We are
traveling from Rosita to the BOSAWAS and a small indigenous community and
Jazelle is talking with us. Saka was a
community on the Pis Pis River, which was dammed by HEMCO gold company for
hydroelectric power. MENCO has been
under various names for more than 100 years.
It has been owned by Japanese, Canadian, U.S., and Colombian owners.
This
land was sold in 1998 and within six months this was a huge, completely
treeless area. Last year two people were
condemned and this year three were condemned for entering the BOSAWAS without
permission. Ten years of jail was the
sentence for these leaders (land brokers), who came from Rio Blanco, Jinoteca,
and near here.
This
road is impassible June through December during the rainy season. It goes to 1600 sq km including 16
communities and 12,000 people, the Mayangna Sauni As.
The
indigenous here hunt with .22 rifles or bows and arrows, and fish with a simple
hook on a line. They can sell meat for
25 Cd per pound in the countryside, or 65 – 70 Cd per pound in the city.
The
electric line here is two years old.
We see
oropendula bird nests.
These
invaders have only been here for six or seven months – massive areas are now
deforested. We are on the edge of the
BOSAWAS. The Mayangna used to hunt here,
but now they can’t because of deforestation and lack of animals. The “River of painted turtles” on the other
side is indigenous territory. The
Mayangna are the only people here, and this is their only language.
We are
accompanied by Ricardo, who speaks Mayangna and Spanish.
After a
very bumpy van ride, we arrived at the end of the road and a stream. On the other side is a Mayangna community and
the BOSAWAS. We took off our shoes and
clumsily waded across two sections of the stream. There are cattle along the edge who wander
along both sides and through the stream.
It’s hot and the water looks inviting.
As we cross, we see crabs, tadpoles, and a whole herd of butterflies,
and big red dragonflies. We are told
that the next river is an eight hour walk away.
This is
the boundary. People are coming in to
hunt with guns and dogs and don’t respect the indigenous people. The indigenous have their own language, ways
of life, and food. After climbing a
steep hill (and fording a river and being attacked by a giant herd of
butterflies), Kathy missed a step and fell going into the school sidewalk and
cut her head.
This
school was build in 2005. They are
teaching in Spanish (and probably Mayangna).
Ricardo
and Jazelle showed us things along the way, including the Mulu plant, which
reduces the pain and time for childbirth.
It’s also useful for washing hair.
The biggest trees are the Ciba.
Another tree is good to help heal broken bones. There are lots of cicadas and song
birds. In the forest near here are
Mountain Lions, Jaguars, and Ocelots.
After
going into the BOSAWAS and back, some of us had a marvelous swim in the stream
for about an hour while waiting for the others to get back and having lunch.
We saw
three truckloads of people – Eco-battalion, police, and territorial government
people – we met with some of them the next day.
It turns out they were on a saneamiento mission to force invaders out of
their homes and burn the houses down.
We finally
got back in the bus, drove on to Bonanza, and checked in to our hotel. For most of us for most of the time, there
was no water in the hotel. We tried to
bathe by splashing water over ourselves out of a bucket and had to flush the
toilets with a bucket. However, this was
not a very satisfactory process and we each quickly used up the barrel of water
that was brought to each room.
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