Strength of a movement
by Rachel Berkowitz on April 9, 2010
The woman with whom I was speaking wore a beautiful white embroidered blouse, a dark-colored skirt, bands of golden beads about her neck, and her long hair tightly wrapped in a long, colorfully woven ribbon. This outfit, traditional of women of the Quichua-speaking indigenous community of Otavalo, Ecuador (and in other parts of the Andes), is frequently seen in Otavalo. In this case, the woman is Rosita, a medical practitioner who focuses on community-outreach work through the health center of CEMOPLAF in Otavalo. Though we now find ourselves in Peru, the presence of the strong and dynamic indigenous movement in Ecuador struck me, and I wanted to share a little bit about Ecuador and the indigenous movement with you all!
After 6 amazing weeks in Central America, we moved down south to Ecuador. Ecuador is the second smallest country in South America, with a population of over 14,500,000. The country is incredibly diverse, both ecologically and demographically. In conversation, people have referred to three distinct ¨zones¨ within Ecuador-the Oriente (East and containing the Amazon), the Sierra (Central and containing the Andes), and the Coast (West and containing...the coast). Within these zones there is rich biodiversity of plant and animal species, and our drives from the Sierra to the coast and back again (as our meetings had taken us) were truly breathtaking.
According to our handy, dandy Lonely Planet, the history of indigenous communities before (beginning as early as 6000 years ago) and after the Incan invasion in the early 1400s, the all-too-familiar story of the invading Spaniards in the early 1500s (courtesy of Francisco Pizarro, searching, per usual, for riches), and the introduction of African slaves in the 16th century account for Ecuador´s corresponding cultural diversity. As of2009, The Ecuadorian population is broken down ethnically into Mestizo (65%), Amerindian/indigenous (25%), Spanish and others (7%), and black (3%). In particular something which has struck me when thinking of our learning experience in Ecuador is the omnipresence and strength of the indigenous people and indigenous movement here in our first South American stop. Mr. Olmedo, the Director of Education in the national office of CEMOPLAF (which works throughout the country with all of the aforementioned ethnic groups), informed us that within that 25% there are 38 different indigenous groups, living throughout each of the 3 aforementioned regions (the largest indigenous group is Quichua of the Sierra and Amazon in Ecuador). According to Luis Alfredo ofFUNPRONID (a relatively new, extremely dedicated organization working in the Licto parochial of Riobamba in the central Sierra with youth from Quichua-speaking indigenous communities), the indigenous populations of Ecuador have been marginalized and discriminated against at various points by the government and other citizens in the country (a sentiment echoed by others here as well). However, since the early days of Spanish conquest, the indigenous people of Ecuador have maintained a strong identity, organizing and rising up to fight for their rights.
Examples of mobilization include 18th century indigenous uprisings against Spanish ruling classes, the one-day junta which resulted from the strength of indigenous protesters on January 21, 2000, and different protests and uprisings throughout the 90s and 2000s. Within the very strong indigenous political organization of CONAIE(Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador), other indigenous counsels represent specifically Amazonian, Andean, and Afro-Ecuadorian populations.These councils meet to discuss their political platforms and enter into discussions and negotiations while mobilizing resources to enact their own changes. For example, FICI, the Federación Indígena y Campesina de Imbabura within CONAIE, fought for the rights of the indigenous groups in this area, including the fight for more integrated, intercultural healthcare. The result of this struggle was the creation of the clinic Jambi Huasi in 1984, a dynamic clinic which offers both traditional indigenous medicines and "Western" medicine, the perfect combination for the heavily indigenous area of Otavalo.
The fights of indigenous communities, such as the ongoing battle against environmental degredation with our very own Chevron/Texaco, continue to this day. But it seems to me that this organized and forceful voice is a deeply important and impressive entity within the diverse country of Ecuador, focusing on the needs and rights of the indigenous people. As a movement ourselves, it can be interesting, I think, to consider how other movements are formed and progress. What sorts of lessons could GlobeMed extract from the indigenous movement in Ecuador? There are obviously lots of differences...but I think many similarities as well. Thoughts?
This post is #10 of an ongoing series for the GlobeMed Partner Search Fellows Program, through which GlobeMed's two PSFP Fellows, Rachel Berkowitz and Hannah Robbins, aim to build partnerships between GlobeMed and 15 new community-based health NGOs in Central and South America. These posts will help us follow their journey, as Rachel and Hannah help GlobeMed expand to new university chapters and community-based partners this coming year. To read the entire series of blog posts, click here.
victor says on April 09, 2010 at 5:34pm:
the idea of a "movement" has so many diverse meanings and forms. the movement you discuss, rachel, is rooted in fierce resistance to oppressive structures directly experienced by the participants/resisters themselves. i think that's an important and impressive feature to truly understand. given the diversity of ecuador, i wonder how these indigenous movements have been able to frame and preserve their identity, given all the forces at play. these acts of preservation would seem to be essential to realize the fruits of their human rights demands. great narrative and post, rachel.