A LONG DAY OF TRAVEL TO AN ANCIENT CAPITAL

Sept. 14th: Our bus left Ibague at 4:30AM for the long drive back to Bogota.  We got to the outskirts of the capital at 7:30 but didn’t get to the airport until 9.  Bogota is a sprawling city of 7 million and rush hour begins very early.  From there we flew to Cali where we were picked up by members of CRIC, the Regional Indigenous Council of the Department of Cauca.  We didn’t get to Popayan in the south until 5pm.  Along the way we stopped by the meeting place for the National Assembly of Indigenous, an open-air but covered space where up to 20,000 Indigenous meet from across the country periodically. 

The place  is historic and has attracted people such as Rigoberta Menchu, a member of the UN executive council and the vice-president of Italy to its meetings.  Because the meeting was impromptu we were only able to meet with a few of the Cabildo of the region, but they were able to give us some of the history and significance of this place.  At times, the assembly has carried out road blocks on the highway nearby to draw attention to their demands.

Popayan was the colonial capital of Colombia but lost that title to Bogota after the country became a republic.  It is a beautiful city; the buildings in the colonial section are painted white and it could draw many tourists if the armed conflict was solved. 

We arrived at the CRIC offices at 5 where we met some of their members and staff and were given a presentation about the organization.   CRIC is the original Indigenous Council in Colombia, formed on February 24, 1971 after 5 cabildos in Cauca began to organize.  Although the fight for UNITY, LAND, AUTONOMY and CULTURE, dates from Colonial times, it was after 1971 that they began to mobilize to  fight for public policies, united under their green (territory) and red (fight) flag.  ONIC, the National Indigenous Council, was founded in 1981.  CRIC has a 10 point platform which includes recovery of territory, preserving culture and protecting natural resources.  Four of the main rivers of Colombia have their sources in Cauca.  At present, there are many threats to  Indigenous territories.  The following are some mentioned:  1) mining licenses for exploration are being given to national and international companies without consultation with the communities 2) conflict zones with the army, guerrillas, paramilitaries and narco-traffickers displacing the indigenous 3) biopiracy where multinationals research the flora and then claim ownership of the information without asking permission. 

The Indigenous regard their territory as sacred and are fearful that the Colombian government is eager to give it to Multinationals to manage for economic reasons.