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7/31/2019 Indigenous of the Paraguayan Chaco
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7/31/2019 Indigenous of the Paraguayan Chaco
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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This is the final article in a series on Paraguays Chaco region highlighting the local
indigenous communities and some of the challenges they face. The first post focused on
Filadelfia, the areas largest town, the second on therural Chaco, and the third on the
Mennonites. Unlike my other travelogues that emphasize tourism, this one underscores
the sobering reality of life among the local indigenous.
Paraguays indigenous people comprise less than one percent of its population but have
an outsized influence on its culture. Most Paraguayans descended from indigenous and
European ancestry. An indigenous language,Guaran, is one of two official languages of
Paraguay (the other is Spanish) and is spoken by most Paraguayans. The countrys official
currency is the guarani.
In 2009, an estimated 108,000 indigenous persons lived in Paraguay, 46,000 of whom
resided in theChaco. Most belonged to subgroups of theGuarani ethnic group, the largest
indigenous group in Paraguay. Local Exnet communities are affiliated with theMaskoy
(toba-maskoy) indigenous group.
Life can be harsh for the indigenous living in the dry western portion of Paraguay, an area
prone to severe droughts. Many work for local employers such as Mennonite cooperatives
or private ranches, earning wages and benefits provided by assurance associations that
support indigenous communities with medical care, fresh water and other basic services.
Some own their own land and cultivate crops that they sell as cash crops. TheParaguayangovernmentand a fewnon-governmental organizations(NGOs) dedicated to helping the
indigenous provide fresh water, education, and other services. The remoteness and
relative inaccessibility of the Chaco hinders assistance.
http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/filadelfia-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/filadelfia-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-mennonites-of-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-mennonites-of-paraguay/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraguayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraguayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaco_%28Paraguay%29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaco_%28Paraguay%29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaco_%28Paraguay%29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_peoplehttp://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maskoyhttp://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maskoyhttp://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maskoyhttp://presidencia.gov.py/http://presidencia.gov.py/http://presidencia.gov.py/http://presidencia.gov.py/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-governmental_organizationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-governmental_organizationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-governmental_organizationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-governmental_organizationhttp://presidencia.gov.py/http://presidencia.gov.py/http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maskoyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaco_%28Paraguay%29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraguayhttp://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-mennonites-of-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/filadelfia-paraguay/7/31/2019 Indigenous of the Paraguayan Chaco
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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The indigenous I met during a visit in 2009 appeared adequately nourished and clothed.
Nevertheless, many lived in poor conditions. Their homes were constructed from cinder
block, wood, or available materials including aluminum sheeting, cardboard, tarps, and
chicken wire. Some, particularly those living near Mennonite towns such as Filadelfia,
Loma Plata, and Colonia Neuland, had access to basic services such as wells, fresh water,schools, health clinics, and community centers. Many who lived in more rural areas did
not. Most lacked electricity and telephone service.
Although theInternational Labor Organization,U.S. Department of Labor, and some
NGOs have claimed that child and forced labor occurs in the Chaco, the situation is more
complicated than analysts, many of whom have never visited the region and rely on
outdated information and indirect sources, have described it. While wages were generally
low and some employers have used unfair tactics such as restricted freedom of movement
to coerce employees, most Chaco employers in 2009 paid indigenous workers minimum
wage or more with a percentage of indigenous salaries set aside to support local
assurance associations that offered indigenous benefits such as health care. Repeatedaccusations that local employers committed child and forced labor abuses and the
increased scrutiny over ranchers treatment of the indigenous led some to substitute
indigenous workers with non-indigenous laborers, creating a situation in which labor
abuse claims contributed to indigenous unemployment.
http://www.ilo.org/global/lang--en/index.htmhttp://www.ilo.org/global/lang--en/index.htmhttp://www.ilo.org/global/lang--en/index.htmhttp://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/main.htmhttp://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/main.htmhttp://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/main.htmhttp://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/main.htmhttp://www.ilo.org/global/lang--en/index.htm7/31/2019 Indigenous of the Paraguayan Chaco
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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A pressing issue that has received little international attention because it doesnt fit neatly
into global human rights agendas is the communities chronic lack of fresh water caused
by persistent drought cycles made worse by climate change. When I visited in 2009, theParaguayan Chaco was having one of its worst droughts in recent memory with bone dry
or contaminated water tanks and reservoirs. The region had had no rainfall for more than
six months.
Although the government is responsible for providing some communities with water
storage and deliveries of fresh water, distances and drought conditions make assistance
difficult. Because most wells produce salty water suitable for agricultural purposes but
unfit for human consumption, local communities buy fresh water with the money they
earn from agriculture or rely on assistance from assurance associations for potable water.
Meanwhile, those who have advocated indigenous rights have turned a blind eye to this
pressing problem to focus on more sensationaland less urgentissues that are more
apt to receive international attention and funding. Its abundantly clear to anyone who
visits the Chaco that the biggest issue affecting the indigenous is an inadequate water
supplycomplicated by the fact that drilling wells wont solve the problem.
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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The Yakye Axa and Sawhoyamaxa Exnet communities lived in arguably the bleakest
conditions of any I visited. In 2009, families from both groups were ensconced on the
shoulders of rural Highway 6 near the town of Pozo Colorado, squatting next to private
ranches that had annexed land once belonging to the indigenous. They had no local access
to water; could not drill wells because of the salty water table; had difficulty growing
crops because the sandy soil and limited space; and lacked access to electricity eventhough power lines passed overhead. The Paraguayan government delivered food and
water weekly, but water shortages forced some to drink contaminated water from open
cesspools. Some worked on private ranches for low wages and few benefits.
TheInter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR), to which Paraguay is a party,ruled
that these communities had been unjustly evicted from their native lands by local ranchers
in the 1980s and held the Paraguayan government liable. In 2005, the IACHR determined
that the government had violated the rights of 64 Yakye Axa families and mandated that
it remit monetary compensation and 16,000 hectares of land. Itruled in favorof the 19
Sawhoyamaxa families in 2006 and imposed similar penalties, including a remit of
15,000 hectares of land. The Yakye Axa and Sawhoyamaxa refused to move until the
government compensated them with land.
Amnesty International reportedthat the Sawhoyamaxa families were compensated with
land in September 2011 and the Yakye Axa as well in February 2012, enabling them to
relocate, at long last, to their new homes. Paraguay, to its credit, has made efforts to
comply fully with the IACHR rulings. I was delighted to learn that the situation had been
favorably resolved for these families and hope that they no longer live in the homes
shown in the photos below.
http://cidh.oas.org/http://cidh.oas.org/http://cidh.oas.org/http://www.corteidh.or.cr/pais.cfm?id_Pais=5http://www.corteidh.or.cr/pais.cfm?id_Pais=5http://www.corteidh.or.cr/pais.cfm?id_Pais=5http://www.elaw.org/node/3840http://www.elaw.org/node/3840http://www.elaw.org/node/3840http://www.crin.org/Law/instrument.asp?InstID=1217http://www.crin.org/Law/instrument.asp?InstID=1217http://www.crin.org/Law/instrument.asp?InstID=1217http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/paraguay-land-dispute-victory-displaced-indigenous-community-2012-03-02http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/paraguay-land-dispute-victory-displaced-indigenous-community-2012-03-02http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/paraguay-land-dispute-victory-displaced-indigenous-community-2012-03-02http://www.crin.org/Law/instrument.asp?InstID=1217http://www.elaw.org/node/3840http://www.corteidh.or.cr/pais.cfm?id_Pais=5http://cidh.oas.org/7/31/2019 Indigenous of the Paraguayan Chaco
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A cattle ranch on land claimed by the Yakye
Axa.
The time I spent in the Paraguayan Chaco had a profound influence on me. It made me
appreciate life more and not take for granted what I have in abundance. I admire the
strength and fortitude of the local residents, from the Mennonites who have worked hard
to turn semiarid desert into an agriculture bread basket, to the indigenous who havestruggled to eke out a living with meager means in a harsh climate.
The Chaco is a place lost in time and unknown to most. Those who live there survive, and
even thrive, in obscurity. Its my hope that my series on the Chaco has brought this
fascinating place to life for readers who might never have given it another thought and
highlighted the triumphs and tragedies that make it the truly unique place that it is.
More about the Chaco
Filadelfia, the capital of Boquern Province and the largest town in the Chaco Mennonite communitiesin the Chaco Therural Paraguayan Chaco
How You Can Help
If you want to learn more about the indigenous in Paraguay or to lend your support,
contact the following organizations. I have no affiliation or connection with them but
know that they are dedicated Paraguayan NGOs.
Indigenous-Mennonite Cooperation Services Association
Melodia Cultural Center
Tierra Viva CODEHUPY(Coordinator of Human Rights in Paraguay) Project for the People of Paraguay
http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/filadelfia-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/filadelfia-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-mennonites-of-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-mennonites-of-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://www.ascim.org/english/index.php?Starthttp://www.ascim.org/english/index.php?Starthttp://www.ccmelodia.org/index.htmlhttp://www.ccmelodia.org/index.htmlhttp://www.tierraviva.org/http://www.tierraviva.org/http://www.codehupy.org/http://www.codehupy.org/http://www.projectpy.org/http://www.projectpy.org/http://www.projectpy.org/http://www.codehupy.org/http://www.tierraviva.org/http://www.ccmelodia.org/index.htmlhttp://www.ascim.org/english/index.php?Starthttp://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/the-paraguayan-chaco/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-mennonites-of-paraguay/http://worldadventurers.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/filadelfia-paraguay/7/31/2019 Indigenous of the Paraguayan Chaco
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2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.
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Click hereto read the original post on my blog, World Adventurers.
M.G. Edwards is a writer of books and stories in the mystery,thriller and science fiction-fantasy genres. He also writes travel
adventures. He is author ofKilimanjaro: One Mans Quest to Go
Over the Hill, a non-fiction account of his attempt to summit
Mount Kilimanjaro, Africas highest mountain and a collection of
short stories calledReal Dreams: Thirty Years of Short Stories.
His books are available as an e-book and in print onAmazon.com
andother booksellers. He lived in Paraguay from 2007 to 2009
and now lives in Bangkok, Thailand with his wife Jing and son
Alex.
For more books or stories by M.G. Edwards, visit his web site atwww.mgedwards.comor his blog,World Adventurers. Contact him at
[email protected], onFacebook, onGoogle+, or@m_g_edwardson Twitter.
2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or
transmitted without the written consent of the author.
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