IPS-English ECUADOR: Is Indigenous Unity More Than Skin Deep? Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2006 15:40:13 -0700 ROMAIPS LA IP PR SC CS IN=20 ECUADOR: Is Indigenous Unity More Than Skin Deep? IPS Correspondents * QUITO, Jun 14 (IPS) - The selection by Ecuador's indigenous movement of a= presidential candidate of its own for the October elections could be int= erpreted as a sign of unity and strength, but a closer look reveals under= lying divisions. Luis Macas, the president of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalitie= s of Ecuador (CONAIE), was elected in late May as the presidential candid= ate of the Pachakutik Plurinational Unity Movement. Macas, a member of the Saraguro indigenous community, which forms part of= the Kichwa (Quichua) nation, is a co-founder of CONAIE. The Confederation, founded in 1986, is the largest indigenous organisatio= n in Ecuador, claiming to represent 70 percent of the country's indigenou= s people. Around 30 percent of Ecuador's population of 13.5 million belongs to 12 d= ifferent indigenous groups, the largest of which is the Kichwa. Macas, who was elected to Ecuador's single-chamber legislature in 1996 re= presenting the Pachakutik Movement, served as minister of agriculture dur= ing the administration of Lucio Guti=E9rrez (2002-2005), who he accused o= f trying to =94finish off CONAIE.=94 CONAIE, which emerged from grassroots and community organisations, was fo= unded by representatives of all of Ecuador's indigenous groups. Its main = aims were to promote the creation of a =94plurinational state=94, defend = the ancestral lands of indigenous communities, strengthen native language= s and cultures, and set forth policy proposals aimed at ensuring sustaina= ble development in the long-term. Luis Montaluisa, another of CONAIE's co-founders, said that Macas, along = with indigenous leader Valerio Grefa, brought about a shift in the confed= eration's approach at a 1996 assembly. =94They decided to abandon the mov= ement's original concepts, and adopted the idea of fielding candidates to= participate in elections,=94 he said. =94Since then, members of the movement have made it to the positions of t= own councillor, cabinet minister and mayor, but the great majority of ind= igenous people are worse off than they were before we began to take part = in elections. The ideas of promoting indigenous cultures, defending indig= enous territory, etc., have fallen by the wayside,=94 said Montaluisa. While CONAIE is taking part in the presidential elections with its own ca= ndidate, the left is divided and has fielded two different candidates: Le= =F3n Rold=F3s for the Izquierda Democr=E1tica party, and Rafael Correa fo= r the Alianza Pa=EDs, a coalition that had the support of the indigenous = and social movements which spearheaded the protests that brought down Gut= i=E9rrez in April 2005. Macas told IPS that he would seek to forge alliances with social organisa= tions and leftist parties, =94to bring the people together.=94 He has sug= gested that the left hold primary elections, in order to create a broad f= ront made up of social, political and cultural organisations. In the view of anthropologist Fernando Garc=EDa of the Latin American Fac= ulty of Social Sciences (FLACSO), the indigenous movement paid a price fo= r forming alliances with politicians from outside the movement. But, he s= aid, it also learned a lesson: that it needed to field its own presidenti= al candidate. Garc=EDa said =94alliances are still the way to go, in the future. Howeve= r, not alliances with the main political parties, but with civil society = organisations that want to rebuild the strength of the left, and which su= pport the movement's political platform.=94 CONAIE has backed a range of political sectors in the recent past. It joi= ned together with a group of junior army officers who toppled the governm= ent of centre-right president Jamil Mahuad in 2000. It later formed a coalition with the Sociedad Patri=F3tica 21 de Enero pa= rty that brought Guti=E9rrez, a retired army colonel, to power in electio= ns in 2002. The indigenous movement was instrumental in the election of Guti=E9rrez. = And until its falling-out with the administration, indigenous leaders hel= d several key cabinet positions, including the post of foreign minister, = held by an indigenous women -- Nina Pacari -- for the first time in South= America. But according to analysts, the movement was weakened after it pulled out = of the Guti=E9rrez administration. Leftist groups that had backed the retired colonel as well as CONAIE and = other indigenous organisations also played a key role in bringing down th= e government of Guti=E9rrez, the third Ecuadorian president ousted since = 1996. Guti=E9rrez had failed to make good on many of his campaign promise= s, instead throwing open the economy and deregulating the state. Javier Ponce, an analyst with the Ecuadorian daily El Universo, told IPS = that Macas' presidential candidacy =94has emerged weak=94 and without con= sensus support. He also said the indigenous movement has failed to take a= close look at its negative experience in the Guti=E9rrez administration = =94with the necessary critical spirit.=94=20 In his view, the movement should have decided to stay out of the electora= l fray. The problem is that the indigenous movement has lost its directio= n, said the analyst. Participation in elections was one of the causes of that loss of directio= n, according to Montaluisa. =94Outside of Ecuador the indigenous movement= is seen as very strong. But within the indigenous communities what you s= ee are disputes over posts and positions. Many young leaders see particip= ating in elections and the distribution of public posts as a way to obtai= n prestige and easy money,=94 he said. Nevertheless, Montaluisa said there is hope that under the young generati= on of leaders, the movement will return to its roots, and that there will= be an understanding that participation in elections must grow out of a p= lan that has been agreed on by grassroots groups and the candidates. The grooming of young leaders is precisely the aim of a joint programme -= - the Antonio Ante School of Government -- implemented by CONAIE and the = Esquel foundation, a local non-governmental organisation that forms part = of CIVICUS, an international alliance dedicated to strengthening citizen = action and civil society throughout the world. The leadership programme, in which 40 young people from northern Ecuador = are currently taking part, is aimed at highlighting the importance of the= country's intercultural nature and emphasising the rights of indigenous = groups. Voices critical of the indigenous movement from within are calling for th= ese rights, which form part of the founding concepts of CONAIE, to be pla= ced at the centre of the movement's political agenda. * With reporting by Milagros Aguirre in Ecuador. ***** + Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador - in Spanish (http= ://www.conaie.org/index.html) + Pachakutik Movement - in Spanish (http://www.pachakutik.org.ec/home/ind= ex.php) + Civicus (http://www.civicus.org/new/intro_new.asp) + Civicus World Assembly (http://www.civicusassembly.org/English/Home/Hom= e.aspx) + Esquel Foundation - in Spanish (http://www.esquel.org.ec/) (END/IPS/LA IP PR SC IN CS/TRASP-SW/MA/AC/DCL/06) =20 =3D 06142122 ORP015 NNNN