Five representatives of the indigenous Aruaco community of Colombia were in Athens, on the occasion of World Earth Day, and spoke about their relationship with the environment as well as the climate collapse that threatens the Earth.
The 71-year-old Mamou Kountsa dressed in the white traditional clothing of the Aruaco he speaks in his native language, Iku, about human waste of natural resources and what this may mean for our common future. The Great Mamou of Kankurwa, otherwise known as Mamou Kuncha, who is the cultural and political leader of Aruaco, is on stage at the Benaki Museum with four other members of his community. They have come to Athens as part of the 16th LEA Festival with the aim of bringing the Greek public into contact with the rich cosmogony of their people, their great oral tradition and their message for the preservation of the environment.
The Aruaco is an indigenous community that inhabits the western and southeastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta, a Colombian mountain range that is itself an isolated system of the Andes Mountains, on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. They share the area with the Kogi, Kankwamo and Wigua peoples. Their survival depends on agriculture and animal husbandry, so they are in a direct relationship, a relationship of dependence and survival, with nature, unlike other areas of the planet where, due to industrialization and technology, people have lost touch. The Aruacos, the “guardians” of the highest coastal mountain system in the world, believe that only through our harmonious relationship with nature and respect for vital spaces can we achieve quality of life.
Mamu Kuntsa on stage talks about the unwritten laws left to them by their ancestors according to which we can use nature but in moderation. He talks about the respect that the Aruacos have for the streams of water that flow from the highlands and plateaus (places where there is water are considered sacred to them), because without them there can be no life. “The Earth doesn’t need us, we need it to live” he says while expressing the need to pass on knowledge to the next generations, as the most important thing is to think collectively. Notably, the system of thought shared by the Aruacos and their neighboring peoples is recognized by UNESCO as an intangible heritage of humanity.
Mamou Kuntsa talks about the changes he has seen in nature from his childhood to today. As he describes over the decades the vegetation and animal behavior changed, even the direction of oxygen and all gases. “We are responsible. We managed to destroy Mother Earth. We must take action to reverse climate change” he says and explains that he does not have the answer. He himself knows only what they can do Aruaco. For the change of the situation on a global level, as he says, the powerful people of the world must take care. “The human spirit has changed a lot. A hundred years ago it was very different. We have lost our connection with the Earth and therefore we have lost happiness. We changed our lifestyle in search of comfort and this brought changes to nature as well” says Mamou Kuntsa.
As he speaks, the rest of the team, Mamou Camilo, young Ati, Noel and Luis Salcedo listen attentively. His words are translated into Spanish and reach the ears of the public in simultaneous translation into Greek. Mamou Camilo takes the floor and talks about the way the Aruacos deal with the environment, as well as the need to pass the knowledge of their community to the next generations. The Aruaco despite the fact that they retain their traditional clothing and ancestral values they are not isolated from the western world. They use clocks and have access to electricity through solar panels in their communal huts. They learn Spanish from a young age and some families send their children to study in public universities located in nearby cities.
Ati, the youngest member of the team in Greece (27 years old) is fluent in Iko, as well as Spanish and English. After the event I approach her to find out what it is like for a person her age to live between two worlds, as she has studied political science in Bogotá and is an Aruaco Youth Advocate and an environmental leader, recognized as the co-founder of the NGO “Climate Scholarships for Latin American Youth”. Last year Forbes Colombia recognized her as one of the 100 most important women in the country.
He explains to me that the relationship of the Aruacos with nature is inseparable. They learn to respect her from young children. Even the choice of their names – such as e.g. Mother of Water, Mother of Trees – this teaches them. In this way the Aruaco they make their children understand that they have personal responsibility for preserving the natural environment. I ask her if members of her community have equal opportunities in education and work with the people of Bogotá. “There are more opportunities than before, as it has been understood that the Aruaco they have a kind of knowledge that can be very useful to everyone” he explains and adds that the new generations have a better sense of the destruction that is taking place and are ready to face the problem.
The event was broadcast live at the Bogota International Book Fair (FILBo), this year’s event dedicated to the natural world and alternative lifestyles. During the event, the launch of a collaboration for the mutual promotion of both Colombian and Greek literature was announced between FILBo and the LEA Festival.
The visit of the members of the community of Aruaco in Greece is part of the great debate about the climate crisis, for the prevention of which, however, legislation is needed regarding the framework for the operation of large industries. It is also time to address the issue of seeds which still remain in the hands of multinationals on a large scale, as well as the issue of the privatization of water, especially at a time when due to global warming this vital commodity is being rationed .
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