Waorani Woman: The Backbone of the Amazon
By: Aintzane Perez
Tags: Waorani Women, Girls In Stem, Amazon, STEM, Girls In Tech

The country of Ecuador is separated into 3 major regions: the Coast, the Mountains, and the Amazon. Each region has its own Indigenous population which all face their own unique issues. One of the Indigenous tribes, the Waorani, has taken a strong, passionate approach to the defense of their land, with women at the forefront. On April 26, 2019, the Waorani people of Pastaza won a major ruling in protecting half a million acres of their land from oil drilling, which the Ecuadorian government had previously been contemplating to auction without the permission of the Waorani people.

Indigenous battles in the Ecuadorian Amazon, date back to 1993, in which a huge landmark case marked the future of Indigenous land defenders in Ecuador. Texaco, an oil drilling company currently owned by Chevron, was sued by Steven Donziger and other attorneys on behalf of over 300,000 farmers and Indigenous people due to massive contamination. This led to complete destruction of Indigenous resources and to long-lasting health issues. Chevron argued that Texaco had cleaned up their pollution and any remaining oil pollution belonging to the previous Ecuadorian-owned oil drilling company, and thus they were not responsible. Chevron moved to Ecuador for the legal proceedings and the Ecuadorian court ruled against Chevron in 2001, initially demanding $18 billion in compensation which was later reduced to $9.5 billion.

Despite the decision being upheld by the Ecuadorian Supreme Court, Chevron moved all their assets out of Ecuador and filed a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations suit against Donziger in New York. This suit was based on one witness, Alberto Guerra, who claimed Donziger bribed him. It was later discovered that Chevron had prepared him over 50 times before his testimony, moved his family to the United States on a monthly stipend, and paid him over $100,000. Later in 2015, Guerra admitted he had lied. However, in 2016 the court ruled against Donizger. If it was a criminal case, Guerra’s statements would have been further investigated. Due to the RICO case being civil, Donziger later faced a future defined by this case. In January Donziger was forced under house arrest and the Ecuadorian people had no form of pursuing their court case. Afterward, the Waorani people and all the tribes in the vicinity were left with the damaging pollution and no way of cleaning it up.

The question now stands: how does this case have anything to do with the Waorani one? The answer? Indigenous rights. In the Americas, there is a constant battle for Indigenous land rights with governments and companies both overstepping Indigenous sovereignty. The overstepping of Indigenous sovereignty is currently happening in multiple areas: the Dakota Access Pipeline in the US, the Coastal GasLink pipeline in Canada, oil drilling in the Amazon, exploitation of Indigenous lands in Central America and Mexico, and the list goes on and on. For the most part, Indigenous people have not been able to achieve justice. However, the story of the Waorani tribe displays extreme resilience and success which is inspiring to all.

The Waorani lawsuit, launched in February of 2019, was presented against the Ecuadorian Ministry of Energy and Non-Renewable Natural Resources. It claims the right of the Waorani to “free, prior and informed consultation, to self-determination, to a collective territory, and the rights of nature” were violated by actions of the Ecuadorian Government in 2018. Ecuador’s Minister of Hydrocarbons announced an auction of 7 million acres for oil drilling accumulating to seven million acres, which impeded on Shuar, Achuar, Kichwa, Waorani, Shiwiar, Andoa, and Sápara Nation’s traditional lands. After community and national pressure, these acres were reduced to only two, but still impeded on Waorani land and stated that this decision did not exclude the possibility that their territory could be taken without any consultation. After the 2019 decision, the Ecuadorian government stated they would appeal the court’s decision. In June of 2020, the Waorani people won another lawsuit aimed at securing protection for their Indigenous communities, including those who remain uncontacted, against the risk of physical and cultural extinction due to COVID-19. This was a massive win for the Indigenous people of Ecuador and marked more sovereignty within Indigenous nations. However, while this lawsuit set up a hopeful tone, in September of 2020, the Provincial Court of Orellana dismissed the case, denying that the constitutional rights of Indigenous peoples were violated. The oil companies continued to push that the oil spills were an “act of nature” and that time would clean the river. They also claimed to have provided adequate supplies in order to support the communities after the pollution of resources. While the water provided was inadequate according to the World Health Organization’s standards, those who received the supplies were ordered to sign documents waiving their rights to participate in any lawsuits against the oil companies. The plaintiffs are planned to immediately repeal the verdict and will continue to push their global campaign “Stop Amazon Extraction”.

As an Indigenous Ecuadorian woman, it is clear to me that these cases set the precedent for Indigenous protection. All over the Americas, there is a long history of disrespect towards Indigenous rights. There are broken treaties, broken promises, neglect of Indigenous sovereignty, systematic racism, and the list continues. From the southernmost to the northernmost point protecting the Amazon is not just a case for environmental rights and protections. It’s directly tied with protecting Indigenous people after years of violence and injustice. Governments and Corporations alike have abused Indigenous people and ignored our voices for too long.

Yet, Indigenous people resist. In September of 2020, Nemonte Nenquimo, Indigenous Waorani leader in protecting her nation and lands, was named by TIME in its annual listing of 100 most influential people in the world, introduced by actor Leonardo DiCaprio. Nenquimo led the massive lawsuit won in 2019 protecting half a million acres from oil drilling, she co-founded the nonprofit organization Ceibo Alliance in 2015 and was elected president of CONCONAWEP, the Waorani organization of the Pastaza province in 2018. Nenquimo is the only Indigenous woman and the second Ecuadorian to be featured on the 2020 TIME 100 list. As the leader of the CONCONAWEP, Nenquimo is demanding that the Ecuadorian government respect their land. The final appeal for the Waorani lawsuit is yet to be faced and will be seen later in the fall which has been moved to the Ecuadorian Supreme Court as a defense for Indigenous rights. t the launch of this major lawsuit, Nenquimo stated :

“Our fight is not just a fight about oil. This is a fight about different ways of living. One that protects life and one that destroys life.”

− Nemonte Nenquimo, Waorani leader and President of CONCONAWEP (Coordinating Council of the Waorani Nationality of Ecuador-Pastaza)”

She also created a powerful animated short named “Are You A Good Ancestor?” in honor of Earth Day. It opens with the lines “In Waorani culture, we say when women make their voices heard, it means that something is wrong with the planet and we need to act fast.”A woman with incomparable strength, Nenquimo remains an inspiration for Indigenous and Environmental leaders alike.

Works Cited

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/message-earth-day-nemonte-nenquimo-amazon/

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/waorani-appeals-court-hearing/

https://theowp.org/nemonte-nenquimo-waorani-female-leader-among-the-100-most-influential-people-of-2020/

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/waorani-lawsuit-press-release/

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/time-100-influential-nemonte-nenquimo-waorani-indigenous-amazon/

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/waorani-victory/

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/ecuador-judge-dismisses-indigenous-amazon-lawsuit/

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/chronicles/waorani-ecuador-covid-legal-victory/

https://theintercept.com/2020/01/29/chevron-ecuador-lawsuit-steven-donziger/

Image Links

https://www.amazonfrontlines.org/m3di4/waorani-appeals-court-hearing.jpg

https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/time-100-Nemonte-Nenquimo.jpg

https://www.grounded.org/blog/content/images/2019/06/waorani_copy.jpg