Stories about Indigenous from February, 2011
Bangladesh: Bede People – The River Gypsies
Bangladesh Unlocked highlights the bede people, the river gypsies of Bangladesh.
Ukraine: Trip to Bakhchisaray, Crimea
The Kalpak writes about his trip to Bakhchisaray – “the hub of Crimean Tatar culture.”
Brazil: Trial for murder of Guarani Kaiowa begins
Update on GV's post Brazil: Eradicating the Indigenous Guarani Kaiowa. The trial of the accused for the murder of chief Marcos Veron resumed on February 21. The website Indigenous Peoples Issues translates an article by CIMI (Indigenous Missionary Council) about the mobilization of Guarani indians to accompany the trial.
Azerbaijan: From Carpets to Socks
Azerbaijani carpets were last year inscribed by UNESCO on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. They also often attract the attention of bloggers.
Jamaica, B.V.I.: Non-Indigenous Species
Lemurs in the Caribbean? Labrish Jamaica calls on Sir Richard Branson to do the right thing.
Bangladesh: Ethnic Jumma People Living Under Fear
Saleem Samad at Bangladesh Watchdog informs that several ethnic Jumma people in Khagrachari, Bangladesh are still living in fear after attacks year ago.
Dominica: First Indigenous Lawyer
The Voice of the Taino People Online is proud to tell the story of “Pearl Diane Williams…the first indigenous Kalinago Carib person from Waitikubuli (Dominica) and possibly the Eastern Caribbean to be admitted to the Bar in the Commonwealth of Dominica.”
Trinidad & Tobago: “Arima” in Kiddies Carnival
“Arima — which means both ‘place of the beginning’ and ‘water’ — is an indigenous Amerindian place name for what is now a large town in eastern Trinidad”: Alice Yard blogs about its children’s Carnival masquerade band, which “attempts to bring these two definitions together”.
Ecuador: Judge orders Chevron to pay $8.6 billion fine
“The eighteen-year lawsuit against Chevron came to a climax when a judge ruled that Texaco (now owned by Chevron) was liable environmental damages in the Ecuadorian rainforest. The court decreed that the oil company pay a reported $8.6 billion fine and apologize publicly or risk doubling the damages figure,” reports...
Peru: Inambari Hydroelectric Project Generates Rejection
The Inambari hydroelectric project in the Peruvian Amazon jungle has sparked public debate and generated rejection due to its potential impact on the local ecosystem and because 80% of the energy produced will go to Brazil. Inambari would be the fifth largest central in the region, with an installed capacity of 2,200 megawatts, and its construction will require an investment of U.S. $4 billion.
Trinidad & Tobago: Making Carnival Locally
Guanaguanare applauds the announcement of the Minister of Culture about putting a stop to the importation of Carnival costumes, saying: “Supporting indigenous creativity and opportunities for employment of locals will ensure that more of the cultural and economic benefits of this festival will be shared more widely with our population.”
Ecuador: Chevron Files Lawsuit Against Ecuadorian Plaintiffs
“In the latest chapter in the legal battle between Chevron and Ecuadorian natives the former has raised the stakes in its offensive on the latter,” The Latin Americanist reports. The lawsuit, “alleged that the Ecuadorian plaintiffs and their legal team aim to ‘extort (Chevron) into paying to stop the campaign...
