[IPSM] Underreported Struggles for March

[Ahni]

FYI...Ahni

In February we saw 'civil society' start to demand corporations abandon
oppressive and destructive practices. Well, that trend continued through
March; unfortunately, it seems to have been more chest pounding than
anything… It was as if everyone sat around a campfire, talking about far off
things while a fire raged a foot to their backside. Integrity what?
Responsibility who? "No, no no. We're not doing anything wrong. We're not
the problem. We're not the enemy."

And so, desperately clinging to myth and hypocrisy, the so-called business
community pushed on, doing everything to ensure you can keep getting toilet
paper, cheese puffs, and semi-automatic machine guns.

As for the enemy? Those said to be unworthy and in the way? From Tasmania to
Alaska and Peru to China, we continued to call the lie for what it is, and
doing our best to live our own life.
Underreported Struggles for March
http://intercontinentalcry.org/underreported-struggles-for-march/

*March 29*
The Nukak Want to Live in
Peace<http://intercontinentalcry.org/the-nukak-want-to-live-in-peace/>
The Nukak, one of the Amazon's last nomadic Peoples, have once again been
caught between the Colombian army and the left-wing FARC guerrillas.
According to a March 12 statement by Survival International, they were
bombed "by the Colombian army in its attempt to fight the guerrillas who
have violently taken control of much of the Nukak land. Many Nukak have fled
their territory to a local town in recent days, and many more are expected
to follow suit."

*March 27*
Chippewa Demand
Accountability<http://intercontinentalcry.org/rise-and-shine-chippewa-demand-accountability/>
A group of Chippewa from Lac du Flambeau locked themselves inside the Tribal
Council office yesterday morning to demand a federal investigation into the
current Tribal government. Calling themselves Ginews (Ojibwe for Golden
Eagles), the group said in a statement early on that the Tribal Council has
abused their position to the point where everyone at Lac du Flambeau faces
poverty.

*March 24*
Warning the World that Zapatismo Is in
Danger<http://www.envio.org.ni/articulo/3718>
The Zapatistas have flashed a red alert to Mexico and the world. The problem
is not just the growing military aggression, but rather that important
sectors of Mexican society are ignoring the danger. Mexico will not be the
only loser if Zapatismo is destroyed. Latin America and all of humanity will
lose as well.

Project of Autonomy and Self-Determination for Kumiai and
Cucapa<http://intercontinentalcry.org/project-of-autonomy-and-self-determination-for-kumiai-and-cucapa/>
Last month, the Cucapa and Kumiai Indigenous Communities of Baja California,
Mexico, announced a multilateral project dedicated to making themselves
autonomous, self-sufficient, traditionally-governed Peoples. The project
consists of at least 20 different efforts which they plan to implement over
a 5 year period. The efforts include: developing a quality local healthcare
system, improving sustainable agricultural practices, creating communal
spaces, recovering traditional authorities, reclaiming territory and sacred
sites, and laying the groundwork for an autonomous education system that
respects their values and culture.

*March 22*
Is Inequality making us
sick?<http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=9426>
An overview of a four-hour documentary called "Unnatural Casuses," which is
currently airing on PBS. Among many other issues, the "series sheds light on
mounting evidence of how lack of access to power and resources can get under
the skin and disrupt human biology as surely as germs and viruses. It also
reveals a health gradient tied to wealth: those at the top of the class
pyramid average longer, healthier lives, while those at the bottom are the
most disempowered, get sicker more often and die sooner. Most of us fall
somewhere in between." (That doesn't include Indigenous People or minorities
or the poor. We're at the bottom.) Visit
http://www.pbs.org/unnaturalcauses/for more.

*March 20*
Tribal Peoples' Water Being Destroyed by Industry and
Governments<http://www.survival-international.org/news/3159>
Survival International today released a summary report which shows how
tribal peoples are having their basic right to water denied. The document is
released to coincide with World Water Day (March 22). Taking examples from
nine different tribes, it explains how industry and governments are
destroying tribal peoples' water sources.

*March 19*
Oil prospectors corner Peru's last indigenous
people<http://news.trend.az/index.shtml?show=news&newsid=1159602&lang=EN>
There are small groups of the Cacataibo community living in the Cordillera
Azul mountain range in Amazonia, near the Brazilian border. Most of the
Cacataibos have come into contact with Western culture, but those who remain
totally untouched by the outside world are now being ever more cornered by
loggers and oil prospectors (namely, the Peruvian state and Canadian oil
firm Petrolifera Petroleum Limited, based in Calgary, Alberta)

Benetton Trying to Evict Mapuche from their
Lands<http://intercontinentalcry.org/benetton-trying-to-evict-mapuche-from-their-lands/>
On March 4th, the Italian textile consortium Benetton filed a lawsuit in an
Argentinian court that seeks to evict a Mapuche community from the land
known as "Santa Rosa." In February of last year, the Mapuche reclaimed the
land after being violently evicted 5 years earlier.

*March 18*
Violence against indigenous women related to land
rights<http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/mar/18/yehey/top_stories/20080318top6.html>
Yocogan-Diano, acting chairman of Innabuyog, an organization of indigenous
women in the Cordilleras, discusses the struggles of Indigenous Women in the
Cordillera and all over the Philippines as it relates to land rights and
self-determination efforts. See here for a related
article<http://southasia.oneworld.net/article/view/159278/1/1972>
.

*March 17*
Ranchers threaten Enawene Nawe
Indians<http://www.survival-international.org/news/3142>
A group of armed men have walked into an Enawene Nawe fishing camp in the
Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, and threatened the Indians with reprisals
unless they leave. When the Indians asked who they were, two said they were
policemen. The others identified themselves as landowners from the area.

Huichol say no to Mexican
highway<http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096416850&na=730>
Nine hundred men, women and children of the Huichol community of Santa
Catarina in Jalisco, Mexico, staged a peaceful blockade for two weeks in
February to protest a proposed highway into their remote Sierra territory.
The week of March 3, the Mexican government temporarily halted the proposed
highway north of Guadalajara. Now, in the face of pressure from local
government and commercial interests to open up their territory, this
traditional community is trying to figure out what to do next.

*March 15*
Bishops block mining operation in
Zamboanga<http://www.gmanews.tv/story/84958/Bishops-block-mining-operation-in-Zamboanga>
In an interesting and perhaps ironic turn, mining firm Toronto Ventures Inc.
(TVI) has been denied permission to operate in Canatuan village in Siocon
town in Zamboanga del Norte. This comes as a result of Catholic bishops
speaking against TVi's project.

*March 14*
West Papuans charged with
Rebellion<http://intercontinentalcry.org/west-papuans-charged-with-rebellion/>
13 West Papuans involved in a peaceful demonstration yesterday have been
charged with subversion and rebellion under Indonesian law. The group was
arrested for carrying and waving the Kejora (Morning Star) flag which the
government has banned from public display.

*March 13*
Kenyans ill in 'toxic waste' leak
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7293657.stm>
Hundreds of people near the Kenyan port of Mombasa say they have become ill
after a consignment of leaking chemical containers was dumped nearby.
Witnesses told the BBC the containers were abandoned at Kipevu near the port
about a month ago by a truck driver who had noticed (yellow liquid and
noxious fumes) seeping out.

FYI: The Deployment of US Troops inside
Canada<http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=8323>
On February 14th, Canada and the US signed an agreement which allows for the
deployment of US troops inside Canada. There was no official announcement
nor was there a formal decision at the governmental level. In fact the
agreement was barely mentioned by the Canadian media. The agreement, which
raises farreaching issues of national sovereignty, was not between the two
governments. It was signed by military commanding officers.

Stop the Ilisu Dam Project in Southeast
Turkey<http://intercontinentalcry.org/stop-the-ilisu-dam-project-in-southeast-turkey/>
Around 100 villagers gathered in front of the German, Austrian and Swiss
embassies on Tuesday to protest against the construction of the Ilisu Dam on
the River Tigris. Once completed, the controversial project would submerge
the ancient town of Hasankeyf (it's 12,000 years old) along with 200 nearby
villages, displacing up to 78,000 people.

*March 11*
Actions Taken Against Monsanto, Syngenta, Aracruz,
Vale<http://intercontinentalcry.org/actions-taken-against-monsanto-syngenta-aracruz-vale/>
This article is overview of Via Campesina's "week of mobilization for
Agrarian Reform and against the violence of big land-owners", which came to
an end with the women of Via Campesina and the Landless Workers Movement of
Brazil taking several actions against the transnational companies Monsanto,
and Syngenta.

*March 10*
Bear Mountain: Stripping Away Land & Rights on Vancouver
Island<http://mostlywater.org/bear_mtn_action_update_stripping_away_land_and_rights_vancouver_island>
An update on the Bear Mountain resort and interchange development project,
proponents for which are destroying rare ecosystems, Indigenous Sacred
sites, and people's democratic rights in order to profit from expensive
condos and overpriced real estate. See http://treesit.blogspot.com for more
information.

Indigenous Groups Opposed to El Diquis Hydro
Project<http://intercontinentalcry.org/indigenous-groups-opposed-to-el-diquis-hydro-project/>
Indigenous groups in Costa Rica have reaffirmed their opposition to El
Diquis, a hydro-electric project the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE)
plans to build in the southern province of Puntarenas. The government of
Costa Rica recently declared the project a "National interest". As it's
currently proposed, El Diquis would flood the Traditional Lands of the
Terraba and Chinakicha Nations. Forcing their displacement, the project
would also compromise and infringe upon both Peoples' beliefs and cultures.
Over 200 historical sites; including Burial Grounds, Sacred Sites, and
Ancient Ruins—would all be destroyed by the flood.

*March 9*
Taiwan Indigenous groups want
reform<http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2008/03/09/2003404700>
"Wearing traditional Aboriginal clothing and bands bearing the word
"dignity," hundreds of Aborigines from across the country yesterday staged a
demonstration in front of National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall and
marched to the Presidential Office, demanding greater protection of their
rights." They went on to hold a discussion with President Chen Shui-bian,
viewing Taiwan as an equal to their Nations.

Uranium mine expansion threatens the
Lakota<http://intercontinentalcry.org/uranium-mine-expansion-threatens-the-lakota/>
The Canadian-based uranium giant Cameco Resources is attempting to expand
their mining operation near Crawford, Nebraska. If the expansion is approved
as Cameco hopes it could seriously infringe on those who depend on water
from the region; among them, the People of Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and
others in eight states from Nebraska to Texas.

*March 7*
OceanaGold wants money for being issued an
injunction<http://intercontinentalcry.org/oceanagold-wants-money-for-being-issued-an-injunction/>
A regional trial court in Nueva Vizcaya served OceanaGold with an injunction
last week, halting the company's demolition activities on Didipio lands. Now
the company wants companesatation for the money they claim to be losing as a
result. The Kicker? OceanaGold wants the Didipio indigneous community to pay
it…

*March 1*
Oil Companies as Environmental
Stewards<http://danforthgreens.ca/oil-companies-as-environmental-stewards/>
Oil companies holding tar sands leases to over 70,000 square kilometers of
land are being labeled "environmental stewards" because they have asked the
Alberta government to impose a "partial moratorium" on oil sands leases on
three parcels of undisturbed boreal forest compromising 11,400 square
kilometers… These environmentally conscious oil companies would like to
prevent such "ecological disturbance" until 2011 allowing them to protect
their interests from new competition for three years while they struggle
with a serious labor shortage.
Videos

Oil on Ice <http://intercontinentalcry.org/oil-on-ice/>
This is the first ten minutes of Oil on Ice, a one-hour documentary that
examines the issues surrounding the exploitation of oil in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

Justicia Now! <http://intercontinentalcry.org/justicia-now/>
Here you will find Justicia Now! a 30-minute documentary produced by Mofilms
to help raise awareness about "ChevronTexaco's toxic legacy in the Northern
Ecuadorian region of the Amazon rainforest - and a courageous group of
people called Los Afectados (The Affected Ones) who are seeking justice for
the ensuing cancer, sickness and death in the largest environmental class
action lawsuit in history."

Festival of a Thousand
Stars<http://intercontinentalcry.org/festival-of-a-thousand-stars/>
This video looks at the Festival of a Thousand Stars, a celebration of music
and culture of Southern Ethiopia. Home to more than 55 distinct Indigenous
Peoples, the festival is held every December in Arba Minch, the centre of
the Rift valley.
Reading

>From Demand for Recognition to Building
Autonomies<http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5020>
An article by Francisco López Bárcenas, discussing indigenous movements in
Latin America. Francisco raises several important points that people in
North really need to take some time to think on.

Northern Development in
Canada<http://www.zcommunications.org/znet/viewArticle/16977>
Here Todd Gordon talks about the recent jailing of six members of
Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug; and the broader issue of Neoliberalism and
development above the 51st parallel.

Forced Federalism: Contemporary Challenges to Indigenous
Nationhood<http://www.corntassel.net/forced_federalism.htm>
An overview of and chapter from "Forced Federalism: Contemporary Challenges
to Indigenous Nationhood" by Jeff Corntassel with Lindsay G. Robertson,
Richard C. Witmer II. The book "takes a critical look at the mantra of
tribal economic development and, gaming in particular, as the solution to
the problems besetting American Indian communities."
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