In honor of Earth Day 2000, the U’wa tribe of northern Colombia who have been fighting oil drilling on their sacred lands, will be holding a traditional ceremony in their territory in homage to Mother Earth. In addition, two U’wa leaders will speak on-stage on the Earth Day-Los Angeles at Exposition Park.
In Colombia, the U’wa will begin a traditional earth prayer ceremony at 10am (CT), 22 April 2000 in the town of Cubará, in the northeastern state of Boyacá. More than 4,500 U’wa and their supporters are expected to attend the event. Video footage of this Earth Day is being made available to the media via satellite on Saturday afternoon offering a rare opportunity to see up-close the culture of this ancient and threatened people.
In Los Angeles, the U’wa chiefs Roberto Perez and Berito KuwarU’wa (Winner of 1998 Goldman Award) will speak on stage at the official Earth Day – LA event and will participate in the Press Conference at 10:30am on Saturday along with prominent Los Angeles environmentalists and actor Pierce Brosnan. Several weeks ago, Pierce Brosnan expressed his support for the U’wa and participated in a tree planting ceremony with U’wa leaders while filming upcoming film “Taylor of Panama” directed by John Boorman (Emerald Forest).
The U’wa believe that oil is the blood of Mother Earth and they cannot permit drilling as this would upset the balance of their physical and spiritual worlds. So strong is their opposition to oil drilling that they have repeatedly stated their willingness to die if necessary to protect their sacred ancestral lands.
Earth Day 2000 events are being organized in 183 countries around the world. The U’wa have joined with indigenous peoples from Burma, Australia, Nigeria, and the USA to call for clean energy and to draw attention to the negative impacts of fossil fuel exploration.
U’wa leaders will be in Los Angeles to attend the upcoming Occidental Petroleum Annual Shareholders’ Meeting on April 28 to protest the company’s refusal to cancel oil drilling on the tribe’s sacred ancestral lands. Tribal leaders have urged Occidental Petroleum’s CEO, Mr. Ray Irani to meet with them. For more information, visit www.amazonwatch.org.
Footage Will be Available via Associated Press TV Saturday Afternoon April 22. For Exact Times of Satellite Link, Contact: Guillermo Galdos, AP-TV Latin America Desk 011 44 171 482 7641
Also A Video News Release and B-Roll Available From Amazon Watch In Los Angeles
