Noticias Socio - Ambientales
de la Comarca Ngäbe Buglé, Provincia de Chiriquí y República de Panamá.
------------- Celebración y ceremonia de los Petroglifos en Kiad. Patrimonio cultural Ngäbe sumergido por el infame Proyecto Barro Blanco
Carta abierta a los 7 candidatos a la presidencia de la republica de Panamá.
7 de marzo de 1997 se firma 10 que crea la comarca desde esa el pueblo Ngäbe Bugle conmemora todos los 7 de marzo el aniversario de nuestra querida comarca.
En el marco del aniversario de la comarca Ngäbe Bugle el Consejo Nacional de la Juventud Ngäbe de Panamá envia carta abierta de invitación a los 7 candidatos a la presidencia de la republica de Panamá para que acuda a #Buäbdi capital de nuestra comarca a
1-Conmemorar junto al pueblo Ngäbe Bugle el aniversario de la comarca Ngäbe.
2-Reafirmar el compromiso firme con el pueblo Ngäbe Bugle.
3-Dar a conocer sus propuesta de gobierno.
Consciente de la responsabilidad que tenemos el pueblo en elegir al proximo presidente de la república de Panamá nos gustaria en esta fecha conmemorativa para nuestro conocer a los 7 canditos, su comptomiso y sus propuestas.
Plutarco
Quintero is resolute. The rainforest has been home to his ancestors for
over 600 years—but if it’s going to survive 600 more, the Naso must
secure their land rights. Only then, can these Indigenous Peoples
protect their culture and continue to care for the land effectively,
with unwavering love and devotion, as they always have.
Plutarco
is a botanist who has seen many things in his 79 years; but he says
nothing compares to the destruction his people have witnessed over the
past decade.
The
Boynic hydro-electric dam project has bulldozed the jungle, emptied the
Tjër Di River of fish and fresh water shrimp and displaced families.
The Tjër Di River runs through the Naso Comarca . Credit: Norlando Meza
Despite utopian promises to the community, the project has brought nothing to the Naso—not even electricity.
Standing
on the balcony of his wooden house, Plutarco looks out at the Wë, a
scared tree to the Naso Peoples, which he planted himself many years ago
following the guidance of one his spiritual teachers. The tree has
survived two major floods; but now that the Government plans to open up
the area to more hydro-electric dams, its future is uncertain.
“This
forest is my home, I was born here and all my children and
grandchildren were born here,” he says. “I would not go to a strangers
house and take it away from them. So what right did they have to come
here? They didn’t even ask our permission, they just came and destroyed
the river. There are no more fish and secretions from the machinery have
polluted the water. Our ancestors looked after the river. They looked
after the mountain and the forest so that today we have everything we
need. Why would anyone cut down the forest? It is a pharmacy.”
Plutarco Quintero. Credit: Norlando Meza
Plutarco
developed his knowledge of the medicinal properties of the forest
plants thanks to three different teachers who accompanied him in the
early years of his life. Today, as old age advances, Plutarco wants to
pass on what is left of the forest to his grandchildren in the form of a
Comarca. This process would transform it into a semi-autonomous region
and require companies to consult with local communities regarding any
kind of construction or development project.
“The
Comarca is in my heart. I am prepared to die for it. If we don’t have a
Comarca what will be left for my grandchildren – and our planet?” —Plutarco Quintero
Five
of the seven Indigenous Peoples of Panama already have their
territories recognized as Comarcas. In October 2017, the Naso came close
to having theirs. The Legislative Assembly unanimously passed Law 656
for the Naso Comarca; but President Varela vetoed it
because the territory they claimed falls within two protected areas –
the UNESCO World Heritage Site La Amistad International Park (PILA) and
the Protected Forest of Palo Seco. The President said the Naso could not
have their territory recognized because the country has international
commitments regarding these protected areas.
“The
reason these protected areas exist in the first place is because the
Naso people have looked after them for hundreds of years. Before those
parks were even created, we had our own internal regulations regarding
the use of the forest and its resources,” says Isabel Sánchez,
Plutarcos’ daughter who lives nearby with her seven children and five
grandchildren. She recalls how even as a child everyone was talking
about the Comarca. “55 years later, it’s still not ours. It hurts.”
Isabel Sánchez. Credit: Norlando Meza
Beside
the Wë tree in front of Plutarco’s house, a portion of land has been
cleared to plant a botanical garden that will safeguard ancestral
knowledge of the medicinal plants. It is being created by a women’s
community organization and Andrés Jiménez, the community’s Justice of
Peace and a student of Plutarco. He is angry that the President, from
his luxurious home in Panama City, has labeled the Naso a threat to
conservation. “Coexisting with natural resources is at the heart of Naso
culture. All the women and men who live here have learned to live in
harmony with the environment as we know that without it, our culture
will cease to exist,” he says.
“55 years later, it’s still not ours. It hurts.” —Isabel Sánchez
To
Jiménez and all the Naso it is clear – the biggest threat to the
environment is the Government itself. “The Government does absolutely
nothing to protect the environment. Anything it does related to
conservation has been due to outside pressure. There is an office for
the Ministry of the Environment here in Boynic but the only thing staff
do is drive up and down the mountain now and again and earn their weekly
wage. They have not planted so much as a seed,” says Jiménez.
Andrés Jiménez. Credit: Norlando Meza
Such
has been the disastrous social and environmental impact of the Boynic
dam; the PILA park could be declared a UNESCO World Heritage site “in
danger.” There is serious concern that rare and endangered species such
as Harpy Eagles, Tapirs and Jaguars as well as up to 16 species of
migratory fish and shrimp have been affected by the dam. And despite
this, rumors abound that there are plans to continue to open up
tributaries of the Tjër-Di river to four more hydro projects. This,
surely, is the real reason behind the Presidential Veto; if the Comarca
is created, the Naso would have to be consulted regarding these and any
other interventions.
But there is still hope. The Legislative
Assembly asserted a Constitutional Right to approve Law 656 to create
the Naso Comarca by insistence on Feb 20. President Varela can now
either approve it or send it to the Supreme Court for a final decision. An international campaign has just been launched to pressure Varela to ratify the law.
Either way the Naso will continue to fight.
“The
Comarca is in my heart,” says Plutarco, “I am prepared to die for it.
If we don’t have a Comarca what will be left for my grandchildren – and
our planet?”
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Despite utopian promises to the community, the project has brought nothing to the Naso—not even electricity.
Plutarco
developed his knowledge of the medicinal properties of the forest
plants thanks to three different teachers who accompanied him in the
early years of his life. Today, as old age advances, Plutarco wants to
pass on what is left of the forest to his grandchildren in the form of a
Comarca. This process would transform it into a semi-autonomous region
and require companies to consult with local communities regarding any
kind of construction or development project.
Beside
the Wë tree in front of Plutarco’s house, a portion of land has been
cleared to plant a botanical garden that will safeguard ancestral
knowledge of the medicinal plants. It is being created by a women’s
community organization and Andrés Jiménez, the community’s Justice of
Peace and a student of Plutarco. He is angry that the President, from
his luxurious home in Panama City, has labeled the Naso a threat to
conservation. “Coexisting with natural resources is at the heart of Naso
culture. All the women and men who live here have learned to live in
harmony with the environment as we know that without it, our culture
will cease to exist,” he says.
Such
has been the disastrous social and environmental impact of the Boynic
dam; the PILA park could be declared a UNESCO World Heritage site “in
danger.” There is serious concern that rare and endangered species such
as Harpy Eagles, Tapirs and Jaguars as well as up to 16 species of
migratory fish and shrimp have been affected by the dam. And despite
this, rumors abound that there are plans to continue to open up
tributaries of the Tjër-Di river to four more hydro projects. This,
surely, is the real reason behind the Presidential Veto; if the Comarca
is created, the Naso would have to be consulted regarding these and any
other interventions.
