THURS Solidarity Delegation to Support Colombia Indigenous March

REMINDER: Join us:

Solidarity Delegation to the Colombian Consulate

Thursday, September 16, 2004

9:00 a.m. - Meet at 595 Market St. (near Montgomery BART) San Francisco



Indigenous "Great March for Life, Happiness, Justice, Equity and Freedom"

Underway in Colombia:

Lisandro, a Nasa/Paez indigenous man, brought four blocks of brown sugar and 10 pounds of rice from his indigenous reserve to the Great March for Life, Happiness, Justice, Equity and Freedom that began today. "With that, some people will be able to eat. Everyone must do what they can because it takes a lot of food to feed 50,000 people." Like Lisandro, thousands of indigenous peoples have arrived bringing food to share with others in the great "Minga," as the march is called, drawing on the indigenous tradition of collective work and community. This Minga is a peaceful march along the Pan American Highway beginning in Santander de Quilichao and ending in the city of Cali. It has been organized by the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC) to protest the attacks on the indigenous communities of the Nasa people and others by armed groups.

Nearly 50,000 indigenous peoples have arrived at La María, the spot from which the march will start. Organizing this Great March to the city of Cali requires an enormous amount of work: just making arrangements for the provision of food required organizing two feeding posts along the path of the march and making sure that the food donations were transported there. Other organizations are chipping in as well: the "Great March" has drawn much support from civil society groups like Asamblea por la Paz (Assembly for Peace) and international organizations such as the United Nations Colombia office which has called on all of the armed actors to respect the rights of the Nasa/Paez Indigenous peoples, recent recipients of the Colombia Peace Prize.

The AFSC has chosen to support the march with dried goods and transportation for Indigenous leaders to the meeting point in La Maria, Piendamó. In the U.S. AFSC staff and partner organizations are organizing vigils outside consulates and meetings with Colombian consulate officials to show their support for the "Great March."

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) has been working in close partnership with the Nasa indigenous peoples of Colombia since 1998. The Nasa/Paez peoples are trying to achieve conditions of dignity and justice in their communities despite the worsening conflict in Colombia. These men and women are struggling to enact their Plans for Life, a term they use to describe the economic, social and peace plans for their communities' development.

Natalia Cardona
Assistant Coordinator
Peacebuilding Unit,
Latin America Caribbean Program
American Friends Service Committee
Telephone: (215)241-7162
Fax: (215) 241-7177
Web site: http://www.afsc.org
"No tomo Coca-Cola porque amo a la vida."
"La palabra sin la acción es vacía; la acción sin la palabra es ciega; la
palabra y la acción sin el espíritu de la comunidad es la muerte".
---Proyecto Nasa (Plan de Vida)

More on the March: