INDIGENOUS
PEOPLES
AND
THE BOLIVARIAN VISION IN
Official statistics place
the Indigenous population of
Given the grave injustices
faced by Indigenous communities, an effort is now being made to repay the
historical debt owed to them by the state.
For the first time, Venezuela is recognizing the enormous cultural
contribution of Indigenous peoples and working to assure their place in the
future of national social, political, and economic life.
HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
26 different ethnic groups
exist in
Indigenous communities are
hardly the "primitive" cultures that Venezuelans and outsiders alike
have imagined and depicted for so many years.[3] A process of
profound change began with European colonization, which had a devastating
affect on the Indigenous population of Venezuela, particularly along the
Caribbean coastline, but also throughout the country in the Amazon region, the
central plains, and the Andes mountains.
Throughout the political and economic throes of nation formation and
rapid industrialization, Indigenous citizens were an afterthought, rarely
acknowledged.
Previous administrations
consistently neglected the needs of Indigenous communities in Venezuela. A case in point is the failure of the
government to provide proper medical services to Warao Indigenous people in the
Delta Region who suffered an outbreak of cholera in the early 1990s. Under president Carlos Andrés Pérez, not
only were the Warao denied access to health care, and thus not treated as full
citizens, they were also blamed by the government for the spread of cholera.[4] 1992 marked
the five hundredth anniversary of the arrival of Spanish Colonists, and little
seemed to have changed. On the eve of
the 20th Century, the time was ripe for the revalorization and
empowerment of Indigenous communities in Venezuela.
LEGAL GUARANTEES FOR INDIGENOUS RIGHTS
Indigenous rights have been
constitutionally guaranteed in
The State recognizes the existence of native peoples
and communities, their social, political and economic organization, their
cultures, practices and customs, languages and religions, as well as their
habitat and original rights to the lands they ancestrally and traditionally
occupy, and which are necessary to develop and guarantee their way of life.
Constitutional guarantees
regarding Indigenous rights also include the use of natural resources within
Indigenous territories, respect for ethnic and cultural identity, the exercise
of traditional economic practices, protection of intellectual property, and the
right to political participation. One
quite progressive element of the constitution, for example, guarantees
Indigenous peoples " the right to their own education, and an education
system of an intercultural and bilingual nature, taking into account their
special social and cultural characteristics, values and traditions."
More recently, a new constitutional reform proposal was put forth by President
Chavez on August 15, 2007. It would
modify Article 100 of the 1999 Constitution to recognize Indigenous heritage:
The
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is the historical product of the confluence of
various cultures, hence the State recognizes the diversity of its expressions
and values the indigenous, European, and Afro-descendant roots that gave rise
to our great South American nation.
Apart from enacting strong national legislation that recognizes and defends Indigenous cultures, Venezuela also complies with important international norms regarding Indigenous rights. On May 22, 2002, President Chavez ratified the UN International Labor Organization Convention (ILO) 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, which lays out a comprehensive set of human rights provisions. ILO 169 also stipulates that "Governments shall have the responsibility for developing, with the participation of the peoples concerned, coordinated and systematic action to protect the rights of these peoples and to guarantee respect for their integrity."[5]
INDIGENOUS POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
Creating opportunities for
Indigenous participation in democracy in
In the
executive branch, a Ministry of Indigenous Affairs was created in January 2007.[7] Previously, a small Office of Indigenous Affairs had fallen under
the auspices of the Ministry of Education.
The Ministry of Indigenous Affairs is currently headed by Nicia Maldonado
(pictured at right), a leader from the Yecuana community of the Amazon region. Additionally, President Chavez appointed
four Vice Ministers of Indigenous Affairs in August 2007; one Vice Minister
each for the Delta region, the Andes, the Amazon, and urban areas.[8]
Communal
councils provide a model for local government that is energizing citizen
participation in Venezuela. These
organizations allow community members to identify and solve problems in their
own communities, and get financial support from the government to do so. In indigenous areas, the communal councils
provide a new format for organization around the principles of democratic
citizenship.[9]
GOVERNMENT-FUNDED SOCIAL PROGRAMS
Ø
Mission Guaicaipuro,
named for an Indigenous leader (pictured at right) who resisted Spanish
Colonial rule, was launched on October 12, 2003. The mission is a government-funded program that seeks to restore
communal land titles and human rights to Venezuela's numerous indigenous
communities, in addition to defending those rights against resource and
financial speculation by the dominant culture.[10]
Ø
Mission Identity is a
massive citizenship and voter registration campaign which has given millions of
Venezuelans national ID cards, including almost 274,000 Indigenous
persons. With the granting of ID cards,
they were able to exercise full citizenship rights – state benefits,
constitutional protections – for the first time. This is just one way in
which the state is attempting to undo past injustices that have kept Indigenous
populations outside of democratic structures.
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND GLOBALIZATION
As globalization has come to affect all cultures
throughout the world,
Indigenous organizing at the
national level in Venezuela began in 1989, when the National Indigenous Council
(CONIVE) was founded to protect traditional lands and defend Indigenous
sovereignty against unbridled industrial and commercial development. CONIVE now incorporates 60 organizations and
representatives from 32 ethnic groups in Venezuela. It has begun to work with other native groups in South America to
discuss advocacy strategies and create international pressure to preserve
indigenous lands and rights.[11]
Since 2003, Venezuela has
hosted an annual International Encounter of Resistance and Solidarity of
Indigenous and Peasant Peoples.[12] Moreover, in
August of 2007, Venezuela hosted the First International Meeting of
Anti-Imperialist Indigenous Peoples of the Americas, in which delegates from 45
different countries participated.
"THE FIRST PRESIDENT EVER TO DO THIS"
Under President Chavez,
In June 2006, CONIVE's "First National March of
the Indigenous People" expressed solidarity with the policies of President
Chavez.[14] The ideological orientation of the Chavez
administration, which is focused around the valorization of history and the
principles of equality, justice, and solidarity with all peoples, is a boon to
the struggle for Indigenous rights in