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Latin American indigenous people are demanding change
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For most of the past 500 years, to be an indigenous person in the Americas meant to be eliminated, assimilated or
ignored. It is a story that makes for painful reading, but at last, that story is being told. As nations gain a deeper, more accurate
understanding of what happened, they are finding ways to redress past wrongs. Indigenous peoples are beginning to receive new
respect for claims to their rights, their land, and their identity. It’s happening across the hemisphere. Earlier this year,
Canada’s prime minister signed into existence the new province of Nunavut, a Mexico-sized land of snow and tundra, where
political control is firmly in the hands of the Inuit people. In Bolivia, a native Aymara was elected that country’s vice president.
In Ecuador, an indigenous woman is vice president of the country’s congress. In the United States, groups representing tribal
nations are winning court cases that enforce long-ignored treaty obligations.
Latin American countries have passed
constitutional reforms recognizing that their societies are composed of people of different cultures and guaranteeing the rights of
native peoples. In some countries indigenous children are studying from textbooks printed in their native languages. Large tracts
of tribal land are being demarcated and are receiving legal protection.
Throughout much of the world, the issue of ethnic
rights remains an incendiary topic, bringing out the worst in human nature. But in Latin America, many nations are taking
courageous and difficult steps toward creating multicultural societies. Instead of fearing ethnic diversity as a source of
separatism and national fragmentation, Latin America is acknowledging that different cultural groups can enrich the nation as a
whole, just as an orchestra gains power from the unique contributions of each instrument.
In many countries, the
Inter-American Development Bank is financing projects that incorporate indigenous institutions and cultural practices.
Indigenous groups are carrying out IDB-financed projects or project components. The Bank was also instrumental in
establishing the regionwide Indigenous Peoples Fund (see "Indigenous in Charge" on this issue). Although native peoples
are making gains in countries throughout the Americas, Bolivia offers perhaps the best illustration. With its large indigenous
population, this Andean nation has adopted a number of innovative laws and reforms that are being closely watched in other
countries. Some of these initiatives are explored in the following articles of this special report .
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