Some 16,000 members of Colombia’s Indigenous communities were returning home this weekend after attending the capital on International Workers’ Day

~ Rob Latchford ~

The Indigenous collective, known as the minga, had come from the southern departments of Cauca, Nariño, and Putumayo. Members of the Indigenous Guard established an encampment on the grounds of the National University of Colombia where the visitors were accommodated.

In addition to labour demands, demonstrators were drawing attention to escalating violence and insecurity in rural areas, especially in southern Colombia, where Indigenous communities have faced displacement, armed conflict, and threats from criminal groups.

The National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC) and other regional councils backing the minga say their presence is both symbolic and strategic. “We are here to denounce the violence in our territories and support the structural changes we have long demanded,” a representative told local media.

The ONIC claims to represent some 2,000,000 indigenous people in Colombia – about 4% of the population. Throughout the 1970s and 80s various smaller regional organisations appeared reflecting regional differences. The Andean region saw the formation in 1971 of the Regional Indigenous Council of Cauca (CRIC) which served as an organising hub throughout the rest of the decade. Independently of the State and the police they organised their own defence against organised crime and the battles that raged between the FARC and the Colombian regime. Made up of volunteers their strategies were largely peaceful with hundreds being called up quickly to, for example, ensure the peaceful release of kidnapped hostages or, on occasion, confront the armed forces of the State.

Today the CRIC brings together some 200,000 people. They are governed by 115 collective authorities which were convened to incorporate lands which had been recovered into collective enterprises. In addition it founded a home grown education system and a health and justice system based on indigenous traditions and culture.

The economy is organised around collective enterprises covering agriculture, small-scale mining, management of water resources and forests and some ecotourism. None of this is state owned nor are there large corporations depending on high concentrations of workers and capital.

The government of Gustavo Petro would seem to have some left wing credentials. Tortured by the army back in the 70s for his membership of a guerilla organisation. His long political trajectory culminated in his successful bid for the presidency in 2022. Petro’s campaign platform included promoting green energy over fossil fuels and a decrease in economic inequality. He promised to focus on climate change. He also pledged to raise taxes on the wealthiest 4,000 Colombians and said that neoliberalism would ultimately “destroy the country”. Petro also announced that he would be open to having president Iván Duque stand trial for police brutality committed during the 2021 Colombian protests.

Internal tensions

Since taking office little of this has come about. There have been various financial scandals. And factors such as heightened crime, failing to pass labour and health reforms have contributed to the fall of Petro’s public support.

But, as is so often the case, State involvement has seen the growth of tensions within the CRIC. There are allegations of corruption and murders committed by former members of the group. Today, many are claiming that the CRIC has betrayed them: resources are lacking, leaders have their noses in the trough, and gunfire between brothers has become a regular occurrence.

The State has handed over millions of dollars in resources to the CRIC, such as the 57 billion pesos in early March to support local initiatives. Some have claimed that none of that money goes to the Indigenous communities.

“They say they distribute money, but no one here sees a single peso. There are only fights: nephews against uncles, cousins against brothers. The Indigenous guards themselves are killing each other,” complains Marcelino Huber Campo a local governor.

He may have a point. In 2023 alone, at least 32 Indigenous people were murdered in Cauca, many in internal disputes. “When they demand their rights, they are met with bullets. And the government doesn’t see, or doesn’t want to see.”

It seems to be a story happy to repeat itself in South America. Colonial structures like the neo-liberal state seek to use local customs and traditions to bolster their power and influence. It is not hard to garner support with promises of money and resources. It has happened in Ecuador, Bolivia, Guatemala. But when the State remains in place it is easily taken over by the friends of capital when the time comes – a more global phenomenon.