Newsletter April 2019
13 April 2019
UPDATE: THERE ARE NO GLACIERS LEFT IN THE SIERRA
This morning the Chairman of the Tairona Heritage Trust, Jean-Paul Mertinez, the Kogi-speaking anthropologist Falk Parra-Witte and I met for a long breakfast in London with the Cabildo of the Organisación Gonawindua Tayrona, José Santos Sauna. He was returning to Colombia after a conference in Oxford with the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT), who are working extensively in the Sierra. Santos was accompanied by Isidoro Hazbun, an associate programme officer of ACT, who comes from Santa Marta and is based in Washington.
Photo: Kogi Cabildo José Santos Sauna with ACT
Associate Program Officer Isidoro Hazbun
The main points of our meeting were:
To gather accurate information about the scale of violence and burnings in the Sierra
To learn about current developments concerning land recovery and the Black Line
To discuss the Trust’s next steps.
To convey our condolences on the passing of Mama Jacinto
1. There has been a serious and very alarming growth of
paramilitary activity in the Sierra which affects indigenous
people very directly. There have been at least 150 recent
killings of activists and leaders in Colombia. Santos has been
targeted, and is now living at a secure location with 24-hour
protection. His surviving children have left the Sierra.
Kidnappers seized Kogi to demand information on indigenous
assets and protection money. This scary situation is associated
with control of the lucrative tourist trade and the current
aggressive demands for mining rights. The Colombian
government appears to be turning a blind eye to the scale of
what is happening. Overall, this may be seen as the final stage
of the Columbian conquest of America.
The situation has been compounded by environmental changes,
especially the long drought. This is understood to be the
reason for the extensive fires which have devastated some
indigenous communities; they are not believed to have been
deliberate arson. The drought broke two weeks ago.
The Trust was thanked warmly for its financial contribution to
the reconstruction effort, which was used to pay for a town to
be rebuilt and re-equipped.
2. The Black Line is under threat as it is not properly legally
protected. Efforts to protect it, such as the decree of the last
President, have actually made it more exposed and it is now a
nation-wide focus of tensions and clashes of interests.
The Kogi have expelled the nuns from their mission at
Pueblo Viejo, telling them that their time in the Sierra had
come to an end. They offered them a period of grace of up to a
year, but the nuns responded by ripping out everything from
their school and medical centre and disappearing in 48 hours,
leaving an empty shell. The ACT have been supporting and
financing land restoration at Dibulla under the supervision of
Mama Shibulata. Operating over 1.3 km of shoreline, from Dibulla
to the new intrusive port mega-project at Puerto Brisa, the
project has restored wetlands and rivers, and brought back
important water-margin life such as turtles and iguanas. Isidoro
offered to supply detailed technical reports on what is being
done and (especially) how. It is planned to build an indigenous
heritage centre there, to be used on an invitation-only
basis.
3. It was agreed that the Trust and Tchendukua should move
forward as rapidly as possible in developing an
"Alliance" between Kogi and Western experts and
institutions. The objective is to produce proposals for
land guardianship based on indigenous knowledge that can be
applied globally. To this end we are asked to set up a
consultation meeting, probably in Dibulla, between Mamas, the
Trust and Tchendukua, with input from the ACT, as soon as
possible. The purpose of the meeting is to define objectives, a
structure and a programme of work, particularly addressing
communication, education and an new (for us) approach to
practical ecological management. We suggested that the meeting
should include the French environmental philosopher Patrick
Desgorges, at least one environmental scientist, and perhaps a
jurist (since concepts such as "earth law" and the
"natural contract" were part of our discussions in
France).
We have to produce a budget and funding for this meeting. Santos
will also seek the Mamas’ permission for a translation of
Shikwakala, their book on Kogi Mamas’ management of the
Sierra, into other languages.
4. We were told of the preparations being made for Mama
Jacinto’s burial, which will follow a precise set of
instructions which he dictated to Santos shortly before his
death. Alan's wife Sarah joined us and made an
offering on behalf of the Trust which Santos is carrying back.
Santos was instructed by Jacinto that he must now concentrate on
communication with Younger Brother (a term which was not used)
and is considering stepping down as Cabildo in a year or so.
Photo: Sarah Ereira making offering to Santos on
behalf of the Trust.
Alan Ereira 13 April 2019