ANALYSIS: Some Aspects to Take into Account about the Conflict in the Waorani Community of Bataboro
By: Eduardo Pichilingue Ramos. Executive Director, CDES (Com. Economic and Social Rights)
In view of the statements made by high-ranking government officials and even though they want to minimize the situation and say that the conflict and the deaths of two people in the community of Bataboro only respond to problems with a family and that they have nothing to do with the community, there are situations that generate an atmosphere of conflict that involves the Waorani community and that it is important to know:
1) I insist on something that the Waorani organization (ONWO) has already requested since 2011: the Waorani nationality of Ecuador should be considered “Recent Contact”, not so much for the time of the contact (although it could be considered short), but for the QUALITY of this contact, left in the hands of transnational oil companies for the most part. The welfare relationship generated by these companies (generation of new needs to then be covered by the company itself in exchange for favors to oil exploitation) tends to be unsustainable in the long run and generates greater conflicts over time. Failure to provide “assistance” generates discontent and consequent conflict.
The Waorani have kept their beliefs about death and revenge intact. For the Waorani, death is not a coincidence, it is always induced by someone and revenge for a death is exacted on the person of the first adversary they encounter. When a family member dies, in this case a child, revenge was expected to occur, and the tensions between the community and the oil sector (which I will discuss in the next point) determined who would be the one to take revenge.
2) The communities of Tigüino and Bataboro, located within the Tigüino Marginal Block, have had successive conflicts due to oil activity.
Let us remember that the warriors who massacred all the women and children of a Taromenane clan in 2003 came from Tigüino, and that although it has been said that the pressures that triggered this act of violence came from the illegal logging sector, I know for a fact that they also came from the oil company that was operating at the time.
In recent years, breaches of compensation agreements by the oil company, which were later taken over by Ecuador Estratégico, led to uprisings in these communities and, as a consequence, accusations of terrorism against several community leaders. These accusations were made as part of a negotiation to appease the Waorani after the death of Ompore and Buganey in Yarentaro (which was senseless and opportunistic, of course, since these communities had nothing to do with, they are not close, neither physically nor in relation to the events of last year).
To make matters worse, in 2011, the boundaries of several oil blocks were reconfigured, including Block 17, in the hands of the Chinese company Andes Petroleum, which now has a U-shaped extension surrounding the Tugüino block. Work has been carried out in this area for future exploitation, despite the fact that these are territories with a strong presence of isolated indigenous people (adjacent to the Intangible Zone), a situation that the inhabitants of Bataboro have repeatedly denounced, for fear that the isolated indigenous people will react against them, causing deaths, as happened with Ompore and Buganey.
In short, this conflict, which is presented as a single family affair and is intended to be given the appearance of a purely police matter, has a very complex background that is intended to be ignored (I hope not for convenience but out of ignorance). Although only one Waorani person or family is involved in the deaths, the fact responds to situations that have been occurring for decades and that have not been addressed. The relationship of the Waorani world with the rest of society continues to be unequal and conflictive, while nothing has been done to stop it from being that way.
In order to build a future of peace and inclusion with the Waorani world, it is absolutely necessary that our society and especially its Government, rethink its relationship with the Waorani, accept their status as indigenous people of “recently contact” and seek a treatment with greater cultural respect (which does not necessarily mean oil-free, but yes, avoiding the expansion of this activity and developing it in a much more respectful and responsible way, and even implementing an exit plan from the activity in the medium term, when the oil reserves are exhausted).
Note: I recommend watching the report we did with Día a Día in Bataboro: The story of Omatoke, a woman of Taromenane origin, assimilated into a Waorani family in her youth. Her story helps us better understand the dynamics of these peoples of the Waorani Nationality and thus respect their rights.
The Waorani have kept their beliefs about death and revenge intact. For the Waorani, death is not a coincidence, it is always induced by someone and revenge for a death is exacted on the person of the first adversary they encounter. When a family member dies, in this case a child, revenge was expected to occur, and the tensions between the community and the oil sector (which I will discuss in the next point) determined who would be the one to take revenge.
2) The communities of Tigüino and Bataboro, located within the Tigüino Marginal Block, have had successive conflicts due to oil activity.
Let us remember that the warriors who massacred all the women and children of a Taromenane clan in 2003 came from Tigüino, and that although it has been said that the pressures that triggered this act of violence came from the illegal logging sector, I know for a fact that they also came from the oil company that was operating at the time.
In recent years, breaches of compensation agreements by the oil company, which were later taken over by Ecuador Estratégico, led to uprisings in these communities and, as a consequence, accusations of terrorism against several community leaders. These accusations were made as part of a negotiation to appease the Waorani after the death of Ompore and Buganey in Yarentaro (which was senseless and opportunistic, of course, since these communities had nothing to do with, they are not close, neither physically nor in relation to the events of last year).
To make matters worse, in 2011, the boundaries of several oil blocks were reconfigured, including Block 17, in the hands of the Chinese company Andes Petroleum, which now has a U-shaped extension surrounding the Tugüino block. Work has been carried out in this area for future exploitation, despite the fact that these are territories with a strong presence of isolated indigenous people (adjacent to the Intangible Zone), a situation that the inhabitants of Bataboro have repeatedly denounced, for fear that the isolated indigenous people will react against them, causing deaths, as happened with Ompore and Buganey.
In short, this conflict, which is presented as a single family affair and is intended to be given the appearance of a purely police matter, has a very complex background that is intended to be ignored (I hope not for convenience but out of ignorance). Although only one Waorani person or family is involved in the deaths, the fact responds to situations that have been occurring for decades and that have not been addressed. The relationship of the Waorani world with the rest of society continues to be unequal and conflictive, while nothing has been done to stop it from being that way.
In order to build a future of peace and inclusion with the Waorani world, it is absolutely necessary that our society and especially its Government, rethink its relationship with the Waorani, accept their status as indigenous people of “recently contact” and seek a treatment with greater cultural respect (which does not necessarily mean oil-free, but yes, avoiding the expansion of this activity and developing it in a much more respectful and responsible way, and even implementing an exit plan from the activity in the medium term, when the oil reserves are exhausted).
Note: I recommend watching the report we did with Día a Día in Bataboro: The story of Omatoke, a woman of Taromenane origin, assimilated into a Waorani family in her youth. Her story helps us better understand the dynamics of these peoples of the Waorani Nationality and thus respect their rights.
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