Around 450 delegates from some 35 indigenous communities, representing more than 500,000 people across Venezuela, met on March 24-26 for the Fifth National Congress of Indigenous Peoples, under the theme of "Self-determination of indigenous peoples and the socialism of the 21st century". The congress, organised by the National Indigenous Council of Venezuela (CONIVE), discussed plans for economic development and defence of the cultural identity and way of life of indigenous communities.
Caracas mayor Juan Barreto told the congress, "We are rescuing part of our history. They made us believe that the history of Venezuela begins with the arrival of the [Spanish] invaders, but the truth is we have a long and rich history; a memory that we must rescue." Barreto announced the creation of the City Council for the Investigation of Our History.
In a major speech, the minister for popular participation and social development, Jorge Luis Garcia Carneiro, announced that the Venezuelan government will allocate 15-30 billion bolivares (about A$10-20 million) to address the immediate needs of indigenous communities. He asked that the communities prepare to establish their first communal indigenous cabinet, to meet in the state of Amazonia at the end of April.
Because of the difficulties of remote area access to health facilities, Carneiro added that the government is providing 40 ambulances to the eight states where indigenous people live and 23 planes to form an aerial ambulance service, using money from PDVSA (Venezuela's nationalised oil company).
Congress delegates from a number of regions criticised the delay in implementing the demarcation of indigenous territories, so that disputes over invasion of communal lands and differences with landowners over mineral exploitation can be resolved. The communities also want the Catholic Church to hand over titles to indigenous land seized during colonial times.
Gandhi Lugo, a representative of the Warao people of the easternmost state bordering Guyana, told Green Left Weekly: "This congress defends the rights of Indian peoples, calling for improved services in health, education and other areas from the Venezuelan government. President Hugo Chavez has helped us since he came to power. Before him, the Indian people had no schools, housing or medical services. This president has given us the chance to be equal with the Creole people. Now this congress is calling for indigenous law to be recognised as equal also."
Lugo said indigenous people "need work, teachers for our schools. But we also need to protect the environment. The people want to protect their way of life, and balance this with improved services and economic development."
Ali Fernandez, from the Wayuu community in the western state of Zulia, told GLW that "The congress gives us an opportunity to revise and re-evaluate social programs and public policies in relation to the rights of indigenous people, as laid down in the national constitution. We want to see what each minister responsible for indigenous communities is doing, what are the results and what are the programs that they are developing.
"The main problem has always been the question of land. There has always been a lot of exploitation of minerals and natural resources in indigenous areas. Today there is a law that says we have the legal right to decide whether they are going to mine or exploit that area or not. We need to prioritise these questions, and make sure our organisations assert their rights."
"The land question", Fernandez said, "is not just a problem for Venezuela, or even Latin America, but for all indigenous people throughout the world. But here we have the forces, the organisation, the backing of the government, and the ability to fight and participate in this process."
Librada Pocaterra, also a delegate from the Wayuu people and a representative of the Network of Indigenous Women, told GLW: "In the top leadership of CONIVE, we want women to participate on an equal footing with the men. Women have a great capacity to work with the community. Women are natural leaders. We have to strengthen this capacity for women to participate at all levels."
From Green Left Weekly, April 5, 2006.
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