Land is Life recently visited the Kichwa community of Sarayaku to show solidarity and support for Kawsak Sacha, the community’s plan to manage their lands, territories and resources (originally published in Spanish). As part of our ongoing commitment to building alliances and strengthening networks across Latin America, partners from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, the Philippines and Venezuela—along with the traditional council of Sarayaku—signed a declaration in support of the plan. Yesterday, they gathered in Puyo to hold a press conference announcing the declaration, an important step as they prepare to formally present the plan to the Ecuadorian President in July 2018.
Kawsak Sacha is an important development not only for the people of Sarayaku, but for Indigenous Peoples in Latin America and around the world, as it represents an Indigenous-led model for the protection and conservation of the environment that was developed from their own perspectives and based on their traditional values.
Delegates from the International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self Determination & Liberation (IPMSDL), long-time Indigenous allies from the Philippines, also participated in a knowledge exchange with like-minded groups from throughout Latin America during the meetings in Puyo. The people of Sarayaku released an additional Declaration in Solidarity against the ongoing violence against Indigenous Peoples and communities in the Philippines.