This Thursday, June 5th 2014, marks five years since 33 Peruvians died, one disappeared, and more than 200 were injured in Bagua (at the “Devil’s Curve” and oil Pumping Station 6) in a confrontation that shouldn’t have happened. That date marks an important milestone in the history of Amazonian indigenous peoples and for Peru writ large.
The then-government’s decision – irresponsible and wrong – unleashed a violent eviction carried out by the authorities. The indigenous peoples – feeling humiliated, without voice or vote, and without governmental authorities backing them up – defended their territories (from the Amazon, the lungs of the world) even at the cost of their lives.
It was then, based on these lamentable events, that the problems faced by indigenous peoples of the Peruvian Amazon, who for a long time felt their collective rights and rights as Peruvian citizens had been violated, were brought to light at a national and international level.
Five years ago we Peruvians learned:
- That the government shouldn’t turn their back on the people (should instead create spaces for dialogue, debate, and coordination).
- That the government should take preventative measures to avoid violent conflicts (more than 50% of the social conflicts in the country are related to environmental problems).
- That the right to life transcends cultural background, socio-economic level, and where one is from.
- That the indigenous vision of “full life” transcends the personal to the collective.
From that day forward and in the years since, AIDESEP has reaffirmed our commitment to peaceful defense and hard work with the hope of achieving an intercultural development of the indigenous peoples associated to our institution. We continue to believe in Peru, in our authorities and we hope for greater mechanisms for interaction and participation of the citizens that, although they live far away from where decisions are made, suffer the consequences of any mistakes. Bagua was a mistake that the government never should have encouraged.
