[News] Venezuela Grants Land to Indigenous Communities On Indigenous Resistance Day

[Anti-Imperialist News]

Venezuela Grants Land to Indigenous Communities On Indigenous Resistance Day

October 13th 2009, by Kiraz Janicke - Venezuelanalysis.com
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/4858

Caracas, October 13, 2009 (venezuelanalysis.com) 
- Celebrating 517 years of indigenous resistance 
to invasion and colonisation Venezuela marked 
Indigenous Resistance Day on Monday with a street 
march through the capital, Caracas, the granting 
of title deeds to indigenous communities, and a 
special session of the National Assembly.

Across the Americas October 12 is widely 
celebrated as Columbus Day, the day in 1492 when 
Christopher Columbus, representing the Spanish 
Crown, first arrived in the Americas. In 2004 the 
Venezuelan government officially changed the name 
to Indigenous Resistance Day.

In Caracas, thousands of members of Venezuelan 
President Hugo Chavez's United Socialist Party of 
Venezuela (PSUV), together with members of 
Venezuela's 44 indigenous groups, marched to the 
National Pantheon, in order to celebrate 
achievements for indigenous peoples under the 
Chavez government and claim their rights as the 
original inhabitants of the country.

A special session of the National Assembly then 
took place in the Pantheon, where the remains of 
16th Century Indigenous Cacique (Chief) 
Guaicaipuro lie as well as those of Venezuelan 
independence leader Simon Bolivar, who fought against Spanish colonialism.

Also during a special ceremony in Zulia state, 
Venezuelan Interior Relations and Justice 
Minister, Tarek el Aissami, handed over title 
deeds covering some 41,630 hectares of land to 
three Yukpa indigenous communities in the Sierra de Perija National Park.

"Today we join in this celebration of Indigenous 
Resistance Day, the day of the dignity of the 
indigenous peoples of Latin America and 
particularly of the Bolivarian and Revolutionary 
Venezuela," stressed the minister.

Yupka community spokesperson Efrain Romero said, 
"It's historic to receive title to the lands we 
inhabit," and added, "We reaffirm our fight for 
this revolution to continue advancing (...) we 
reaffirm our support for President Hugo Chávez."

In recent years the Sierra de Perija region has 
been the scenario of a fierce conflict between 
large "landowners" and the indigenous communities 
who were forcibly driven off their lands during 
the Perez Jimenez dictatorship in the 1940s.

The situation came to a head in July 2008 when 
Yukpa indigenous communities occupied 14 large 
estates to demand legal title to their ancestral 
lands. Estate owner Alejandro Vargas and four 
others, armed with guns and machetes, responded 
by attempting to assassinate the Yukpa cacique 
(chief) Sabino Romero, who was leading the 
occupations, and beat and killed Romero's elderly 
109-year-old father Jose Manuel Romero.

Then on August 6 hundreds of armed mercenaries, 
hired by large landowners, attacked the indigenous communities.

At the time Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez 
slammed what he described as the "ambiguous 
attitudes" of some government functionaries in 
dealing with the land demarcation process and 
ordered an investigation into the violent attacks.

"There should be no doubt: Between the large 
estate owners and the Indians, this government is 
with the Indians" Chavez said.

During his speech today El Aissami emphasised 
that the delivery of title deeds of land to 
indigenous peoples is one of the policies 
promoted by the National Executive to ensure 
comprehensive recognition of the ancestral 
territorial rights of indigenous peoples.

Sergio Rodríguez, a spokesperson for the 
Environment Ministry clarified that other areas 
belonging to Yukpa communities are yet to be 
demarcated but said the ministry, together with 
the indigenous communities and other agencies 
that comprise the National Demarcation 
Commission, "will continue to work to resolve the 
situation. Our goal is to provide land titles to 
those Yukpa sectors that lack them by the end of the year."

However, another dispute in the Sierra de Perija 
region between the Barí, Yukpa, and Wayúu 
indigenous peoples resisting coal mining on their 
lands on the one hand and the state-owned 
Corpozulia, still has not been fully resolved.

The government is also expected to hand over 
title deeds covering 5,310 hectares to the 366 
strong Palital community, belonging to the 
Kari'ña ethnicity in the state of Anzoategui.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the III 
Congress of the Great Abya Yala [the Americas] 
Nation of Anti-Imperialist Indigenous Peoples 
from the South in the remote Amazonas state, 
Minister for the President's Office, Luis Reyes 
Reyes, also granted credits to representatives of 
indigenous communities to assist in agricultural production.

Despite many unresolved issues, indigenous 
peoples have made significant advances in 
Venezuela over the last 10 years. The Bolivarian 
Constitution adopted in 1999, through Art. 8 
specifically emphasises recognition and respect 
for indigenous land rights, culture, language, 
and customs.  According to the constitution, the 
role of the Venezuelan state is to participate 
with indigenous people in the demarcation of 
traditional land, guaranteeing the right to 
collective ownership.  The state is also expected 
to promote the cultural values of indigenous people.

Article 120 of the Constitution also states that 
exploitation of any natural resource is "subject 
to prior information and consultation with the native communities concerned."

In 2003 the government also initiated the 
Guaicaipuro Mission, a social program aimed at 
the promotion and realization of indigenous 
rights as recognised in the constitution.

Venezuela's indigenous people, who comprise 
approximately 1.6% of the population, also have 
three indigenous representatives in the National Assembly.




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