Representatives of the indigenous people of the Amazon have deplored that the Latin American leaders gathered this week in Los Angeles for the Summit of the Americas do not hear their voices to save this forest, crucial for their survival and that of the planet.
Delegates from indigenous tribes from various Latin American countries traveled to the United States to take part in this summit.
But they claim that many of them have not obtained access to meetings where their forests and their ancestral lands are nevertheless at the heart of the debates.
“During these important events, where there are governments, indigenous peoples from different countries should be present, to make our voices and our proposals heard,” said Domingo Peas, from the Achuar community.
Mr. Peas, who belongs to the Confederation of Indigenous Nations of the Ecuadorian Amazon, traveled for more than two days, by boat, car then plane, to reach Los Angeles from his village of a hundred families.
But when he arrived, he was told he couldn’t attend the event, where the issue of climate change is high on the agenda.
“Indigenous voices are not heard at this summit, several indigenous delegates have been refused entry,” Atossa Soltani, founder and president of the NGO Amazon Watch, told Agence France-Presse.
But to refrain from listening to their advice would be a serious mistake, she insists.
“Indigenous peoples not only have solutions for our climate and biodiversity crises, but they are also the first inhabitants” of the Amazon, pleads Mme Soltani.
“If we have these incredibly intact forests in Latin America, it’s because the indigenous populations, for centuries, have taken care of them and defended them with their lives,” she adds.
For meme Soltani, there is no doubt that “they have to be present at the table. They have things to teach the modern world. »
A summit of absentees
The Summit of the Americas, whose frequency is irregular, is organized in the United States for the first time since its first edition in 1994.
The event was supposed to show President Joe Biden’s commitment to his southern neighbors but many are missing.
Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela were not invited by the United States and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, an essential interlocutor for Americans on the subject of immigration, decided to boycott the Summit in protest. .
Far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, on the other hand, is expected to meet in Los Angeles with Mr. Biden.
For meme Soltani, President Bolsonaro, whose country alone is home to around 60% of the surface of the Amazon rainforest, must act to curb its devastating commercial exploitation.
“The fate of the Amazon is in the hands of world leaders who gather here this week. It is our destiny to all. This is the future of our children, the future of life on this planet,” she insists.