The establishment of a community fish conservation zone in Megui-Tavoy District, Karen Statei

On 5 February 2014, thousands of people in the Kamoethway Area gathered on the bank of the Kamoethway River to conduct the opening ceremony for the establishment of the “Htan Ta Bin” Fish Conservation Area. The conservation area is located in Kamoethway Area, LerDoh So Township, Dawei District in Karen State.

The local elders once protected this area. However, the unstable political situation of recent decades made it difficult to effectively manage conservation. In 2004, an unusual land slide in the upstream area of the Kamothwey River destroyed several habitats for fish andother aquatic life.

Currently, the Htan Ta Bin Fish Conservation Area is the only area of the Kamoethway River that is still healthy.Today, as the situation has improved somewhat because of the ceasefire,local people have decided to more effectively protect this area again.

Statement: We Repudiate and Condemn the Murder of Elder Aj ilonel Domingo Choc Ché

Ajq’ij Domingo Choc Che was a husband and father, a community member who worked to help others, and an expert in the knowledge of herbs and medicinal plants and their ancestral uses. In the strongest terms possible, the ICCA Consortium joins Mayan and Guatemalan organisations in condemning Tat Domingo’s assassination and demanding swift action for justice, healing and peace.  Read more ▸

How is the Indigenous Obu Manuvu Community Facing the COVID-19 Crisis in the Philippines?

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The Indigenous Obu Manuvu community of Davao City on Mindanao Island, Philippines owns over 13,000 hectares of ancestral forests. By engaging the Obu Manuvu “Pusaka” cosmology, they manage these ancestral forests as an ICCA to benefit biodiversity, regional economy and, more importantly their well-being and culture. This video highlights the value of their historical experiences with epidemics and how their time-tested adaptations helped them cope. Read more ▸

Alert: Oil Company GeoPark Puts Indigenous Wampis at Risk of COVID-19 Contagion and Threatens Territorial Integrity

The Gobierno Territorial Autonomo de la Nación Wampis (GTANW) has taken legal action against the oil company GeoPark Peru SAC for threatening the Wampis Nation and their territory of life in the northern Peruvian Amazon. The ICCA Consortium fully supports the GTANW’s demands to the Peruvian government and GeoPark to halt all activities related to oil exploitation and leave Wampis territory immediately and permanently. Read more ▸

A Possible Legal Route to Secure and Reinforce ICCAs–territories of life in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

In Democratic Republic of the Congo, the National Assembly deemed the proposed “Organic Bill on fundamental principles relating to the protection and promotion of Indigenous peoples’ rights” admissible. This tremendous step forward is the result of a decade of advocacy work by the Indigenous movement in Congo, and could led to the recognition of Indigenous Pygmy peoples as well as their territories and ancestral knowledge.  Read more ▸

Second South East Asia Regional Assembly from 1-4 June

The gathering provides an online venue for sharing and learning from each other about the territories of life in the region. This year’s gathering has the further aim of continuing the ICCA Consortium’s regionalisation process in Southeast Asia. Check the programme!  Read more ▸

COVID-19 Places Iran’s Nomadic Pastoralists at a Crossroads

Nomadic pastoralists in Iran play an important role in national food security and sovereignty. Since the arrival of COVID-19, they have been deeply concerned about the impact that the pandemic is likely to have on their society and way of life. UNINOMAD, ICCA Consortium Member, outlined its members’ concerns and proposed solutions in a letter sent to key national authorities on 10 March 2020.  Read more ▸

The New Illness and its Impact on Our Lives: Indigenous Peoples Facing the COVID-19 Crisis in Guatemala

In the current context of State inaction and corruption, the challenges introduced by the COVID-19 pandemic have hit Indigenous communities in Guatemala especially hard. ICCA Consortium Council Member Felipe Gómez describes this multi-faceted crisis, along with the hopes and strategies of Indigenous communities: solidarity, spirituality, and community organization.  Read more ▸

The Evolving Crisis in Sinjajevina

Last September, we published an alert about Sinjajevina, Montenegro, where local communities and civil society were organizing to defend their pasturelands, in the face of government plans to occupy and use it as a military artillery testing range. Our Honorary member Pablo Domínguez tells us how the Sinjajevina communities have been confronting the crisis since then.  Read more ▸

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