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Ecuador’s south central Amazon rainforest, currently threatened by possible new oil activity, is a treasure of biodiversity and untouched primary forest thanks to the traditional resource management of the seven indigenous nationalities that inhabit the area.
Local Communities Have Not Benefited from Oil Development
Since 2010, the national government has been promoting the 11th Oil Round, which calls for the development of 21 oil blocks covering approximately 7.4 million acres of primary forest in the south central Ecuadorian Amazon.
Up until now, oil exploitation in Ecuador has been concentrated in the northern part of the Amazon in the provinces of Sucumbíos, Orellana, and Napo, areas where severe environmental, cultural, and local economical impacts are apparent.
The so-called “development” that was to take place in conjunction with oil exploitation has not occurred, and rather the opposite is taking place: these provinces report the highest rates of poverty and neglect by the state, a fact that even President Rafael Correa spoke of on October 10, 2011, based on a study from the Ecuadorian Institute of Statistics and Census conducted in 2010.
Ecuador Expected to Pay Debts with Oil Revenues
Growing public expenses and distancing from multinational organizations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have caused the Ecuadorian government to look for nontraditional means of financing its agenda.
In the last two years, China has granted $6,700,000 in loans to Ecuador, as reported by the newspaper Hoy in June 2011. These financial agreements are based in a large part on expected payments from the sale of oil, oil that is found in the south central Ecuadorian Amazon.
Compromising Generations of Traditional Resource Management
Given Ecuador’s significant foreign debt, it appears the current government’s plans to expand extraction are economically motivated, explaining how and why the south central Amazon region, an area characterized by high conservation rates of 80% and great biological diversity, is now under threat.
The land at risk remains practically untouched thanks to the traditional resource management of the seven indigenous nationalities that inhabit this area:
- Kichwa
- Andoa
- Shiwiar
- Achuar
- Shuar
- Waorani
- Sápara
This map shows the approximately 7.4 million acres or 76% of indigenous territories that will be affected by the new oil round, and explains the percentage of each nation’s ancestral land currently at risk.
Collective Rights of Indigenous Nationalities Being Ignored
The Provincial Offices of the Undersecretary of Hydrocarbons in the towns of Puyo and Macas have begun to disseminate information about the 11th Oil Round in base communities without having completed the correct processes of consultation and free, prior, and informed consent.
These Offices have entered communities without the consent of indigenous authorities, which threatens the traditional social organization of the legitimate representative organizations of these nationalities, and therefore, the right to their autonomous governance and autonomous determination.
Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Call for Moratorium
Permitting and continuing these activities puts the culture of these seven nationalities under serious risks, which could potentially lead to ethnocide and genocide as experienced by the Tetetes and Sansahuaris people of the northern Amazon during the 1960s and 1970s as a result of oil development activities.
Knowing the history of their neighboring nations, Amazonian indigenous leaders delivered a statement to the Office of the Ministry of Hydrocarbons in Puyo earlier this month demanding a permanent moratorium on drilling in the region.
Stand with Our Indigenous Partners
The indigenous nationalities of the south central Ecuadorian Amazonian are facing a long and strong battle to defend their rights and finally achieve the construction of a truly plurinational country that promotes the concept of well being, sumak kawsay, for all of its citizens.
We invite you to join us in our most ambitious campaign yet, raising awareness about the struggle of our indigenous partners and securing their vision of a permanent moratorium on future oil development.
Whether you sign up for our email updates, share the campaign with your networks, or make a financial investment, you involvement is crucial to our success.
