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COuAnnr +e Rietiee ES THE FRONT a The Waorani's Last-Stand ONJULY 21, 1987,aband of Waorani Indians in Amazonia killed a Roman Catholic Bishop and a nun. The mis- sionaries were attempting to contact over the Waorani’s land. spotting a group of Waorani Indians from the air a iow days be- fore, Monsignor Alejandro Labaca, e Roman Catholic Biop of Coca in in Ammotia, asked the oil compa- nies to drop him and a nun, Sister Ines Arango, close to the Indian set- tlement by helicopter. Two days had been speared to di Labaca had been id to make contact with the Indians before the devastation brought by oil explora- tion drove this particular band of Waorani to extinction or into violent confrontation with the oil men. Since the late 1970s, oil drilling has de- stroyed vast tracts of the Ecuadorian rainforest. The game the Indians depend on for food has been driven out, colonists have poured in along the oil company roads to take over e best lands, and oil Spills f from the pipelines have polluted the and destroyed the fish. Until recently, Texaco and the Ecuadori il company, CEPE, , 'P rea. The current government has, however, opened several new con- at least 18 companies are now at work. These companies pay little regard to the rights of the Indians in the rainforest. In some cases, oil wells have actually been placed within lands which have already been prop- erly titled to Indian communities — making conflict inevitable. The few conservation zones in the area offer no protection and are full of explora- tion lines or functioning wells and Pipelin Pte tragic deaths of Labaca and fear world. Even before the oil invasion, the Waorani had good reason to fear outsiders. Studies of those bands contacted over the last 30 years have revealed that, on average, one Indian 4 FEBRUARY 1988 in every six had died at the hands of outsiders - about half of these had been shot and the remainder had been stolen as children to live and work as servants. Most Waorani livein a small zone which is titled in their name. There are more settler villages in this zone than in any other part of the region. However, some of these Waorani are within a nearby national park and have no recognized rights at all. The Waorani that Labaca was trying to contact are in anarea legally reserv for them. However, oil companies are active in both the national park and the reserved area. All Waorani, including those who have had intensive missionary con- tact, are acutely aware of the dangers of encroachment onto their lands. Thed i the loss of their livelihoods and ulti- mately their lives. The first roads into the region were built by the oil companies with the help of armed escorts. Today, the oil companies and the army mai consider using violence to clear the f these Indians who remain hostile to outside interests. There are about 700 Waorani left. They are the most reclusive Indians in this part of more at risk then any other group. The men are hunters, using blow- guns and poisoned darts to reach the birds and monkeys in the tree-tops, and spears for wild pigs. The women keep small vegetable plots and col- lect wild fruit. Traditionally, the Waorani move from one commul house to another every few months. Although oil exploration and the Amazonian Indians in Ecuador, the government is now also embarking on a vigorous mineral exploration and mining program. This rainforest region contains deposits of gypsum, clay, sulphur, some vanadium, lead, zine and cop- per deposits. Some Indian groups have formed strong federations to press for their rights. But unless both the mining companies and the Ecuadorian gov- ernment feel that substantial public opinion supports the right of Indians to havea homeland, the Indians’ fu- ture looks bleak in. —Stephen Corry Survival International Waorani Lands in Ecuador . Of contact attempt imate location © os Room B ‘Waorani Titled Land (1983) [Dvn ner 980 Yasuni National Park WB settler towns WW setter incursions KEY SOURCE: SURVIVAL INTERNATIONAL MULTINATIONAL MONITOR: “Fe A ersnsermnees