The one of Nemonte Nemquimo is a story of lotta e resistance. From an early age she was encouraged to become one leader, following the example of his grandfather and his parents in fighting against intruders who wanted to invade their people’s territory and learned how noisy and harmful to the environment and people a well of Petroleum. A few years later, in 2015, he founded the non-profit organization Ceibo alliance to protect the lands of the indigenous people ofAmazonia of Ecuador from the exploitation of resources, and in 2018 she was elected president, the first woman in this role, of the Conconawep, the organization Waorani of the province of Pastaza. On 30 November he received the Goldman Environmental Prize for South America, considered the prize Nobel for the environment, and has been nominated in recent weeks by Bbc among the 100 women of 2020, and from the magazine Time among the 100 most important people in the world.
Proud and determined, unmounted, 33, a 4-year-old daughter, is one of the leaders of the people’s battle Waorani, which in 2019 not only launched the digital campaign “Our forest is not for sale” with a petition signed by 378 thousand people around the world, but also managed to obtain a historic victory in court against the government that wanted to give more 180 thousand hectares in concession to oil companies, including the Exxon and the Shell, with the obligation for the future to consult and obtain the free consent of the populations indigenous. A very important result for the rights of these populations of theEcuador and all the others tribe who are following his example to protect from exploitation indiscriminate those parts of forest Amazonian that belong to him. At the same time it has helped the communities Waorani (in isolation up to 70 years ago) to remain independent from corporate gifts and offers petroleum, by installing rainwater collection systems, panels solar and supporting women’s craftsmanship in the production of organic cocoa e chocolate. It also ensured that i Young people they learned to document their work with powerful video and images for theirs countryside, also using drones.
We were able to ask you a few questions in the press conference organized to talk about the award you just received, which, as the three organizations that lead the Waorani people – Nacionalidad Waorani del Ecuador (NAWE), Asociación de Mujeres Waorani del Ecuador (AMWAE) and Conconawep – pointed out – “It is a recognition of our collective work to protect ours territory. There is no possible struggle without the united work. Each of us is a guardian and defender of the forest ”.
When did you decide to fight for the Waorani people?
I decided this since I was a child, because my parents were born in the forest. Our grandparents and parents taught us to protect our territory, because the Waorani were warriors and thanks to them we have many hectares of forest to live in. We now feel a threat after contact with Western man.
What does the Goldman Prize mean to you?
For me it is a recognition of the millennial struggle of our grandparents, of those who died and those who are alive, for us who continue to fight to defend our territory and what we love. Together, with my people, we fight for the respect of our rights to self-government and self-determination. Without land there is no life, the forest is everything for us, our market, our pharmacy, our suburbs, just like the cities for you. For millennia it has supported us, it is our home but now we feel a great threat, because the government and capitalism do not respect us, they use our territory only to soil and pillage it. This fight is for all indigenous peoples and for life, for all people in the world, because otherwise there will be nothing left to leave for our children.
What are you asking the government?
The only thing we want is that they respect us and our rights. If they consult us and we say no, they have to accept it. The decisions we make in our territory are ours and must be respected. We want to continue working inside and out, creating our own form of government, we are strengthening between nationalities by uniting.
How is the situation of the Covid epidemic among the Waorans?
From March to July we were quite impressed. The women looked after the families, we used the plants from the forest to do it, it was very hard work. (According to data collected by the Confeniae-Confederation of indigenous nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon, 3240 cases of Covid confirmed so far, 2229 recovered and 50 dead, to which must be added another 663 suspected cases and 54 deaths with symptoms compatible with the coronavirus. The Waorani of Pastaza, where Nemonte lives, had 103 confirmed cases and no deaths).
How are relations with the government of Ecuador now regarding your battles?
The state has opened some doors for us to participate, but much remains to be done. We scored two victories in court, one against oil extraction and the other in May to call for measures to protect ourselves from the coronavirus. We have won on both fronts, but they are not respecting the sentences. We will continue to complain until the state gets tired of listening to our petitions.
What are the next challenges?
Certainly work with the community to strengthen our leadership and make ourselves respected before the government and also at the international level, together with other indigenous peoples. I want to give indigenous peoples a voice. Climate change is hitting us, along with the economic crisis. All human beings are connected to the earth. After this award we cannot fight only as indigenous, but we must do it for the whole planet, it is for the life of future generations.
(photo on Amazon Frontlines)
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