Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday David Chinquehuanca

The Bolivian foreign minister's speech was in Spanish, so I got some earphones to hear the English and typed as fast as I could. I'll fix the typos later. This is a fast and somewhat loose transcription of what I heard. I'm assuming this was President Evos Morales' speech, being given by his foreign ministers, since Morales was unable to come today.


.....We're in unbalance and we have to get back to equilibrium. Unbalance will have fatal conseuqences for planet earth. It's the Western world that is in crisis, the model of West that looks to living better is in crisis. Made it so some people better than others. It allows some to be better than others. Some regions better than others. Some people better than others. Generated unbalance among people, among regions, among countries. But also this development model of the West has also created disequlibrium between man and nature. Mother earth has wound threatening life today.

So important that humanity and international organizations become aware so we have international day of Mother Earth. Not just humans, but everything. All of creation we live on the skirts of our mother. All living off the milk of our Mother which is water. The plants live off the milk of Mother earth - water - all creations of Mother Earth, we are all brothers and sisters. Not just brotherhood among humans, looking for life in harmony with ourselves, we want a harmonic life with our enivornment, because all nurtured by mild of Mother Earth are brothers and sisters - not just humans, animals and plants.

Indian cultures cannot easily attack a tree. Not capable of doing so because all life brothers and sisters. We have been living based on the laws of man, taught at Unitiversity, but do not take everyting into account. Unbalanced. Leave out Mother Earth. Just based on mankind. Not living under law of nature. Not taking into account the Natural University. Contribution of indigenous people could be important there, people who have maintained their balance.

Edge of precipice, we have this summit on climate change, thanks to the implementation of methods and policies that have taken us to where we are now. Two roads. One to capitalism. Most important thing is money, profit, life doesn't matter Two is socialism where mankind is most important. For us indigenous people most important thing is not just mankind, we have that common with socialism, but we also believe the most important thing is life.

Wehn talking about climate change, were talking about life at risk. As Father Iscoto said, not just risk for humans, but climate change threatens life. And for us as indigenous people the most important thing is life. Life of rivers, life of mountains. We had snow in La Paz. Now it is disappearing. Someone said we will have to paint snow ont he top of our mountains. Life of plants, animals, birds, fish is disappearing.

We need to find avenues of discussion to create proposals, have to listen to everyone, not exclusive, inclusive. I thought I'd be here with the indigenous people of Alaska and hear what they think about these issues. We have to know that life is at risk.

We in Bolivia have taken certain actions. First the Bolivian people decided to elect an indigenous president. Second, the recovery of natural resources is important, water, for all people, not just a few. I was in Trinidad and people were alarmed. In Mexico they are rationing water. Working to start to talk about rights of mother earth. First human rights, continue to advance beyond individual rights to collective rights, indigenous people's rights. Bolivia was the first country to implement the declarion on indigenous peoples rights. Today we continue to work at UN, but the rights of everything. Of plants of fish, rivers, animals, and surely on the rights of mother earth. In some countries, Ecuador for example, the constitution considers Mother Nature as a right holder. We are advancing and I hope at the UN will be working on these. UN had to include rights of indigenous people. In a few years we can have a declaration on the rights of mother earth.

Need to work on actions - not privatize water, because water is life. We have to defend life, we have to be pro-life.

Thank you for the invitation. Not a lot of time. Have to listen ttaro one another. Have to start to read the wrinkles of our grandparents. The codes that have existed for more than 500 years. Implementation of indigenous universities that bring in these principles, the codicles of that ancient knowledge, we call that our cosmo knowledge. Indigenous peoples can make a contribution to the saving of planet earth so we can recover life.

Thank you very much.

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)