This site is a compilation, systematization, elaboration and diffusion of news on the Amazon Basin, news on circumstances of the processes, vindications, projects, organizations, environmental problems that face the Amazon, objectives, goals and impacts, in short all the relevant, interesting or strategic information that should be spread to the world on from this dynamic international news agency specialized on the topic. The sources of the information are the indigenous organizations and the reporters are Amazonian indigenous people of every on of the countries within the basin, specially trained to feed information to the agency. The project provides the Amazonian indigenous organizations the methodological and specifically designed format to obtain necessary information, without transforming or distorting their oral tradition, concept of relevancy or their rich descriptiveness.

Titles

08-MAY -2003
GAS LINE OF CAMISEA: CLEAN ENERGY, POLLUTING PRODUCTION

Perú and Bolivia will start constructing the binational gas line, by the end of the year 2003, with the goal of taking advantage of the natural gas produced in the Camisea Basin, located in the southeast of Perú, in Amazonian territory. However, the settlements near the extraction zone will face the consequences of the contamination produced by the generation of this apparently clean energy, which would be exported to the US market.

The agents involved in the enterprise are the governments from Peru and Bolivia through the company Pulspetrol, that also includes the American company Hunt Oil and the Korean corporation SK. The project is going to use the infrastructure of the Yagob gas line in Bolivia to build a new one. Its route goes through Mexico where the companies Sempra Energy and CMS Energy are already developing a gas terminal.

The construction area crosses a State Reservation, where Peruvian communities such as Nahua, Nanti and Matsigenka, and other Amazonian people live. The Matsigenka group is placed among Paquiria and Camisea Rivers. They have been "persuaded", by Pulspetrol' s advance groups, to leave their territories, while the residents of Shiateni, already moved, fearing a military intervention and the infection of common illnesses they wouldn't be able to face because of their lack of defenses . By similar projects, Bolivian communities such as Guaraní and Weenhayec have suffered 30 years of environmental degradation: their hunt animals escaped from the area and their rivers are polluted.

AGAINST OIT`S AGREEMENT

Another problem that comes from the creation of the gas line is that the opinion of the affected communities has not been considered. Inside the agreement 169 of the International Organization of the Work it is established the governments and companies` obligation to consult the affected communities when a construction is carried out in protected territories. However, there is still no concrete measures that allow indigenous communities to participate in the formulation, instrumentation and evaluation of inherent development plans within the project. Many of these communities don't speak Spanish and they have not been notified about the risks, benefits and reasons of the project. The construction zone goes through the Nuhua/Kugapakori State Reservation, however, until now the environmental evaluations don't offer a clear vision on the contingency measures to mitigate the bacteriological, environmental and social crises that the construction might cause. Pulspetrol affirms that the company has carried out visits to the establishments Nanti, Nuhua and Matsigenka, but the methodologies applied to settle down and the results of the dialogue are ignored.

The Peruvian Indigenous Federation FENAMAD states that the contact with these towns with people not belonging to the reservation would constitute a serious threat against their right to health, by being exposed to the risks of exogenous illnesses. Before this project starts, it is necessary to resolve on the form in which the rights of the indigenous towns will be guaranteed, about their territory, cultural identity and well-being.The earnings foreseen in the gas, paradoxically considering it a source of alternative and clean energy for the consumers of the developed countries, cause environmental, economic and cultural problems, in the places where it is produced and transported, that have not been fully considered.

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08-MAY -2003
THE NUKAK MAKÚ AND THE THREAT FOR THEIR SURVIVAL

The Nukak Makú, an indigenous community from the Colombian Amazon, that inhabits between the affluent of the Guaviare and the Inírida rivers, is about to disappear. The colonization, the expansion in the use of land for illicit cultivation and the armed conflicts are some of the factors that threats their survival .

From their appearance in 1988, the Nukak has become a protection challenge for the national, regional and local authorities, since perhaps it is the last nomad community of hunters and collectors of the Colombian Amazon.

In spite of their isolation, their impenetrable hunting, fishing and gathering places that were sort of an indigenous shelter of about 600.000 hectares, seem now to be the most exposed and vulnerable places in the map of colonization, armed conflicts, oil exploitation and of illicit activities such as the coca raising .

The latest crisis emerged by the pressure of the armed actors, resulting in forced displacement of 31 Nukak, the same ones that are in danger of dying because of a flu, since they don't have defenses against this illness.

The President Uribe, from Colombia, requested the authorities of Guaviare to protect the nomadic tribe Nukak Maku to avoid its desaperance. Likewaise, the Defender of the People, in a recent pronouncement, rejected the indigenous genocide in Colombia. For now, this nomad community has been temporarily settled in a territory called "Laguna de la María", and in spite of the facts that their territory is already recognized and that 397 millions of pesos (US$ 140.000) have been designated for their sustainment, without a Nukak authority that can assume the leadership and the protection of their people, they won't be able to make use of these benefits.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NUKAK MAKÚ

Fundamental characteristics in their way of life are their mastery in hunting, the gathering of wild fruits, the construction of temporary camps, and the absence of political leaders and institutions. They don't use canoes and cross the river swimming. For housing, they create slights and perishable passing ways or leaf ravines and semi permanent camps, built near to indigenous and colonists towns.

They have developed agricultural practices that posses variable occurrence. To carry out their tasks of self/supplement, they divide their tasks by gender and age: woman are in charge of planting and preparing meals, taking care of the children and producing clay objects. Man are in charge of hunting, fishing and collecting wild products. The gathering of a wide variety of fibers, wood, plants, fruits and insects is a task of the family group.

The experts see the Nukak Makú as the only Amazon ethnic community that still maintains hunting way of life, traditional collector and of a high mobility.

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13-MAY -2003
THE INTERAMERICAN COMMISSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS REQUESTED THE ECUADORIAN STATE TO EXECUTE PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES IN FAVOR OF AMAZONIAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

The Interamerican Commission of Human Rights, CIDH, an OAS organism with headquarters in Washington, and devoted to the defense and promotion of Human Rights, attended, the past May 5, the accusation the Amazonian indigenous community of Sarayacu set against the Ecuadorian State for disrespecting their Human Rights. The kichwa people of Sarayacu, located in Pastaza Province, is opposed to the oil exploitation carried out in its territories by the Compañía General de Combustibles CGC-Chevrón, and blame the Ecuadorian State of sponsoring the activities of this corporation in spite of the community ´s disagreement.

The CIDH issued precautionary measures that force the Ecuadorian State to guarantee life and the physical, psychic and moral integrity of the Sarayacu community members, that could be threatened and intimidated by members of the army or civilians that do not belong to the community. The organism also recommended to suspend the exploration and exploitation activities in these territories for at least 6 months.

The CIDH resolution comes after years of permanent conflict between the community of Sarayacu and CGC Company. On July 26, 1996 the Ecuadorian State signed a contract, with CGC Company from Argentina, that allowed the petroleum exploration and exploitation in the Block 23 of the Amazon Region. (In 1999 the American Oil Company, Chevron, became partner of CGC and shared with it the 50% of the Block. In 2001 Chevron merged with Texaco).

They also denounce that CGC Company has violated the right, settled in the Ecuadorian Constitution, which states that the communities should be consulted when projects that affect them directly are going to be developed. This right is also guaranteed by the 169 Agreement of the International Organization of the Work, ILO, subscribed by Ecuador.

On the other hand, CGC Chevron argues that they have accomplished the laws. They state that the indigenous groups of Pacayacu and Canelos established in August 2002 an agreement with the CGC, by which the communities authorize the prospecting of Block 23 in their territories. The leaders of Sarayacu affirm that this agreement was settled with communities that don't own territories in Block 23 and with representatives that were not democratically elected, besides the fact that they are employees of the Company. The corporation strategies have split indigenous communities and have caused disagreements between them. The Sarayacu said that "the company has tried to become closer with lies and by offering money and development projects. By means of unilateral negotiation strategies and the violation of the Human Rights they have caused the division of the organization".

THE RECENT FACTS
The recent decision of the CIDH also established " to investigate the facts occurred on January 26, 2003 in the Sarayacu field of Peace and Life "Tiutihualli", and its consequences,... and to judge and punish the responsible ones". In that time, several members of Sarayacu community arrived to a CGC camp, located in Block 23, and they demanded 25 workers to leave their territories. The intervention of the army lead to the confiscation of 12 hunt shotguns and the seizure of four members of Sarayacu community, who once liberated, declared that "military members pointed them with their rifles, tied their hands and feet together, and then began an inquiry.

" The lasts months have been characterized by a tension atmosphere that reached its limits on January 26.

In November, 2002 the Kichwa settlement of Sarayacu declared the condition of emergency in all its 135.000 hectares of territory, as a "protection measure before the invasion of the CGC oil company." In the same month, 3 workers of the oil company were arrested while opening a 5 Km trail in Srayacu´s lands. They were released 4 days later. On December 4, eight workers were captured again. The Sarayacus together with the Government Vice Minister reached an agreement for their liberation that implied the government´s commitment to exhort the oil Company to temporarily suspend the prospecting in Block 23 until the next government's arrival " (Lucio Gutiérrez would take on the control of the Ecuadorian State in January, 2003). A third seize took place on December 20. Ten workers of the Company, that mainly belong to the kichwas group of Pacayacu, were arrested in order to demand the definitive expulsion of the company because of not having fulfill the previous agreements. The CGC demanded the government support. Shotgun shots also took place between the communities of Sarayacu and the indigenous people that support the Company, but without serious consequences. The leaders of Sarayacu declared then that "all the legal, diplomatic and peaceful means to request CGC Company to abandon the Block 23 and the Sarayacu territories have been drained." The liberation of the 10 workers took place after the meeting of 140 "curacas" of the two confronted communities.

On February 6, 2003, the CGC Company announced its withdrawal from the Block 23 due to the resistance of Sarayacu community . Today the works are suspended and the company is pressuring the government to obtain safe work conditions. The CGC has set in the Office of Public Prosecutor of Pastaza, eleven demands against indigenous people for aggressions towards its camps and robbery of materials, equipment and explosives.

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20-MAY -2003
FUMIGATIONS AGREEMENT BETWEEN ECUADOR AND COLOMBIA COULD CONSIDER ECONOMIC COMPENSATION

The Ecuadorian Chancellor, Nina Pacari, that was in New York at the beginning of the Permanent Forum for the Indigenous Issues of the United Nations, carried out from May 12 to 23, announced that Ecuador can request to Colombia an economic restitution for the damages caused in its territory, by the fumigation of illicit cultivations carried out in the frontier among the two countries, as part of the actions of Plan Colombia. Ecuador would make an official study of impact to determine the quantity of a possible compensation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ecuador is determined to sign a bilateral agreement with Colombia so that the fumigation of coca cultivations can be made 10 km behind the borderline. While the agreement is established, Ecuador requested the Colombian government to stop the fumigation activities.

Indigenous and peasants of the Amazonian province of Sucumbíos declared that the fumigations made by air with "glifosato" reach the Ecuadorian territory destroying cultivations and other means of subsistence of the border towns. Additionally, the health of the inhabitants of the area, especially of children, is affected.

In the same Forum, Blas Chimbo representative of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), exhorted the Organization to make a balance of the consequences and impacts that the air fumigation with chemical and biological agents, have on indigenous territories and questioned that "the international agenda of several governments of the region is devoted to drug trafficking issues, considering that the indigenous towns want to live in peace."

While social and environmentalists organizations from Ecuador, Colombia and the whole world, academic centers of investigation and organisms like the European Commission alert about the dangers of the fumigations, especially with "glifosato", the representative from United States in Colombia, Anne Patterson, in a letter to the newspaper "El Tiempo", affirms that the use of "glifosato" in the eradication of illicit cultivations neither represent risks to human or animal health, nor causes environmental damages."

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22-MAY -2003
THE WORK OF A SHUAR COMMUNITY OF THE ECUADORIAN AMAZON IS REWARDED TODAY

The Educational and Cultural Agreement "Andrés Bello" (CAB) presents, today in Bogotá, the prizes "We are Patrimony" to seven projects developed by communities of six Ibero-American countries, informs a news report of EFE published by the Ecuadorian press.

In their fourth edition, the rewards are granted to experiences of use of the cultural and natural, tangible or intangible patrimony, developed by communities of Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Peru and Mexico.

The main award (with 25.000 dollars) "We are Patrimony" will be presented to the project "Collaborative radio communication to promote cultural diversity and integration between Ecuador and Peru", carried out by the Coordinator of Popular Radios of Ecuador (Corape).

The Andres Bello Organization also recognizes the work of the Shuar Yawins-Arutam Mura community of Palora, an Amazonian town in Ecuador, which is called "Our world, my alive culture as the soul and the spirit of my grandparents" that promotes the shuar music and the ancestral knowledge.

Other Prizes

The project of production and dissemination of literature in aboriginal dialects that belongs to the Association of Writers in Indigenous Languages from the Federal District of Mexico, will be rewarded with 15.000 dollars.

The award in the category of government institution (with 10.000 dollars) was granted to the children informants of the cultural and natural patrimony of the Colombian city of Cartagena.

The award in the category of civil society, rewarded with 10.000 dollars was conceded to the Association Rural Libraries Net of Cajamarca (Peru) for their project of rural encyclopedia.

The itinerant project "Play actors Guerrilla" of the theater José Joaquín Palma of Bayamo (Cuba) will also be rewarded together with the project of use and traditional handling of natural resources of the Confederation of Indigenous Towns of Bolivia.

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27-MAY -2003
COLOMBIAN CONFLICT AFFECTS AMAZONIAN INDIGENOUS GROUPS

More than 1.500 indigenous people from Colombia, most of them from Amazonian ethnic groups, abandoned their territories in the last year due to the Colombian conflict. They moved mainly toward Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru and Panama.

The threats of guerrilla and paramilitary groups, together with the fumigation of coca and poppy cultivations, arranged by government, are the reasons for the displacement of people in this country.

According to a study made by the Colombian NGO "Consultancy for the Human Rights and Displaced" (CODEHS), 2.9 million Colombians have been displaced since 1985. Five percent of them are indigenous people and " the Sate neither avoid their exile, clarified the facts, punished the responsible ones, nor compensate the victims."

Indigenous people are the most affected by the conflict. The Zonal Indigenous Organization of Putumayo (OZIP), in KA`DOARO Bulletin (May 2003), points out that 500 families from 12 indigenous settlements of Putumayo were forced to leave their ancestral territories because of the Colombian conflict. On the other hand, the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia, ONIC, recently denounced that 50 indigenous from Colombia were murdered and 27 were reported as missing in the last year, in the Amazonian frontier with Ecuador and Perú.

According to declarations of the United Nations Office for Refugees, ACNUR, around 200 people, including more than 90 children, left the area of Río de Oro, in the northwest of Venezuela, when paramilitary groups entered the region. ACNUR also received not confirmed reports stating that at least 600 people, including indigenous Bari, escaped toward the mountainous area near Río de Oro. In the last weeks, armed confrontations between guerrilla and paramilitary forces in the border area, have been reported. These armed groups also confronted the Venezuelan army.

ACNUR considers that these facts are evidences of the increase of the Colombian conflict, and of the growth of humanitarian impacts in the bordering countries. The Office for Displaced demands the combatants to respect the rights of the civil population; and the governments of the region to continue respecting its international obligations and guaranteeing the asylum right.

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30-MAY -2003
MURDER OF INDIGENOUS TAGAERIS: ETHNIC REPRISAL OR EXTERNAL PRESSURES?

Twenty-four indigenous Tagaeri of the Huaorani ethnic group of the Ecuadorian Amazon were murdered on Monday, 26 May, by another Huaorani group of Tiguino community, in Pastaza province, denounced yesterday the Organization of Huaorani Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon, ONHAE.

Although initial information affirmed the existence of 30 victims, another source stated that 4 men, 10 women and 10 children were death. However, the bodies are still not found. The difficult access to the woodland area, where the facts occurred, has impeded authorities and media to verify the details, although they, accompanied by ONHAE representatives, have tried yesterday and today to enter the zone, with no results.

The news dismayed the public opinion. The Ecuadorian media emited yesterday images of the head of a Tagaeri warrior, presumably of the Toromenani´s leader murdered on Monday, that was taken to Tiguino village and "exhibited as a war trophy". This fact together with the use of firearms in the attack causes surprise, since those are not traditional practices of Huaorani groups, in revenge or conflict situations between clans.

Our consulted sources affirm that the recent murder of the Tagaeri will bring other conflicts. Besides, this is a zone in permanent conflict caused by multiple actors: oil companies, wood dealers, tourism companies and dealers of species that seek for their own interests.

PREVIOUS FACTS

The rivalry among the two Huaorani groups, one of them the uncontacted Tagaeri, is ancestral and worsened by the presence of external agents for several decades. According to Tony Muñoz, Advisor of ONAHE , the pressure increases in the 90s, when a group of French people bought Tagaeri handicrafts to the Tiguino, promoting the looting. Another important antecedent, took place in 1994 when the Tiguino enter the Tagaeri territory and seize a girl, that was turned back-in an act of good will - 10 days later; in the process, a young Tiguino was murdered with spears by the Tagaeri. Apparently, this fact generates the revenge that caused the death of the 24 Tagaeri. "The Tiguino did something they wanted to do long time ago" said a Capuchino missionary of the area.

The ONHAE states that exploiters and wooden dealers are behind the facts of violence. In a press official statement, the indigenous Organization affirms that the wood dealers have promoted the exploitation in the intangible area of the Tagaeri and have convinced the Huaorani of Tiguino of facilitating the access to those territories." The wood dealers informed the Tiguino about the place where they saw the Tagaeri and that is the reason for the slaughter. The ambitions of those "civilized" have caused a confrontation among siblings", he adds.

On the other hand, Sebastiao Manchineri, General manager of COICA, Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin, energically condemns in a press bulletin "the facts in which approximately 30 members of the Tagaeri group lost their life..", he agrees with ONHAE in that "behind of this painful event are the interests of wooden exploiters that invade our territories without the civil or military authorities actions to impede it", " Similar situations have occurred periodically in the Ecuadorian Amazon and in other countries of the Amazon basin as a result of the interests of exploiters, oil and, mining companies, among others."

The COICA urges the President Lucio Gutiérrez to conform a commission of high level with indigenous participation to investigate the facts to punish the responsible ones.

ALDHU POSITION

The Human Rights Latin American Association asks the authorities for a deep investigation of the events and demands an effective an rigorous control of the processes of exploitation of legal and illegal resources, which promotes the violence against the Amazonian indigenous people and between them.

THE TAGAERIS

The Tagaeri are the last uncontacted group of indigenous people in Ecuador. They are named after a famous and violent warrior of the tribe called Taga. They are konwn as "patas coloradas" because they paint their feet with achiote, a natural coloring.

The group inhabits Orellana and Pastaza provinces. They are located among Nashiño and Curaray rivers. This area is known as "nomadic corridor " and, according to not confirmed versions, there are other uncontacted indigenous groups inhabitting the area.

The Tagaeris are an enlarged family of around 50 people. They are nomadic and their economy of subsistence is based on hunting, fishing and gathering. Their tradition establishes to live in total symbiosis with the forest, therefore their houses and all the elements of their daily life are made of chonta, guadúa and palma, products of their natural environement.

This community escapes from noise and harassment. Tagaeri tolerate no intrusion into their land, and defend their territory with their own life. They reject all contact with the western culture and other indigenous cultures. For these reasons, the Tagaeris has maintained relationships characterized by confrontations to guarantee the reproduction of the group in their ancestral territories. (see chart)

Western society brought practices such as the exploitation of the forests´ resources, the erosion of lands, the extermination of animals, that attempts against the balance and existence of their habitat

THE TAGAERI AND THE HUAORANI

The group Tagaeri belongs to the linguistic family of the Huaorani, one of the Amazonian indigenous groups in danger of extinction. These two groups have historically been in conflict due to slaughters between clans, that were common and culturally accepted among the Huao. However, the tribal conflicts have been increased by the pressures of external agents interested in the resorurces of the area.

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03-JUNE -2003
MURDER OF INDIGENOUS TAGAERI: THE LATEST FACTS

The research about the murder of members of the Ecuadorian indigenous group Tagaeri, carried out on May 26, is still in process.

The number of victims is confirmed. The Organization of Huaorani Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon, ONHAE, together with the head of the police department of Pastaza, a district attorney, 7 police officers, a military and 3 iwia soldiers entered the zone yesterday, and informed of the existence of 12 death people. Five of them would have been buried by members of Tiguino community, while the other 7 bodies by members of the research commission. According to Armando Boya, ONHAE`s representative it was impossible to recognize the bodies.

Ecuadorian media affirm that the victims belong to Taromenani group, however Boya states that Tagaeris and Taromenanis belong to the same group "since they have been already mixed"

There are still two hypotheses surrounding the facts. The missionaries of Capuchino´s order that work with the Huaorani community accept that "the lack of control over colonization, wood and oil industries affects these peoples` behavior. However, they declare that this situation responds to a tribal revenge due to the murder of Carlos Omene a member of the Tiguinos of Babeiri`s clan, after his group seize a tagaeri girl to establish contact with her culture. "It is also true that this action responds to an objective tied with cultural codes and habits of the Huaoranis" said the missionary Carlos Andueza.

Andueza narrates the facts to Diaro El Comercio, on June 3: " Tihue, a Tiguino warrior broke the silence and told that the attack was planned in advance. Nine warriors got together to revenge their death people. Among them was Omene Nihua, Carlos brother. It was a one week journey. When they got to the house where the attack was going to be carried out, they enclosed it. The men that were in the house went out when they noticed the presence of strangers. In that moment the Huaorani killed several men, women and children that were inside the house and stole spears, blowpipes, hammocks, parrots, etc. They employ only spears cause "weapons are only to scare", said Omene.

To the Capuchinos missionaries indigenous organizations and the State are the responsible ones: "nobody does anything, those towns are harassed and the intangible zone is not respected", said to this journal the missionary Miguel Ángel Cabodevilla.

Armando Boya, ONAHE`s representative states that it is not a revenge. He says that the Huaorani from Tiguino, that belong to Babeiri`s clan were looking to eliminate the Taromenani to be able to exploit wood form their territory and negotiate it. The Huaoranis would have asked the wood companies to give them weapons to protect their community, hiding their true intentions, and they would have given these to the Huaoranis.

Boya also declares that after the murders it has been impossible to establish contact with members of the Tiguino community.

Patricio Trujillo, researcher from the Foundation of Amazonian Indigenous Investigations, FIAAM, in a telephonic interview with Agenot, declared that Babe, the Huaorani leader of Babeiri´s clan have economic interests in the area; he owns tourism companies, sells wood to wood enterprises, and together with his sons have pursued the Tagaeris, for he is interested in enlarging his territories.

According to Trujillo, Babe and his clan were taken to that zone years ago, as a protection strategy of the Huaorani group, and the conflicts were registered upon that time. The conflict between these two groups is not new and has generated an increasing violence, for the murder of family members of Huaorani group "must be revenged". The possible consequence of these facts is the elimination of the "intangible zone" through the entrance of Babe and the wood companies.

Apparently, these 2 hypotheses are deeply linked, since the presence of external agents causes, directly or indirectly, conflict between siblings. Felipe Burbano de Lara in a opinion article in Diario Hoy states that " it is culturally and politically easy to see this massacre as a tribal conflict. The national society ignores the problem and accuses these "wild, primitive, warrior and murder towns of being guilty of this conflict without recognizing that these towns` dynamic is altered by the presence of oil and wood companies in their territory".

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05-JUNE -2003
THE LEGAL CONFLICT

The murder of the Tagaeris give rise to a strong national debate.

The questions this time are what kind of measures should be taken and who will execute them.

Indigenous organizations like CONAIE, COICA, ONHAE, CONFENIAE and CODENPE met yesterday and decided that the Huaoranis, who took part in the facts of Monday 26 May, will be punished under the indigenous law. Armando Boya, president of ONHAE informed that the sentence of the indigenous organizations will be set up in an assembly on June 25 to 30, where wise and elder people from the tribe are going to participate.

The representatives of these organisms insisted in the need of respecting the common law stated in the Constitution, by which indigenous people can solve their conflicts folowing their cultural habits.

According to the representative of the Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin, COICA, the Ecuadorian legal system doesn't have the means to deal with indigenous issues: "we want justice, but to judge the case through the conventional criminal law system is not the solution. A trial of the people, where the guilty ones are accused in public is different. The victims will believe that there was a punishment and won't take the justice in their own hands", he said and also recognized that the organizations are responsible for not having predicted and avoided the murder.

On his side, Salvador Quishpe, Pachacutick legislative, met on Tuesday with president Lucio Gutiérrez to request actions before the facts: "the State has the obligation to investigate what is happening and look for solutions. This is not solved through military and police intervention, but through the fulfillment of social needs", he said. The indigenous organizations position was supported by the Peoples Defender of Pastaza, Carlos Borja, linguists and other experts concerned with the problems of the Amazon.

After the meeting, indigenous leaders denied that the facts would have been caused only by the revenge. Sebastiao Manchineri, from COICA, affirmed that "nobody can guarantee that there is a conflict among Huaorani people. There are a lot of external interests in the territory that can have worsen the conflicts". Therefore, they asked the State to establish the responsibility of such external agents.

Meanwhile, the office of public prosecutor started the investigation process. According to the district attorney of Pastaza, Marco Vargas, the guilty ones must be judged through ordinary law. "Indigenous leaders may want or not the execution of criminal law, this is not the point. The fact is that we have laws and we have to use them. Criminal Law code and Constitution are for all the Ecuadorian people including half-caste, white or indigenous", he expressed.

The Governor of Pastaza, Fernando Ordóñez, shares this point of view, while the jurist Christian Bahamonde, from the Latin American Development Corporation asserts that the Constitution recognizes indigenous law, but it could not act against its principles, for the Constitution prohibits death penalty. He also affirms that the execution of indigenous law doesn't stops the action of ordinary law, since we all are ruled by criminal law.

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10-JUNE -2003
BOLIVIAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLE DEMANDTHE LEGALIZATION OF THEIR TERRITORIES

The leaders of the Confederation of Indigenous Towns of Bolivia, CID, with headquarters in Santa Cruz, went to La Paz on June 4, to demand the government to sign up the titles of ownership of 8 of their territories.

The Bolivian president, Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, in the meeting with CIDOB members established a 30 days term to legalize the territories, what displeased the representatives of this organism. Saúl Chávez, vice-president of CIDOB, expressed in an interview with Agenot that there are no reasons to delay the titles signature, for the process has fulfilled all the legal and technical requirements .

He also affirmed that if this term expires, CIDOB would take the corresponding measures: " if there is not positive answer we will create a strategy to speed up the question, we will use the force so that our requests are accomplished", he said.

CIDOB is an organism devoted to the territorial negotiation, its main objective is to make the land owning stated in the Bolivian Constitution and in ILO´s agreement be respected.

On the other hand the General Director of Indigenous Issues, Rolando Moy Pérez affirmed that the delay in the legalization of the territories is due to the bureaucratic nature of the system, however its position in this respect it is optimistic since he believes that the process will have a positive response.

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12-JUNE -2003
THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC PROSECUTOR DEFENDS THE SARAYACU

The voices of Sarayacu people are heard. This time, the Public Prosecutor, Mariana Yépez is committed with the observance of the precautionary measures in favor of this community that the Interamerican Commission of Human Rights demanded to the Ecuadorian State. Minister Yépez ordered to the Office of Public Prosecutor of Pastaza province (Amazon region) to adopt the legal measures to make the execution of these dispositions possible.

In turn, according to what an Ecuadorian newspaper published, the leader of Sarayacu community, Mario Santi affirmed that they will take legal actions against the District Attorney of Pastaza, Franklin Lalama for ignoring the petitions of Sarayacu people.

Sarayacu community lives in permanent conflict with Compañía General de Combustibles CGC Chevron, for it is opposed to the oil exploitation in its territories.

In January, people of the community would have been threatened and scared by members of the army and civilians. This fact led them to set an accusation for infringement of their human rights. The Interamerican Commission of Human Rights took in the accusation on May 5th, and demanded the Ecuadorian State the implementation of precautionary measures in favor of the community.

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17-JUNE -2003
ANOTHER VIOLENT ACT CASTS A SHADOW OVER THE AMAZON REGION

Last week AP agency informed that members of an uncontacted indigenous community were murdered by the Ashaninka group, in the Brazilian Amazon, near the frontier with Peru.

Considering the seriousness of the facts, Antonio Neto Pereira, representative of the government's office for indigenous issues of Brazil, FUNAI, affirmed in an announcement that the Brazilian indigenous group Ashaninka didn't have any responsibility in the events, for it maintains policies of peace, tranquility and autonomy. " In any moment no Brazilian Ashaninka participated or had the intention of participating of any act attacking the uncontacted indigenous groups. This must be clear to the public opinion", he said.

He also stated that the conflict took place among Peruvian indigenous people, in the village Doce Gloria of Ucayalli department, in Peru. The victims would have belonged to the group Masko, one of those uncontacted of the area that goes from the Laco river, in Peru to the region of Jurará river in Brazil.

Although the reasons of this violent fact are not clear yet, FUNAI presumes that it is due to the illegal entrance of wood dealers in the Peruvian Amazon. " Brazilian and Peruvian governments are interested in the protection of the isolated populations. Brazil in an advanced way, Peru with its determination. Therefore, what happened transcends governments. It is caused by the illegality of the invasion of Peruvian wood dealers in the territories of the uncontacted indigenous groups", said Neto.

This is the second violent fact that takes place in the Amazon region in the last month. Recently, in Ecuador, a group of indigenous Huaorani of the community of Tiguino murdered members of the uncontacted group Taromenane. The investigation that stills in process and the opinions of indigenous organizations and other experts on these facts point out external agents as guilty - as in the Masko case- , for their presence, that has clear economic interests, has altered the way of life of the Amazonian indigenous people.

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18-JUNE -2003
VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT CONDEMNS THE MAJOR WORLD POWERS INTERVENTIONISM IN THE AMAZONIA

The President of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, denounced a supposed plan of the major world powers to transform the Amazon in an area of international supervision.

Chavez is the first President of the Amazon countries that has expressed his opposition to the projects of the major world powers and of the international organisms of the region.

According to AFP Agency, Chavez, in his TV and radio program "Aló Presidente" broadcasted in Manaos, where he was attending a meeting of Venezuelan and Brazilian managers, defended the sovereignty of the countries of the Amazon Basin (Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Guyana and Surinam) and rejected the interventionists ambitions of the developed countries.

Several countries had been planning to build a great infrastructure of transport and energy in South America, especially in the eco region. These projects would have the purpose of promoting the implementation of ALCA and are sponsored by international financial organisms.

Amazonian NGOs have denounced the consequences that the execution of these projects could have. The Bolivian Forum on Environment and Development stated that "these would imply the narrowing of the capacity of the countries to elaborate and execute environmental policies; the privatization of the natural resources; the confinement of the national laws and of the national sovereignty on territories and environment; the abuse of natural resources; the transfer of dirty industries toward our countries; and the destruction of biodiversity."

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20-JUNE -2003
COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT WOULD HAVE TO CONSULT INDIGENOUS PEOPLE BEFORE FUMIGATING ILLICIT CULTIVATIONS

The Constitutional Court of Colombia emitted a verdict that demands to consult the indigenous people of the Amazon on the fumigation of illicit cultivations with herbicides, carried out in their territories, informed the Organization of the Indigenous People of the Colombian Amazon (OPIAC).

Within this context, OPIAC requests the support of organizations of human rights, NGOs, governments and indigenous people of the world to send announcements to the Colombian government to make it accept the sentence of the Court, also stated in ILO´s 169 Agreement, subscribed by Colombia.

The Organization of Indigenous People of the Colombian Amazon established, in the year 2001 a tutelary resolution, so that the indigenous communities fundamental rights on life, health, development of personality, cultural integrity, participation and healthy environment were protected.

The Constitutional Court decided, in May2003, to protect the indigenous peoples rights on ethnic and cultural diversity, participation and development of personality, leaving aside "the reestablishment of collective interests on life, health and healthy environment."

Although OPIAC´s Executive Committee considers that the decision of the Court-communicated through a press release, not through an official statement- is not complete, expresses that "the indigenous people concerned with this issue assume that the Colombian Government cannot fumigate indigenous territories, without having consulted each of the indigenous towns before."

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23-JUNE -2003
CHESTNUT EXPORTATION: A HOPE FOR BOLIVIAN PEASANTS

The sacrifice of chestnut farmers could have a fair recompense. The Association of Rural Cooperation Africa and America, ACRA, it is developing projects to help peasants of the north of Bolivia to export the product directly, without the need of intermediaries.

The initiative of this Italian NGO has benefited 120 families. Its actions have been focused on facilitating and mediating the commercial relationship between the national cooperatives- as the Federation of workers of Pando (FSUTC-Pando) and the Agricultural and Rural Integral Cooperative (CAIC)- and chestnut producers so that both have benefits. Likewise, it is in charge of carrying out contacts abroad to insert the product in the market and guaranteeing a fair distribution of earnings. ARCA promotes peasants self-management to make them able to negotiate abroad by themselves in few time.

To obtain the benefits of chestnut sale, the producer must wait 8 months while the product completes its cycle. But the NGO´s project has foreseen 15 thousand dollars in advance to help peasants with the expenses of transport and legalization of the export licenses.

Bolivia is the first chestnut exporter in the world. Chestnut is similar to the common almond, but bigger. It is also known as nut of Brazil. Chestnut has been bounded to Bolivia and the Amazon since the conquest. The investigation of Said Zeitum López on the Bolivian Amazon quotes a testimony on it: "In the Andes (he refers to the Amazon forest) there are several fruits and a kind of almond, that as coconuts in the palms, are appetizing and healthy gifts called almonds of the Andes."

The 50% of the population of the Amazon forests of the north, regions of Pando, Vaca Diez and Beni, it is linked to this activity. According to the Center of Investigation and Promotion of the Peasant, CIPCA, at least 15 thousand families that carry out this job are exploited. The harvest conditions are highly risky due to strong rains and winds characteristic of harvesting time, and people work from 12 to 14 hours daily. Producers don't have roads, storing centers or means of transport suitable to take the product to the market.

The biggest problem arises with the presence of intermediaries that taking advantage of the hard conditions that peasants have to face, buy the product at very low prices: they pay 45 bolivians (5 dollars) for an entire basket of almonds, while the price of the boxes of 250 gr. of chestnut abroad reaches the 2.50 dollars. ARCA´s program, on the other hand, allows the peasants to receive 15 cents of dollar for each kilo of chestnut.

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25-JUNE -2003
INDIGENOUS ORGANIZATION WON'T PUNISH THE HUAORANIS FROM TIGUINO

The nine Huaorani warriors that murdered 16 Taromenanes on may 26 will be forgiven, affirmed the president of the Organization of Huaorani Nationality of the Ecuadorian Amazon (ONHAE), Armando Boya, to the Amazon News Agency (AGENOT).

In a meeting carried out this week, five ex presidents of this organization and its current representative established to not punish the nine warriors this time, for manipulations and deceits of external agents pushed them to commit the murder, not a conflict among clans. they also agreed to investigate the activities of wood cutters and oil companies of the area.

The agreement specifies that if a similar action takes place again, ONHAE leaders will turn the guilty ones over to the ordinary justice. According to Armando Boya, this commitment might convince the office of public prosecutor of Pastaza to stop its intervention and will guarantee the peace among the Huaoranis.

Today, June 25th, an assembly of old men was to be carried out to establish the punishment to the Huaoranis, but since this agreement was settled, the meeting is going to take place by the middle of July. The topics that are going to be discussed only concern the position of the organization in relation to the wood cutters and the oil companies that are in their territories.

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27-JUNE -2003
COLOMBIAN TRIBUNAL ORDERS TO STOP FUMIGATIONS

A Tribunal of Cundinamarca Department ordered to provisionally stop fumigations by air on illicit cultivations of the whole Colombian territory.

The resolution force to stop the process until "medical studies - scientific ones that determine the effect of glifosato, Poea, Cosmo Flux, on Colombians health" and orders " to identify the damages caused by fumigations with glifosato, poea, Cosmo flux, to eradicate illicit cultivations, and to take the required correction, mitigation or compensation measures..., especially in the natural national parks, moors, indigenous territories and other protected areas."

According to the sentence, the Attorney's office and the Ombudsman office must look after the execution of the decision. The Ombudsman together with civil entities, peasants and environmentalist groups had supported the accusations on the effects of the fumigations in the populations and environment.

Government will continue fumigations

Colombian media highlight the sentence of the tribunal in its first pages and pick up the Colombian government's reaction that affirms that fumigations won't be stopped and that an appeal of the decision will be lodged to the Council of State. According to El tiempo Newspaper, the National Director of Narcotics stated that the Tribunal of Cundinamarca didn't have enough information on the subject, since there are many studies of specialized entities that prove that glifosato doesn't have risks on human health.

The United States also reacted to the decision of the tribunal. According to the correspondent of El Tiempo in Washington, the delegate of the State Department of the Western Hemisphere declared that fumigation is having great results in the struggle against drugs in Colombia. During last year, coca cultivations decreased in 15% due to the extensive fumigation and those of poppy in 25%, without generating serious risks for people.

On the other hand, the Ecuadorian Chancellor, Nina Pacari, is negotiating with Colombian government an agreement that formalizes in a written document the commitment of Colombia to avoid air fumigations in a 10 km area from the frontier limit. When fumigations are made, the winds crawl glifosato toward Ecuador affecting the population and the cultivations of the area.

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30-JUNE -2003
THE BOOK OF THE VENEZUELAN JOURNALIST EDGAR CHERUBINI:
THE GENOCIDE OF THE YANOMAMI TRUTH, FICTION AND CONSPIRACY: THE SCANDAL THAT SHOCKED WESTERN ANTHROPOLOGY

Y.A(Venezuela)

Comala publishing house has just launched a text that gathers news, documents and opinions on the case of the scientific experiments in the Venezuelan indigenous community Yanomami. After obtaining the prize in research communication granted by "Andrés Mata" Foundation (2001), the Venezuelan journalist and editor, Edgar Cherubini, decided to publish his investigation, carried out for years in his web site Forum Report, to discover the hidden facts of the case. The book's summary states the following: "the international scandal caused by the newspapers headlines of the world on the genocide of the Yanomamis, produced intrigues that involved scientists, anthropologists, scientific and academic institutions of Venezuela and The United States.

The investigation reproduces news, documents and opinions of the international forum made on this case. The western anthropological community knew about the genocide through a publication called " The darkness of El Dorado" of the journalist Patrick Tierney. The book accused two famous anthropologists and experts in Yanomami culture, Napoleón Chagnon and James Neel.

The accusation supported by witness declarations, affirms that these two professionals, after coexisting for 20 years with this culture (considered one of the oldest of the planet in 1968), would have supposedly vaccinated the Yanomani with Edmon B, an expired medicine that caused an epidemic of measles among the members of the community. The accusation also involved prestigious Venezuelan scientific associations and authorities. The reaction was immediate: the Venezuelan community of anthropologists provided documents against the journalist who was accused of being sensationalist, of not acting ethically and of serving to other interests. Because of the scandal Napoleón Changon, who dedicated his life to study Yanomami culture and published "Yanomami a ferocious town", a capital work for anthropology, was sanctioned. The professor of the University of Santa Barbara was condemned by the American Association of Anthropology (AAA) in 2002, and despite the critics made to Tierney's accusations, the AAA decided to set a commission to investigate the serious denounces against the methods used by scientists.

With the anthropologist Jane Hill as a director an investigation with documental and alive sources was carried out in The United States, Brazil and Venezuela. Government representatives and experts in health of several countries were also interviewed. The final document, of 300 pages, available in web site of the association (www.aaanet.org) concludes that the commission made a flagrant violation to the scientific ethics for in 1990 Chagnon used the political influences of Fundafaci granted by Venezuelan authorities, to deceive the prohibition of investigating in the Amazon.

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01-JULY -2003
PERU:
INDIGENOUS ORGANIZATIONS BLAME WOOD COMPANIES FOR THE CONFLICT AMONG INDIGENOUS OF THE AMAZON

After the murder of an uncertain number of indigenous "uncontacted" carried out on June 10th by members of the Peruvian community Ashaninka, the indigenous organizations of Peru denounced that the violent fact was caused by the presence of wood companies in the territories of indigenous people of the Amazon.

The Inter ethnic Association of Development of the Peruvian Forest, AIDESEP, together with other organizations that represent Amazonian indigenous people recognized that, although the government from Peru is making efforts to control the forest activity, it has not still been able to stop the violation of the human and territorial rights of the "uncontacted" indigenous people. They affirmed that "in Peru, all the territories of the "uncontacted" indigenous people legally recognized are invaded by wood companies, which is a serious violation to the human rights and to the principles of the 169 International Agreement of ILO that must stop definitely and immediately.

" The organisms also requested the State to set a commission to investigate the case and to punish wood companies that invade areas restricted to the forest exploitation. They also requested the Public Ministry, the Ombudsman Office, the Office of human rights, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other institutions to grant the necessary attention to these serious actions.

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02-JULY -2003
ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURE IS DISCOVERED IN THE AMAZONIA

Archaeological vestiges of 4.500 years, apparently belonging to the oldest Amazonian culture of Ecuador, were presented by Ecuadorian and French investigators in Quito.

According to the National Institute of Cultural Patrimony, these archaeological remains were found in Zamora Chinchipe province, in the south of Ecuador, near the frontier with Peru. The vestiges, ceramic remains, refined stone and structures are located in the area of Santa Ana La Florida, in the high basin of Valladolid-Palanda, and correspond to the cultural zone "Mayo Chinchipe."

As the local press informs, the archaeological area was found in September of the last year. According to the tests with carbon 14 the culture existed 2.500 years ago, before Christ and might belong to the Latest Formative period of Valdivia Culture. This hypothesis requires exhaustive studies, affirms the archaeologist Lenin Ortiz.

The architecture vestiges among which are three mounds or "tolas" with terraces and a central square would belong to a sacred ceremonial center.

The archaeologist Francisco Valdez states that the main interest of this place is the presence of deposits and offerings of refined stone recipients, with icons engraved in relief. The representation of the mythical fauna keeps common elements with the Peruvian cultures of Chavín and Cupisinque, but the discovered ones are 1000 years older. This culture is presumably one of the first important Andean civilizations in a tropical environment whose existence was ignored until now. It could have been a trade center between the center-north of Peru and part of the mountain and coast regions of Ecuador.

PROTECTION MEASURES

According to the National Institute of Cultural Patrimony of Ecuador, the investigation is in the prospecting phase, after which comes the archaeological excavation phase to be developed in September and October. Only after these processes the conservation measures will be taken. These measures imply to delegate the sectional organisms such as Municipality and Prefecture of Zamora to set out the boundaries of the area; to declare this place as an area of influence and to establish the conservation measures under national and international supervision.

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03-JULY -2003
INDIGENOUS VISION ON THE UNCONTACTED GROUPS

Around 64 indigenous communities are living in isolation in Ecuador, Brazil and Peru. Sebastiao Manchineri, leader of the Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin, COICA affirms it and explains the reasons why indigenous communities such as Tagaeri, Taromenane, Corubo, Amahuaca, Mashco decided to escape from "civilization".

According to Manchineri, it is a mistake to believe that these communities have been voluntarily isolated, for their frontiers have been reduced by invaders, exploiters of wealth and missionaries: "nobody remembers that we are people compulsory driven away with the hope of being able to preserve our spirituality, identity and wisdom ...the states frontiers divided us, religion took away our freedom, civilization made us vulnerable..." affirms the leader.

COICAs´ representative also referred to the sad events occurred in May, in towns of the Ecuadorian and Peruvian Amazon that left mortal victims and stated the following: "we are not wild people, we are executioners of external orders of the people who take advantage of the human misery, it is the continuation of the strategy to eliminate the " threats " to the economic interests. The executioners as well as the instigators of these crimes must be judged."

Referring to the external agents, Manchineri denounced that their presence have affected indigenous people, not only taking profit of their wisdom, but also showing them as exotic objects to the world as Scientifics and tourism companies do. He expressed that in spite of the violence, racism and genocide, these people have been able to subsist because of their "wisdom and determination". But at the same time he uttered his concern for the incomprehension of the supposedly civilized society is a threat to their survival:

" It is difficult to know if the civilization will respect people or will change its destructive vision of the world. A world in which we simply want to continue existing."

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04-JULY -2003
IN THE AMAZON PROVINCE: MODERN AND TRADITIONAL MEDICINE WORK TOGETHER IN SUPPORT OF THE HEALTH

YAAL (VENEZUELA)

Ratón Island, a land covered with trees is amid the Orinoco river which is the frontier between Venezuela and Colombia. Jenny García, a Venezuelan doctor, went to a small town located in this island -which is a headquarter of the Venezuelan indigenous municipality Autana- to fulfill the obligatory rural service that every Venezuelan doctor must accomplish. García directs the local health section and had to visit a lot of communities of the municipality to offer medical assistantship to indigenous populations. Doctor García doesn´t reject natural medicine, this is why she learned the secrets of indigenous shamanes that practice ancestral traditional medicine: "We have to respect the popularity of traditional medicine", explains García to a visitor. "Here, the shamán is a very important figure, so we cannot compete against him. What we do is to mix traditional and western medicine. We share information with traditional doctors and we look for their opinions."

According to the web site of the Pan-American Health Organization, "García's attitude shows a new way of cooperating with traditional medicine, which is recommended by the specialists in public health of Venezuela and of foreign countries. This coincides with the growing interest of developed countries in traditional medicine methods -as acupuncture and herbal remedies - and with the commercial interest raised by the use of traditional medicinal plants in current pharmacology. But even more important is to recognize the effectiveness of traditional medicine based on local resources, used for centuries which is the most affordable health method for millions of people of development countries.

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07-JULY -2003
INTERNATIONAL MEETING ANALIZES THE AMAZON AXIS OF IIRSA PROJECT

The meeting "The Amazon Axis of IIRSA and the integration of South American Region- development, trade and cooperation opportunities-" is being held in Trujillo, Perú, from yesterday to the 8 of July, with the participation of managerial and political delegates from Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Brazil.

Within the meeting, that looks for impelling the regional integration in the Amazon axis of the Initiative of Infrastructure of South American Region (IIRSA), topics such as the connection route Pacific - Atlantic through a highway in the axis of the Amazon central Basin, will be discussed among others.

An Ecuadorian delegation outlined last week in Venezuela, before IIRSA´s Executive Committee, the possibility of executing this road project in Manta to connect it with Manaos. This proposal was taken to the meeting of Trujillo. Peru, on the other hand, is interested in promoting a road axis from Paita to Manaos.

While the powerful groups discuss the projects foreseen by IIRSA for the region (that include hydroelectric infrastructure, highways, river roads, gas pipelines, with an investment of 35 thousand million dollars), the controversy begins. Environmentalists NGOs and indigenous organizations of the countries of the Amazon Basin question the lack of diffusion of the projects and its impacts and claim to participate in the decision making processes.

To the possibilities of regional integration, market liberation and development that the execution of the project implies comes the opposition of issues on the environmental handling of the Amazon- that would be the main stage of the projects- , the respect of the culture of people that inhabit the area, and the balancing of advantages and disadvantages that the projects might have for the countries involved in the Initiative.

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08-JULY -2003
NEW DEFORESTATION METHODS THREATEN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON Deforestation control through satellites is no longer effective, informs a Brazilian newspaper in relation to the raising concern caused by the new deforestation methods used by farmers and livestock farmers in the Amazon. Through this technique called "ecological deforestation" - for fire is not used - big forest extensions are demolished and its destruction is not detected from space.

Besides, in the last decade, the great agro industrial and livestock companies have reduced exploitation activities while colonists and small livestock farmers have increased the levels of destruction of the forest what makes this activity more and more secret.

Brazil is the country with the greatest deforestation index in the world. Each year around 17.000 km2 are destroyed, which means that every 8 seconds an extension similar to a soccer stadium is felled. Satellite images (that would not detect the "ecological deforestation") of the National Institute of Space Investigations (INPE) demonstrate that in the period 2001-2002 the Brazilian Amazon lost 25.476 km2. This number would overcome the one registered in 1995, that was the highest index of destruction of the Amazon forests.

One of the reasons why deforestation increased is the profitability of Soya cultivations. This product is not only valued inside and outside the country but also the earnings it produces can compensate the investment required in deforestation process. However, the cultivations of these areas is not meant to last, because deforestation makes floor lose its fertility and become ineffective for any agricultural activity.

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09-JULY -2003
INDIGENOUS OF PUTUMAYO FOR THE LIFE PLAN

The Human Rights Latin American Association, ALDHU, organized the last month in Suesca, Colombia, the workshop "Encounter of Knowledge and Experiences" with the support of the European Community and of the Ombudsman Office.

The main objective of the event was to train indigenous leaders of the Colombian Amazon in topics concerning Human Rights and DIH, and at the same time approaching topics related with the problem of the indigenous communities of this region.

In this context, Actualidad Etnica, a publication of Hemera Foundation, interviewed José Evaristo Garcés an Amazonian indigenous leader of Putumayo (Nasa ethnos), member of the Zonal Indigenous Organization Zonal of Putumayo (OZIP). Garcés invited other indigenous communities of Colombia to strengthen their organizations to face the internal war of their country.

What positive processes can be outlined within the indigenous organization?

Putumayo has very complex cultural characteristics, due to the presence of indigenous, peasants and black people. The different ways of living of those groups enrich the territory.

One of the elements that have been emphasized is Life Plan. What are life plans?

Life Plans are new for us. Before, there were other development models such as development plans, and government programs that yield a foreign thought focused on the extraction of natural resources The fact that indigenous communities were not part of development plans led to the need of Life Plans. Life Plans are historical and have a very appropriate system, they are not temporary programs, and indigenous people are the ones that must execute them.

Concerning ethnic education and health, what advances have the communities of Putumayo had?

Ethnic education is one of the gaps of the communities, for educational programs are not well defined. This is not only about teaching and diffusing native language. Ethnic education has fundamental cultural and traditional roots. Education must rescue this whole mythological world of legends, histories, stories of indigenous people and we don´t have it until this moment, we don´t have the support of plans and programs to develop it. However, we have never stoped our actions to have this kind of education.

In what concerns the health issue, the methodologies that the government applies have to do with money. Health centers and hospitals are expensive services. Besides, the whole non indigenous infrastructure and methodology has nothing to do with the traditions and methods of indigenous health. For this reason, we have asked for a model characteristic of indigenous health. Our blood, for example, doesn't adapt to the western culture, we have our health.

What does to be indigenous means for you?

The indigenous being goes beyond having a territory. For example, we say that we are sons of the nature, every indigenous has a mythology, historical memory as the same tradition. The indigenous is a being endowed with material and spiritual things, a heart, a soul of his own. His world is not betrayed. The indigenous is a warrior and will fight for his territory, and culture. He will live his life and won´t be ashamed of what he is.

I invite to the communities of the country to strengthen and transmit our positive messages to the movements or actors that have some negative reactions until here. I believe that through dialogue, and with the hand in the heart, the violent ones will understand that violence is not the only way to get what they want, for it is better to use wisdom than force.

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10-JULY -2003
BOLIVIAN FORUM ON ENVIRONMENT QUESTIONS GOVERNMENT POLITICS ON PROTECTED AREAS

The president of the Bolivian Forum on Environment and Development (FOBOMADE), Gabriel Herbas, denounced what he considers the real sense of the government politics of his country in relation to the creation and conservation of protected areas and expressed his concern.

According to Herbas protected areas are managed in a context of legal insecurity due to sectorial laws opposed to the goal of these areas - which is to preserve biological diversity-, and to" the lack of a law that grants similar importance to protected areas as part of biodiversity handling"

Among the examples that show this situation, Herbas mentions the law project of the Committee of Natural Resources of the Commission of Sustainable Development and Environment, of the Camera of Deputies whose last version guarantees the oil activities in these areas, and the reduction of the budget of the National Service of Protected Areas, SERNAP, approved by the Executive.

"There is any legal base for these, since the oil companies are not entitled in protected areas. Most of them were created before the Hydrocarbons Law, and in the establishment norms (laws and ordinances) it's been settled that the oil activities are not compatible with the administration of the areas", affirms FOBOMADE´s representative.

The Regulation of Oil Operations has also become an instrument to allow the oil activity in indigenous territories. Therefore, the Ministries of Energy and Hydrocarbons and of Sustainable Development are putting pressure on indigenous organizations for its approval:

"This project that it was originally conceived to minimize the impacts of the oil activities in TCO´s, ...it has been reduced to the current version that considers indigenous people as second category citizens. The rights that all the inhabitants of this country have within the Environment Law are reduced, for indigenous people, to the delivery of a chapter of evaluation studies on environmental impact. This chapter will not even explain which activities they might tolerate. The environmental license will be granted to the company, even if indigenous communities are opposed".

These ministries, affirms Herbas, are negotiating the "Regulation of Inter Institutional Coordination to Develop Oil Activities in Protected Areas", which grants the Ministry of Hydrocarbons competences to establish Protected Areas and to approve planning instruments. The ordinance project also establishes that when both vice ministries doesn't reach to any agreement, the Economic and Social Politics' National Council (CONAPES) will be the one that forces the vice ministry in disagreement to accept the decision"; and determines the administrative silence that allows to approve, within 10 days, any aspect on which government's instances have not been pronounced.

"This mechanism is frequently used in the approval of environmental licenses, not only because human resources to continue the procedures are lacking, but also because it is a politic of the State to facilitate and prioritize activities of certain economic and powerful instances", states Herbas.

FOBOMADE´s representative questions the measures Bolivian government uses to control the oil exploitation, because the officials in charge of these activities are linked to companies of this kind. "The previous director of the Sectorial Office of Environmental Control of The Environmental Unit of the Ministry of Hydrocarbons works for Transierra oil company, while the current director worked in oil consultants. It is clear that not only vice ministers work in the Ministry of Hydrocarbons and then in oil companies, but also the officials of lower range in charge of the environmental control."

To complete the landscape, says Herbas, the Executive approved the Ordinance 27024 of May 6 2003 that was rejected by social and indigenous organizations during the previous administration: "The ordinance establishes the reduction of the forest patent settled down in the Forest Law, reducing it to the payment of the surface of the Profitable Annual Area (The law establishes that the patent is on the granted area) and a new rate based on the administrative costs of the area (the Law establishes the payment of $US. 1 for each granted hectare)."

Besides diminishing the inspection capacity, this fact motivate the companies to not fulfilling their obligations: "according to the reports of the Forest Superintendence, until the year 2002 the debt for not paying the granted forest patents was 9 million dollars ...This means that sectors already benefited have more incentives to not paying taxes".

According to FOBOMADE´s representative this situation demonstrates that the government politics are contradictory: "with the biggest hypocrisy, government's parties hope to approve the Law project on Protected Areas that is rather a project to legalize oil activities in these areas. They are trying to cheat on International Cooperation pretending that Bolivia preserves and protects its environment and protected areas."

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11-JULY -2003
THE AMAZONIAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF BRAZIL

"This was our territory for 40.000 years, until you arrived here. We were sixty million people and now you have reduced us to 300.000. And you continue persecuting us." This was said with an accusing voice by a young Pataxó Indian on April 26, 2.000, when the Brazilian Church asked for forgiveness to the indigenous and black people for the errors and injustices made against them along five centuries.

The colonization process started 500 years ago, with the Portuguese, and lasted until the beginning of the XX century, causing the extinction of hundreds of indigenous people, due to the use of weapons, the noxious effects caused by infections brought from distant countries, or the execution of politics of "assimilation" to the new society implanted with strong European influence.

It is not known exactly how many indigenous people existed in Brazil when the Europeans arrived. According to investigations, it is estimated that between five or six million people inhabited the region. The impact of the conquest was huge: the population decreased to not more than 350 thousand people; the linguists estimate that near 1.300 different languages were spoken in this area at the arrival of the Portuguese. Thousands of people died as a consequence of the contact with Europeans. Illnesses completely curable today, as flu, measles, chickenpox and tuberculosis, reduced dramatically the population that didn't have natural immunities.

Nowadays, 180 languages and 215 communities have survived. There are also signs of the existence of about fifty three indigenous groups that have not been contacted, besides others that are claiming for the recognition of their indigenous condition.

The 12,26% of the lands of Brazil are reserved to indigenous communities, most of them are concentrated in the Amazonia and still suffering the invasion of garimpeiros, mining companies, wood companies and posseiros. Part of the region has been divided by avenues, railroads, transmission lines or flooded by hydroelectric projects.

The unknown communities

On June, 1998, news agencies disclosed the "discovery" of a new indigenous group in the depths of the Brazilian Amazon. Good news? It is uncertain. The 90% of the kranhacarore indigenous people died since the contact was made.

Ever since the conquest, some indigenous communities have managed to stay far from the national society, in conditions of great fragility, and many times they have been prosecuted by the western civilization.

Their living conditions and language are almost unknown. But what is certain is that they have decided to not have contact with a society that has prosecuted them along 500 years. They want to live as their ancestors: hunting, fishing, gathering products and practicing incipient agriculture.

Pending Actions

Indigenous territories hold a gigantic biological patrimony and a millennial knowledge that is in danger of disappearing. Indigenous people know about more than 1.300 plants containing medicinal active principles which at least 90 of them are used in commerce. The 25% of medicines used in the United States possess active substances from the native plants of tropical flora. It is imperative to defend the indigenous rights upon these resources, to avoid the bio piracy and the illicit trade of genetic resources. Brazil exports near a thousand million dollars per year in biodiversity products coming from the extraction activity.

The debate about the "integration" politics should be concluded by establishing the bases of a new indigenous politic based on the respect of the characteristics of their socio cultural organization.

Some actions have been taken in favor of indigenous people such as the creation of the FUNAI, a governmental office in charge of the tutorship of the rights of indigenous people, or the modifications to the Brazilian Constitution and the ratification of ILO`s 169 Agreement, which guarantee the defense of indigenous collective rights. The CIMI - Indigenous Missionary Council -, started a campaign for the approval of an Indigenous Community Statute that tents to demarcate indigenous reservations, to regularize the natural resources exploitation, to guarantee the environmental protection and the indigenous rights, as well as to start specific social programs for their benefit.

At the moment, all this exists only in papers since the invasions and the territorial conflicts continue, and the pressure of the big agricultural groups and of peasants without lands is permanent. The illnesses whip entire populations.

That is why the preservation of indigenous territories is so important. It assures the rights of the indigenous people, it guarantees the means of its physical and cultural survival, as well as the protection of the biodiversity and knowledge which allows its rational use.

Taken from: Encyclopedia of the Amazonian People, ALDHU, Quito, 2002

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14-JULY -2003
LIVESTOCK INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR IN THE AMAZON

The International Seminar on Livestock Sustainable Development in the Amazon "Productivity with Environmental Quality" will be carried out from the 15 to the 18 of July in Porto Velho, Rondonia, Brazil. This event brings together investigators, producers, industrialists and tradesman from Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador and Colombia.

The seminar was organized by the Brazilian Company of Agricultural Investigation, of the Ministry of Agriculture, in collaboration with the Inter American Institute of Cooperation for the Agriculture, IICA and the Program of Cooperation, Investigation and Transfer of Technology for the South American Tropics, PROCITROPICOS. Its objectives are to promote the agricultural development in the Amazon, to facilitate production alternatives, to introduce sustainable technologies to the producers and to elevate the awareness on the economic and environmental implications of executing activities in Amazonian ecosystem.

The Seminar has special importance considering the raising livestock activity of settlers in the whole Amazon Basin, a territory characterized by its ecological fragility. Although agricultural activities have deforested environment, an appropriate handling of them together with the introduction of modern technology can give the areas already intervened a sustainable economy and stop the expansion of the agricultural frontier in the Amazon.

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15-JULY -2003
INDIGENOUS YEKUANAS WANT TO IMPROVE THEIR SPANISH

YAAL (VENEZUELA)

The Venezuelan community Yekuana considered the need of improving their Spanish: " they want it to become their second language, for they need it to carry out business and economic transactions important to their survival".

The Language Improvement Project is part of the sociolinguistic program of indigenous populations, directed by professor Horacio Biord and is coordinated by the Department of Anthropology of the Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Investigations. Biord affirms that the goal of the project is not to teach this community to read and write because this have to be done in their original language. Spanish as a second language, says the professor mentioning information from the IVIC, has the purpose to provide indigenous people the skills to participate in Venezuelan society in a less unequal way. It is not about displacing indigenous languages, stated in the new Constitution (art. 9), it is about stimulating bilingualism maintaining the two languages: Spanish and the indigenous language. Currently, about 30 indigenous languages are spoken in Venezuela.

Professor Biord also announced that the program will be carried out among Yekuanas women. Yekuanas are well-known as Phoenicians of the Venezuelan Amazon. They ate famous navigators and manufacturers and live in an area of 30.000 km2 that include the riversides of Padamo, Ventuari, paragua, Caura, Uraricuera, Uesete, Cunucunuma, Yaiti, Cuntinamo and Erebato rivers of Bolívar and Amazons states.

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16-JULY -2003
ECUADOR:
HIGHWAYS FACILITATE THE EXPLOITATION OF WOOD

Highways have become important element in the increase of deforestation in Puyo, capital of Pastaza province, informs an Ecuadorian newspaper. The wild vegetation that covered the ways linking this city with Macas, Tena and Arajuno has been replaced by agricultural farms and pastures, due to the facilities of exploitation that the roads provide.

"The construction of roads provoked the presence of intermediaries, woodcutters, colonists and indigenous people that currently generates the uncontrollable exploitation of the primary forest", affirms Leonardo Viteri, coordinator of Amazanga Institute of Puyo.

Although there are places that control wood exploitation in the departments Mera and Arajuno, the deforestation of the primary forest reaches the 2309 hectares a year. The situation is similar to that of Brazil, where colonists are the main destroyers of the forest. " The poverty of some indigenous communities of the Amazon is the opportunity for wood exploiters from Ecuador and Colombia. They arrive with big trucks and gifts to the forest areas requesting the sale of the primary forest", states the newspaper.

According to a publication of the Human Rights Latin American Association, ALDHU, there are 10 countries in the world that are responsible for the loss of 50% of tropical forests that exist in the planet, and although the countries that share the Amazonian space have tried to protect the forest through the creation of protected areas, those are too few in relation to the areas that have already been affected by the wood exploitation and colonization.

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17-JULY -2003
THE VENEZUELAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS AND THE VENEZUELAN LANGUAGE ACADEMY CARRIED OUT A SYMPOSIUM TO FIGHT AGAINST IDIOMATIC EXCLUSION

(YAAL VENEZUELA)

The Symposium "Improvement and Teaching of Spanish as a Second Language" was carried out the last month in the headquarters of the National Language Academy of Venezuela. The congress was held within the context of the recognition of indigenous peoples as communities participating in the regional and national dynamics of the Venezuelan society and its end was exchanging and discussing the available tools to improve Spanish as second language in bilingual and semi bilingual adult indigenous speakers.

The Department of Anthropology of the Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Investigations together with the Association "Otro Futuro" -devoted to support indigenous people and other excluded groups of Venezuela- , the Venezuelan Language Academy , the Catholic University "Andrés Bello", the Department of Indigenous Affairs and the Department of Indigenous Education of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports organized the symposium. Within the audience were researchers and professors of the institutions above and other academic organizations concerned with this issue.

The Director of the Venezuelan Language Academy, Oscar Zambrano Urdaneta, while opening the event announced that the Academy would create a Permanent Commission of Indigenous Studies to continue the tradition of this institution in treating this topic. The president of the Association "Otro Futuro", Nelly Arvelo, also declared the constitution of a work group to design the appropriate methodology to improve Spanish as second language in the adult indigenous people.

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18-JULY -2003
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE BOLIVIAN AMAZON:
THE BAURÉ

Aesthetics and order characterize Bauré people that inhabits the department of El Beni in the amazon province of Iténez, Bolivia. This community that reached the 4.758 inhabitants in 1996, belongs to the linguistic group Arawak and was discovered in the middle of the XVII century by the Jesuit Eguiluz.

In their way of life as well as in their social organization, the Bauré respecs the hierarchy. They chose the highest places to establish their communities and distributed their shacks in hierarchical order. The community functioning was controlled by the Cacique and for the elder´s council that gave advice when there were political or social conflicts.

The main economic activity of this group is the production of chocolate and of manioc flour (chive). They also practice the agriculture for subsistence, hunting, fishing, the extraction of wood, of palm leaves and the gathering of medicinal plants for trading.

Harmony shows up in the physical appearance of Bauré men and women. They decorate themselves with necklaces of seeds and glass, metal, gold, and silver chains and medals. They wear earrings, many rings and in their long hairs, ribbons of several colors. They are very clean and they observe that behavior with all their things. Their houses are wide and filled up with decorations like painting, crafts and textile mills. In their gardens they have ornamental and fruit-bearing trees characteristic of the area.

Currently, the Bauré has begun to move toward the most important populated centers in the region looking for work mainly in cattle areas.

TAKEN FROM THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE AMAZON INDIGENOUS PEOLPES, ALDHU.

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21-JULY -2003
INTERCULTURAL EQUITY, AN MODEL IN THE PERUVIAN AMAZON

Due to the growing importance of (inter) cultural dimension in planning and executing development projects, the Neetherlands Development Organization, SNV, launched on July 11 in Iquitos, Peru, the book "Intercultural Equity, a track, its steps and techniques.

" Mildred Klarenbeek and Rafael Meza Castro, authors of the publication systematize SNV´s experience and knowledge on the incorporation of the intercultural equality, acquired in its work in the Amazon and in the Northern Highlands of Peru.

"The intercultural equality refers to a strategic and political concept that aims at learning, mutual communication, respect, no-exclusion and empowerment of the different cultures and within a culture, securing spaces for interaction and development, for mutual benefit, human development and well-being ", states the book in its foreword.

This methodological text aims at being an aid for all those who want to incorporate this component in advisory work and promotion. The book presents dynamics, techniques and exercises to create conditions and strengthen competences to later incorporate the intercultural equality in their work, and at the same time it aims at achieving a change of behavior in their work and daily lives."

The SNV is an organization that works in 26 countries and looks for strengthening the capacities of the local organizations to fight poverty in its structural and institutional dimensions.

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22-JULY -2003
CHANCELLORS DISCUSS ON FUMIGATIONS

The chancellors, Nina Pacari, from Ecuador and Carolina Barco, from Colombia will meet on July 29 in Bogotá, to analyze the Ecuadorian proposal of subscribing an Understanding Agreement to avoid aerial fumigations with glyphosate in a 10km area from the border line among the 2 countries.

Before attending Colombia, the Foreign Ministry of Ecuador, has organized preparatory meetings with experts to prepare the Ecuadorian proposal that considers, among other issues, to compensate those affected and to develop projects to reduce the impacts already caused by fumigations. After these meetings, the final document that Ecuador will present, will be established and expectantly will be subscribed by the presidents of the 2 countries, during the visit of the Colombian leader, Alvaro Uribe in August 3rd.

The Ecuadorian government formulated this petition one year ago, in response to the complaints of the affected people that have been protesting since the year 2000, when the process began as one of the strategies of the Plan Colombia, supported by The United States., for the chemical substances speeded by the winds have affected entire populations. However, the answer of Colombia was limited to a verbal commitment that has not been fulfilled. Therefore, Ecuador is requesting that the petition is signed at the highest level.

The governments from Colombia and The United States have defended fumigations, for it is a supposedly effective method to eradicate illicit crops, however the noxious effects of this process are evident. In the year 2002 the Colombian Ombudsman received 6,553 complaints for damage of legal crops and health problems. Last Sunday, the Ecuadorian television evidenced, in a report, the effects of the fumigations that are similar in several towns of the border area: the children show problems in the skin and in the eyes and licit crops are destroyed.

Besides, fumigations in Colombian territory have caused the forced displacement of people to the neighboring countries, social problem that also affects Ecuador, that without the economic resources cannot offer good live conditions to these populations.

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23-JULY -2003
REGIONAL BOOK FESTIVAL BEGAN IN IQUITOS

The eighteenth edition of the Regional Book Festival started yesterday in Iquitos, the Amazonian city of Perú, with a Solemn Session chaired by the mayor of Maynas, Juan Carlos del Aguila Cárdenas, informed the Communications Office of the Municipality.

The current year's festival will last 2 weeks and will have the participation of booksellers coming from the main city of the republic -of the Center Amazons - as well as of the scarce local editorials that in spite of the difficult economic situation of the country and the region, made a great editorial and distribution work.

Joaquín García Sánchez, president of the Organizing Committee and promoter of the festival, affirmed that the intellectual Manuel Dammert Ego Aguirre has been invited to the Magisterial Lesson. Within the ceremony the Prize Paucar will be presented to the writer, journalist, historian and painter, Humberto Morey Alejo, that this year reaches the 37 years of intense cultural work in the region and that it was recognized by the Municipality at the beginning of this month.

In the opening act the owners of Peru Hotel -a XIX century building located in the third block of Jirón Próspero - will be ranted with the Prize Architectural Monument 2003 for the beautiful reconstruction they carried out.

Later on the organizers would carry out the Procession of the Culture to take the attendants to visit some of the cultural centers of the city: the Prefecture -that puts up the Museum of Iquitos-, the gallery of the Continental Bank and the Municipal Library, where exhibitions and samples of different kind will be carried out. The day will close in the great Square, place where books stores have temporary been raised.

Tomorrow, the mayor of Maynas will formalize an editorial project by which the municipality of Maynas will support editorial initiatives. The project also involves to the National Institute of Culture.

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24-JULY -2003
FORUM ON INDIGENOUS PEOPLES, PETROLEUM AND ENVIRONMENT CARRIED OUT IN ECUADOR

Indigenous, environmentalist, State and private organizations, met yesterday in Quito in the "Second Forum Ecology and Politics: Indigenous peoples, petroleum and environment" to discuss the social, economic and environmental impacts of the oil exploitation in Ecuador.

FLACSO, the Ecumenical Projects Committee (CEP), the Inter institutional Platform for the Construction of Social an Environmental Consensus(PICCSA), the Catholic University, ILDIS, GTZ and Friedrich Ebert Foundation organized the meeting carried out in the Catholic University of Ecuador until tomorrow.

The conflict that characterizes the hydrocarbons industry showed up in 3 concrete cases exposed by the representatives of the affected populations of the Amazon. Concerning the case of Texaco, which legal process is already being debated in the Ecuadorian courts, the representative of the Front of Defense of the Amazon, Luis Yanza, exhorted every organism and institution of the country to supervise its correct development, for the Ecuadorian system of justice is not reliable.

Furthermore, Pablo Ortiz, representative of Amazanga Foundation, talked about petroleum in the indigenous territories of Pastaza and expressed that the presence of the companies Arco Oriente, AGIP Oil and CGC in the blocks 10 and 23 of the Ecuadorian Amazon, lead to the division of the indigenous communities through bribes and blackmails that facilitates the oil exploitation without control. He also said that the local governments maintain a very close relationship with oil companies and don't recognize the autonomy of the indigenous organizations as governors of their territory, and accused the State of not assuming environmental responsibilities, of allowing the negotiation under unequal conditions and of granting military security to the oil companies to guarantee the exploitation.

The representative of the Federation of Shuar People, FIPSE, Bosco Najandae gave the third speech and affirmed that in spite of the presence of the company Arco Oriente in Morona Santiago, several indigenous organizations of the area are opposed to extracting activities, for their duty is to protect the biodiversity and the rights of the people of the Amazon.

The words of the economist Alberto Acosta who opened the forum, summarized the general feeling about the oil exploitation in the Ecuador: "the idea that the country requires petroleum to survive became a political speech through which the abuse and manipulation of the oil resources is allowed without caring about the social and environmental consequences."

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25-JULY -2003
MORE FUNDS FOR ANTI DRUG FIGHT

The North American Congress, as an answer to the order of president George Bush approved a budget of 731 million dollars for the anti drugs fight in the South American countries. Colombia will receive 439 million dollars which is more than a half of these resources, Bolivia will receive 91, Ecuador 35, Peru 116, Brazil, Panama 9 and Venezuela 8 millions . Guatemala and Haiti will benefit with smaller amounts.

The economic support, foreseen within the Andean Initiative Against Drugs will begin on October 1st, 2003 and will conclude on September 30th, 2004.

Colombia will also receive other 120 millions from other budget. The President of that country, Alvaro Uribe was pleased with the decision of the Congress of the United States and expressed that the decrease of kidnappings, violent deaths, attacks and illicit crops have been enough arguments to receive this new economic help.

Meanwhile, in Bolivia the decrease in the budget for the anti drugs fight from 104 to 94 millions approved for this year concerned the population.

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25-JULY -2003
BOOK ON THE EASTERN ANDES AND WESTERN AMAZON OF BOLIVIA, BRAZIL AND PERU

The publication "The Eastern Andes and Western Amazon, Essays between the History and Archeology of Bolivia, Brazil and Peru" of the Finnish investigators Martti Parssinen and Arii Siiriainen is launched today in La Paz, Bolivia. The event is organized by the Vicepresidency of Bolivia, the UMSA Master Program on Andean and Amazon Histories, the Bolivian National School of Historians, CIMA Productions and the Library and Historical Archive of the National Congress.

Martti Parssinen
Investigator of the Andean and Amazonian cultures for more than 20 years. He is Director of the Ibero-American Center of Renvall Institute and Professor of Latin American Studies of the University of Helsinki.

He directed the Historical-archaeological Expedition in Chuquisaca and Titicaca lake (1994), the Archaeological Mission in Chile and Bolivia (1992), the archaeological excavations in Caquiaviri, ancient departmental main city of the Incas in Pacasa (1990), and the historical-archaeological expedition in the area of Titicaca lake (1989).

He is editor of the Ibero-American scientific serie "Fennica" (Madrid). As an erudite in historical and archaeological sources, he has written the Guide of documental sources for Andean Art History and Archaeology (National Gallery of Art), archaeological investigations based on historical sources taken from his experiences in Cajamarca, Pacasa and Yampará (Paris, 1997), and the sources of the chroniclers Martin de Morúa and Pedro Gutiérrez de Santa Clara (Lima, 1989).

As a professor invited of UMSA´s Center of Graduate Programs, he was in charge of the class Tawantinsuyu: the Political organization of the Inca State and the Frontiers Pakasa and Yampara¸ as part of the Master Program in Andean and Amazon Histories.

Ari Siiriäinen
Philosophy Doctor and Archaeology professor in the University of Helsinki. He has an outstanding professional career that began with his first responsibility as an investigator of the Commission of Archaeology of Finland. He participated in the archaeological excavations in the north of Finland, Sudan, Kenya, Niger, Sahel, Tanzania, Lybico; and participated in scientific expeditions in the Peruvian Amazon, Chile and Bolivia.

He has published more than a hundred articles. Among their main scientific publications, we mention The Archaeology and the Inca fortification system in Chuquisaca (Bolivia,1998), and Amazonian interests of Inca the State (Tawantinsuyu) (2002), both with Martti Pärssinen; The fortress of Las Piedras fortress in the Bolivian Amazon, preliminary report of the archaeological investigations in Riberalta, Towards the chronology of Las Piedras fortress (2003).

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