Courts rather than spears used to defend indigenous territories
“Justice is very important because today it is not enough to defend ourselves with spears or rituals. Now we have to go to court to protect ourselves and work with lawyers and community law,” said Nemonte Nenquino of the Waorani people in Ecuador. Nenquino is the president of the Waorani Pastaza Organization (CONCOAWEP), an organization that represents the Waorani people of Ecuador across the Pastaza region. Nenquino, along with Waorani elder Omanca, were in Geneva recently to attend the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP). The meeting brought together indigenous people, NGOs and other experts to discuss challenges facing the communities. Nenquino and Omanca were also there to talk about the Waorani’s recent court victory. In April, a court in Ecuador ruled that that the Government had not properly consulted the Waorani of Pastaza, in eastern Ecuador, about an oil auction that would affect their territory. Over the years, Ecuador has divided much of its p...