Thanks to VK for the first article, which is from the Workers Party (of Argentina). It is about the struggle of indigenous peoples of southern Argentina. The English translation which follows it is courtesy Bing, as my Spanish is poor. The second article is about a similar struggle in Paraguay.
Best, Romi La fenomenal lucha de los pueblos originarios Partido Obrero | 21 marzo, 2013 Las comunidades del oeste formoseño, con epicentro en el departamento Ramón Lista, llevan a cabo cortes de ruta en el acceso al yacimiento petrolífero de Palmar Largo, Divisadero, Laguna Yema, Fraga y otras comunidades desde hace más de mes y medio. Están luchando por agua, luz, salud, justicia y tierras, ante la indiferencia del gobernador K, Gildo Insfrán. La lucha Wichí desnuda las carencias de los pueblos del interior provincial que no pueden acceder a los servicios mínimos para la subsistencia. Según los propios manifestantes, ascenderían a más de 80 los muertos en las comunidades por falta de acceso al servicio sanitario. Las poblaciones no cuentan con ambulancias para el traslado de los enfermos. En la región, carecen de hospitales equipados y de profesionales, que sólo se hacen presentes por temporadas. La lucha, que comenzó en el pueblo El Chorro, se extendió a todo el oeste provincial, difamada por los medios oficialistas. El Estado provincial y el nacional brillan por su ausencia, pero no así sus fuerzas represivas: más de 500 efectivos de la policía provincial han sido movilizados y otros tantos de Gendarmería, para defender los intereses de los empresarios petroleros y de los terratenientes. El problema de la tierra Una vez más, como en el caso Qom, las comunidades se ven afectadas directamente por la expansión de la frontera sojera; se desvían los canales y cursos de agua dulce para llevarlos a los campos de los grandes terratenientes, lo cual, en una zona semiárida, es un problema mayúsculo -se deja a la gran mayoría poblacional sin acceso al agua. Por otro lado, la explotación del petróleo por parte de Pluspetrol y Gran Terra Energy extrae las riquezas del territorio Wichí sin dejarles absolutamente nada, ni luz, ni agua… sólo enfermedades. Desde el inicio de este conflicto, los gobiernos nacional y provincial miraron para otro lado. Después de haber ninguneado los reclamos, acusan a los Wichí de terroristas. Una perspectiva provincial En Formosa, hay un clima de rebelión que se agudiza según la crisis económica golpea con fuerza a los trabajadores y campesinos. La lucha de los Qom y los Wichí han profundizado la crisis del gobierno provincial y han suscitado un apoyo en la juventud de la capital provincial. La sorpresa fue mayúscula para el gobierno de Insfrán: hace poco menos de un mes, músicos y bandas subían al escenario de un festival de rock organizado por el Estado pidiendo justicia por los Qom, los Wichí y por Mariano Ferreyra. La juventud de Formosa muestra su descontento ante el ataque que sufren las comunidades del interior, mientras el gobierno nacional y provincial preparan la represión. Ante este cuadro, el Partido Obrero exige: el inmediato retiro de las fuerzas represivas y la desmilitarización del territorio Wichí por parte de los gobiernos, la urgente tarea de poner en marcha un sistema sanitario que contemple las necesidades del centro-oeste formoseño, ambulancias, hospitales, equipos, medicamentes y profesionales de la salud, la conexión a las comunidades del tendido eléctrico y el agua, inmediata restitución de las tierras a los Wichí. Además, avanzamos en la idea de la conformación de un congreso provincial de trabajadores en Formosa (junto a sindicatos y gremios combativos) que apoye a las comunidades hasta que estas conquisten sus propias reivindicaciones. The great struggle of native peoples The communities of Formosa West, with its epicenter in the Department Ramón Lista, carry out roadblocks on access to the oilfield of long Palmar, Divisadero, Laguna Yema, Fraga and other communities from more than a month and a half ago. They are fighting for water, light, health, justice and land, indifferent K, Gildo Insfrán Governor. The Wichí fight bare the shortcomings of the provincial interior peoples who cannot access the minimum services for subsistence. They would according to protesters themselves, they amount to more than 80 dead in communities by lack of access to health services. Populations do not have ambulances for the transport of the sick. In the region, lack of equipped hospitals and professionals, who only are present seasonally. The fight, which began in the village of El Chorro, was extended to all provincial West, maligned by the pro-Government media. The provincial government and the national shine by their absence, but not its repressive forces: more than 500 members of the provincial police have been mobilized and many other gendarmerie, to defend the interests of oil entrepreneurs and landowners. The problem of the Earth Once again, as in the case of Qom, communities are affected directly by the expansion of the border soya; deviate channels and freshwater courses to take to the fields of large landowners, which, in a semi-arid area, is a major problem - stops the vast majority population without access to water. On the other hand, the exploitation of oil by Pluspetrol and great Terra Energy extract the riches of the Wichí territory without leaving them absolutely nothing, neither light nor water... only diseases. Since the beginning of this conflict, the national and provincial Governments looked to other side. After having treated the claims, they accuse the Wichi of terrorists. A provincial perspective In Formosa, there is a climate of rebellion that intensifies as the economic crisis hit with force to the workers and peasants. The struggle of the Qom and the Wichi have deepened the crisis of the provincial government and have raised a support in the youth of the provincial capital. The surprise was for the Government of Insfran: recently less than a month, bands and musicians climbed onto the stage of a rock festival organized by the State for justice by the Qom, the Wichi and Mariano Ferreyra. Formosa youth shows its displeasure before the attack suffered by the communities in the interior, while national and provincial Government prepare the repression. In this picture, the CWP requires: the immediate removal of the repressive forces and the demilitarization of the Wichí territory governments, the urgent task of implementing a health that you contemplate the Formosa Midwestern, ambulances, hospitals, equipment needs, medications and professional of the health system, the connection to the electrical lines and water communities, immediate restitution of lands to the Wichi. In addition, we are moving on the idea of the creation of a provincial Congress of workers at Formosa (together with trade unions and militant unions) to support the communities until they conquer their own claims. ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////// Friday, March 22, 2013 published on indigenouspeoplesissues.com http://indigenouspeoplesissues.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=17415%3Aparaguay-sawhoyamaxa-indigenous-community-statement-after-years-of-expulsion-from-our-ancestral-lands-we-return-to-recover-them&catid=23%3Asouth-america-indigenous-peoples&Itemid=56 Paraguay: Sawhoyamaxa Indigenous Community Statement - After Years Of Expulsion >From Our Ancestral Lands, We Return To Recover Them We declare today a historic day for our community, because more than 20 years since we were expelled from our ancestral lands, we have decided to return to occupy Sawhoyamaxa, our ancestral lands. During these 20 years we have been living along the side of a road, watching how cows occupy the land where we used to live and where our parents lived. These lands are ours, and we do not want to live any longer along the side of this road, witnessing powerlessly the birth of our children and the death of our parents and grandparents from this road, next to the land which we are separated from by a wire fence installed by the cattle rancher Heribert Roedel, with the complicity of the Paraguayan state. For more than 23 years we have gone peacefully to every national and international administrative and judicial body available to us, to recover our land. We have used all of the legal tools that exist, to recover what is ours. Nevertheless, despite having obtained a judgment in our favour from the Interamerican Court of Human Rights seven years ago, we continue living alongside the road, without any hope that the State will return our lands. For this reason we have taken this legitimate decision, because we see there is no hope that the State will do what it has to do to return our lands, by evicting the man who usurped them. Recovering our land is fundamental because the future of our community depends upon it: our lives and those of our children, fathers and mothers are inextricably linked to this land. Our culture, language and traditions are inextricably linked to this land. Without this land, we run the risk of disintegrating as a community. At the same time as announcing this re-occupation, we demand that the Paraguayan State refrain from carrying out any action that would threaten the community in its legitimate struggle to recover its lands, and that it guarantee that no third party threaten our lives or our physical integrity. It is the inaction of the Paraguayan State, arising from its failure to fulfil its constitutional duties to return our lands to us, and its failure to uphold the judgment of the Interamerican Court of Human Rights, that obliges us to occupy our land in this way. We call to our indigenous brothers and sisters to express solidarity with our struggle; similarly, we call to any person who understands our demands to express their solidarity, demanding that the Paraguayan State return our lands. No more expulsion of indigenous peoples! Land restitution for Sawhoyamaxa! Background to the case For the last twenty years, since we were expelled from our land by cattle ranchers who took over the place we lived, our community of over 150 families has been living along the verges of the Rafael Franco road, between kilometres 370 and 390. In 1989 we instigated a request for the restitution of our land before the INDI (National Indigenous Institute) and as a result of the failure of the relevant national institutions to provide any results, in 2000 we sought justice before the Interamerican Human Rights System. In 2006, the Interamerican Court of Human Rights issued a judgment supporting our community’s demands, requiring the Paraguayan State to return, within three years, more than 14,000 hectares of our land, known as Santa Elisa and Michi. Today, these lands are in the hands of a cattle rancher of German origin, named Heribert Roedel, whose makes his livelihood from cattle ranching on these lands, and in an area of more than 60,000 hectares. Seven years on from this judgment, the lands remain in the hands of this cattle rancher and we, the community, remain alongside the road. Sawhoyamaxa community, 21 March 2013. Carlos Marecos, Community Leader [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:[email protected]?subject=laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! 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