FEATURE: INDIGENOUS ACTIVIST FIGHTS TO SAVE HIS TRIBE AND THE AMAZON RAINFOREST

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From: UNNews <UNNews@un.org>
Date: 16 Apr 2013 11:00:00 -0400
Subject: FEATURE: INDIGENOUS ACTIVIST FIGHTS TO SAVE HIS TRIBE AND THE
AMAZON RAINFOREST
To: news11@ny-mail-p-lb-028.ptc.un.org

FEATURE: INDIGENOUS ACTIVIST FIGHTS TO SAVE HIS TRIBE AND THE AMAZON RAINFOREST
New York, Apr 16 2013 11:00AM
Almir Narayamoga Surui was born into an indigenous Amazonian tribe –
the Paiter-Surui – in Rondonia in north-west Brazil at a time when his
people had very little contact with the world outside of the forest.
He is the first member of the Surui to attend college, and for more
than 20 years has been fighting to save both his tribe and the Amazon
rainforest.

Mr. Surui was one of five people honoured with the Forest Hero Award
from the United Nations Forum on Forests, which is currently meeting
in Istanbul, Turkey. The award recognizes "unsung heroes" from around
the world who are working to sustain, protect and manage forests.

"He has brought his tribe back from the brink of extinction through
ingenious and courageous environmental and political activism," Daniel
Shaw of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and
a juror for the Forest Hero Awards, said of Mr. Surui.

By the time Mr. Surui was born in 1974 and his people had some
"contact with white people," his tribe already faced problems with
economic exploitation and disease. "My people were reduced from 5,000
people to 295 persons," he stated.

The impact of development on the Surui population is manifold and
includes environmental, cultural and economic aspects, he noted.
"Every time there is development growth, there is also population
growth and this population growth is made up of non-indigenous people
and this impacts our own people."

"Today, for us, it is a real challenge to protect our forests," he
acknowledged, noting that large development projects in the region
also bring with them negative social and environmental consequences.

"Nowadays, forests in the Amazon are located inside indigenous lands.
In territories that do not belong to indigenous groups, the forests do
no exist anymore," said Mr. Surui. "This is the reason why it is so
difficult for us to keep the forests and that's why we are looking for
and struggling for a national policy whereby we have the support of
the population in terms of utilizing everything sustainably that the
forest gives to us."

After being elected chief of his tribe at the age of 17, Mr. Surui
successfully lobbied the state government to build schools, wells and
medical clinics for the Surui and other tribes in the rainforest. He
spearheaded the creation of a 50-year plan, which encompasses
large-scale conservation efforts, reforestation projects and
activities that offer economic alternatives to exploiting the forest.

<div id="EmbedPhotoRight"
style="width:210px;"><"http://www.un.org/News/dh/photos/large/2013/April/Almir_Surui_ceremony_2.jpg"
class="lightbox" title="Chief Almir Narayamoga Surui has been working
for more than 20 years to save his tribe, the Paiter-Surui, and the
Amazon rainforest. UN Photo/Metehan Kurt" rel="gallery-default"><img
class="Embed" src="http://www.un.org/News/dh/photos/large/2013/April/Almir_Surui_ceremony_2.jpg"
style="width:200px; height:145px;">
<p class="phtocaption2">Chief Almir Narayamoga Surui has been
working for more than 20 years to save his tribe, the Paiter-Surui,
and the Amazon rainforest. UN Photo/Metehan Kurt</p>
</div>

"There is tendency in my country to equate development with cutting
down trees. This is what we try to combat. We can have development
without cutting down the trees," said Mr. Surui.

During the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development held in
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, indigenous peoples' rights to forests was
clearly recognized as a crucial component to preserve the environment
and solve the global environmental crisis.

However, according to the UN Department for Economic and Social
Affairs, the process in this regard has been slow, and indigenous
peoples continue to lobby governments for the full legal recognition
of their traditional land rights.

In fact, in many countries, indigenous peoples lack any legal title
to their land, and in other instances, even if they count on a title,
governments can revoke it at any time.

The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples provides a
framework for indigenous peoples' rights to forests and recognizes the
right to make decisions and to be involved in the decision making
process. Indigenous peoples have a right to give or withhold their
free, prior and informed consent on activities that may affect their
lands, territories and livelihoods.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, James
Anaya, has warned that the extraction of natural resources and other
major development projects in or near the territories of indigenous
peoples is one of the most significant sources of abuse of their human
rights worldwide.

"In its prevailing form, the model for advancing with natural
resource extraction within the territories of indigenous peoples
appears to run counter to the self-determination of indigenous peoples
in the political, social and economic spheres," he told a session of
the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, in one of his reports.

The efforts of his tribe to protect the forests have not been without
costs, Mr. Surui said. Last year, the lives of 12 Surui leaders were
threatened. Today, there are seven leaders who are the subject to
threats and are under the protection of the police and representatives
of the Government's human rights office.

He said the basic struggle is how to recognize the value of forests
and how forests contribute to the continuity of human life.

"My people, the Surui, have a very close relationship with the
forest. We are born in the forest; the forest is everything to us. The
forest teaches us things, gives us our food and medicines. It supplies
materials for our spiritual life. All of these things, the forest
offers to us, it is part of our lives," he said.

Among his many achievements, Mr. Surui convinced the World Bank to
re-structure a regional development programme to better benefit local
indigenous groups. He is hoping to generate income for the
Paiter-Surui by selling forest carbon credits. To achieve this goal,
he convinced technology giant Google to help the tribe use digital
technology to monitor and map the forest.

With Google Earth technology, the Paiter-Surui tribe is now able to
monitor its forests and report on illegal logging activity on the
edges of its territory.

"It's a real challenge for us to keep our forest as it once was,"
said Mr. Surui.

"I'm not saying that the forests should remain untouched. What I am
saying is that forests must be respected, admired and used in a way
that enables us to be able to continue having a relationship with
them."
Apr 16 2013 11:00AM
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