Which Threatens Peoples Living in Voluntary Isolation in Ecuador’s Yasuní National Park
According to data collected and presented by Land is Life in the 18th United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNFPII), there are a total of 185 records of Indigenous Peoples Living in Isolation (PIAV) in South America, of which 66 are confirmed and 119 are pending confirmation. In 2007, the Ecuadorian government established a Plan of Precautionary Measures for the Protection of Isolated Indigenous Peoples. The plan mandated the creation of the Tataeri Taromenane Intangible Zone (ZITT), within the Yasuní National Park and defined a 10km diameter buffer zone. The objective was to avoid development activities, mainly extractive, that put at risk the integrity of the ZITT and the people living therein. In the following year, in a referendum to the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador, the State explicitly recognized the existence of Isolated Peoples and their fundamental rights. The state declared their territories an “irreducible ancestral possession” and intangible, banning all forms of extractive activity. These initiatives elevated Ecuador as a leader in the defense and protection of the PIAV. However, the state’s declaration did not lead to any progress, and even now, Ecuador has no public policy codifying the protection of isolated indigenous peoples. In addition, numerous official measures have been taken that put at risk the protection of these peoples including: Constant reduction of human and financial resources; Postponement of the development of public policy for the protection of PIAV; Absence of effective protection initiatives for PIAV and their territories in the face of threats from oil activities, directly promoted by the Ecuadorian State with capital from China, Spain and Ecuador; Expansion of the agricultural and colonization frontiers, exposing the PIAV to surrounding populations; Local governments are creating roads and infrastructure adjacent to PIAV populations without proper consultation. The current administration has further weakened the ability of government agencies to manage and execute the protection of the PIAV by merging the Directorate of Isolated Peoples with the National Secretariate for Policy Management – diluting the original agency’s power and removing their independence. The new organization is now exposed to political pressure by parties who have publically declared their interests to be in opposition to those of the Indigenous Peoples. Map showing impacts of Decree 751 On May 21, 2019, the government passed Executive Decree 751. This decree is unconstitutional and contradicts the result of the government organized Popular Consultation in February of 2018 and further demonstrates their anti-protection agenda. While Article 2 expands the ZITT by 60,450 hectares, Article 3, then places PIAV in a vulnerable position since it allows the construction of “platforms of hydrocarbon production” in the buffer zone of the ZITT – an invasion that was previously prohibited. On top of intruding on the protected area, such platforms harm the environment, pollute the soil and water, and disturb the ecological system that peoples in isolation depend on. Many scientific studies affirm and verify the presence of these populations outside the ZITT, however, Decree 751 deliberately ignores these studies, even though they have been widely disseminated. Decree 751 threatens the physical and social integrity of the PIAV that inhabit the interior of Yasuní Park, violating the international standards of protection of the fundamental rights of these peoples. Land is Life makes a public call to action and affirms the countless scientific studies and articles published nationally and internationally, urging the Ecuadorian State to: Convene civil society, through indigenous and allied organizations, for public consultation within the framework of the provisions of Convention 169 of the ILO, to define the Public Policy of Protection for the PIAV; Revoke Decree 751 and accept the original mandate of the referendum, that the constitutional precepts be enforced in article 57, on irreducible and intangible ancestral possession of their territories, thus prohibiting any type of extractive activity in the buffer zone and within the ZITT; Obey the results of the referendum, in which a large majority responded favorably to the increase of the ZITT and the reduction of oil exploitation in the area.
Land is Life and Snowchange Cooperative Launch Indigenous-Led Grantmaking in the Arctic Supporting Five Grassroots Initiatives in the North American Arctic
In an effort to better address the needs of the Indigenous-rights movement at the grassroots level in the Arctic region, Land is Life has partnered with Snowchange Cooperative, to launch our Indigenous-Led Grantmaking initiative in the North American Arctic (this has included sites also in the Boreal and Subarctic). Indigenous-Led Grantmaking is an approach developed by Land is Life and its global network to provide support for their self-determination through small, flexible funds to grassroots Indigenous leaders, communities, and organizations around the globe. For this regional pilot initiative, Tero Mustonen of Snowchange Cooperative, a trusted Indigenous leader of the Community of Selkie, a traditional village in North Karelia, Finland, identified small, yet important initiatives within the North American Arctic and will work with recipients to monitor, evaluate and report in a way that recognizes their unexpected and frequently changing circumstances and upholds their right to self-determination. Additionally, Snowchange has been conducting a wide-ranging climate change, wellbeing and youth-oriented initiatives to document climate change impacts and traditional knowledge, identify community-based measures to adapt to those changes and provide culturally-appropriate mechanisms for transfer of Indigenous knowledge, culture and ways of life to youth on land at the same time. Land is Life has agreed to collaborate on and co-sponsor an event organized by Snowchange Cooperative which will convene an intergenerational group of Indigenous people to share this work and discuss the realities and potential solutions to these new and growing challenges. This new partnership builds off experience in the region through our long-term capacity building partnership with the Gwich’in Steering Committee which has been supported through NoVo Foundation. INDIGENOUS-LED GRANTS IN THE NORTH AMERICAN ARCTIC: Tahltan Community Based Monitoring ProgrammeIndigenous Organization: Tū’dese̲’chō Wholistic Indigenous Leadership Development Society Location: Northern British Columbia and Yukon, Canada This proposal addresses a part of the North American north which is often excluded from Arctic cooperation due to its location at the BC-Yukon borderlands. It is also a central location for the pristine Stikine watershed. There are no land claims in place and the people are interested in advancing steps towards Indigenous sovereignty and progressive climate work. The proposal will organize a community meeting, take first steps in CBM monitoring and engage local schools and scientists. The LIL grant funding will allow hunters, youth, and Elders to participate in the overall mission and a more level dialogue with science and governmental parts of a monitoring mission. Atlas Mapping ProjectIndigenous Organization: Hamlet of Chesterfield InletLocation: Nunavut, Canada This hamlet wishes to start creating an online atlas of traditional land uses place names, ecology, and archaeology. Of special interest is the focus on caribou as a keystone species. It is recommended that a seed fund is provided from the LIL grant to focus specifically on Elder’s knowledge documentation. Inuinnaqtun Mentor-Apprentice ProjectIndigenous Organization: Pitquhirnikkut Ilihautiniq / Kitikmeot Heritage SocietyLocation: Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada This mentor-apprentice program proposal addresses a real and urgent need. The speakers of Inuinnaqtun are being affected by rapid cultural change and despite the success of Nunavut as an Inuit-led territory on other fields, it is true that the linguistic revitalization is doing poorly. Pitquhirnikkut Ilihautiniq also points correctly to the fact that worldviews, key Indigenous cultural concepts and relationships with the land can only be expressed in Inuinnaqtun. Unangax Plants as Foods and Medicine Symposium Indigenous Organization: ALEUTIAN PRIBILOF ISLANDS ASSOCIATION, INCLocation: Unalaska, Alaska This project wishes to convey Unangax Indigenous knowledge at an event designed to revitalize and promote the traditional plant knowledge of the community. This work includes linguistic terms of plants, revitalization of traditional knowledge and documentation of existing knowledge, making plant salves and other healing elements, preservation of foods and herbal teas. The project is led by a respected Aleut organization and the plan is solid and credible. Painting the Future of Unalakleet Weather: Merging Science, Indigenous Knowledge and Inupiaq Youth Voices for Community Climate Assessment Indigenous Organization: Unalakleet Community Location: Unalakleet, Alaska Unalakleet is the hub of the Norton Sound communities and the center of the Bering Strait School District. The region according to the proposal suffers from intensifying impacts on the coastal erosion, storm events and temperature changes. The project participants, representing citizens and members of the Inupiaq population of Unalakleet are proposing to finding solutions through Indigenous knowledge and science. The project will produce a first-ever science paper of Inupiaq knowledge from Unalakleet and weather data of the baseline changes, western science assessment of the urgent issues on Norton Sound and a “visions of the future” youth Indigenous arts action for allowing the youngest to express their views on the changes underway. International Snowchange Co-op is providing co-funds and the Bering Sea School District will work on the project youth aspect (initial agreement in April 2019).