Indigenous Chiquitanos denounce the impact of extractivism in Bolivia at the UN

RIDHE's Emergency Education program shares his memories that unfold a tapestry of stories, dreams and struggles.

In the framework of the 18th session of the United Nations (UN) Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP), a delegation composed of six indigenous leaders from the Bolivian Chiquitanía denounced the serious violations that their communities face in the face of the advance of the agrarian extractive model. This participation was part of the efforts articulated within the projects that the European International Human Rights Network (RIDHE) promotes to make visible and strengthen the international impact of indigenous communities in the defense of their rights.

Coming from the municipality of San Ignacio de Velasco, in the department of Santa Cruz, the representatives held strategic meetings with members of the EMRIP, as well as with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) team in its section dedicated to Indigenous Peoples (PPII) and local communities. In these spaces, they shared the recent report prepared by the Alliance for the Defense of Indigenous Communities of San Ignacio de Velasco, an inter-institutional articulation that documents the consequences of the indiscriminate use of agrochemicals, the privatization of water sources and the expansion of the agricultural frontier.

This alliance is comprised of the Legal Clinic of Collective Interest of the Bolivian Catholic University San Pablo (Cochabamba headquarters), the Bolivian Documentation and Information Center (CEDIB) and Biosphere and Environment Productivity (PROBIOMA). Its objective is to provide legal, technical and political support to Chiquita communities in their processes of territorial defense, health protection and preservation of their ways of life.

The presented report warns about the socio-environmental impacts of the dominant agrarian model in the region, such as massive deforestation, the use of highly toxic pesticides and the construction of illegal dams that have irreversibly altered local ecosystems. Added to this is the historical territorial dispossession that deepens the structural inequality of communities.

In addition, the increasing criminalization of indigenous leaders, who are subject to threats, stigmatization and judicial proceedings for exercising their right to defend their territory, was also reported.

According to the participants, all documentation and advocacy actions would have been carried out under the principle of free, prior and informed consent, in direct coordination with the affected communities, which guarantees the legitimacy of the testimonies presented to this important UN mechanism.

With the support of RIDHE, the participation of the Chiquitano people in this international space allowed their voices to go further and be heard on a global stage. It was an opportunity to make visible the problems faced by their communities and to join forces with other struggles that are also resisting the advance of extractivism in Latin America.