United States Reviewing Position on UN Indigenous Rights Declaration

Washington, D.C. (UCTP Taino News) - The U.S. Department of State has created a new website to enable public input during the U.S. review of its position on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). On April 20, 2010, United States Ambassador Susan E. Rice announced the decision of the U.S. to review the Declaration at the 9th Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

In a recent press release the Obama Administration recognized that the UNDRIP provides a framework for addressing indigenous issues. During President Obama's first year in office, tribal leaders and interested non-governmental organizations (NGOs) encouraged the United States to reexamine its position on the Declaration.

Roberto Mukaro Agueibana Borrero, a representative of the United Confederation of Taíno People welcomed the news.

“This decision is important not only for Indigenous Peoples living in the mainland United States but for other Indigenous Peoples like the Taíno who reside in non-self-governing territories controlled by the U.S. Government” stated Borrero.

He continued noting that “unlike mainland American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians, the Taíno of Borikén (Puerto Rico) for example do not benefit from U.S. Federal laws designed to protect indigenous cultural and spiritual properties.”

The United Confederation of Taíno People promoted and organized Caribbean regional support toward the Declaration’s final adoption in 2007.

“Legal application of this Declaration does not require a States’ formal recogntition of Indigenous Peoples and the UCTP is committed to engaging the U.S. government on this issue with our future generations in mind” said Borrero.

As part of the U.S. government’s review process, the U.S. Department of State, together with other Federal agencies, will be hosting consultations with federally-recognized tribes and dialogues with interested NGOs and other stakeholders.

UCTPTN 06.08.2010

What's Good for US Latinos May Not Be Best for Puerto Ricans

For U.S. Latinos, it would be the biggest political boost in history. Imagine suddenly gaining two Hispanic U.S. senators and six additional Latino members of the House of Representatives. Imagine 4 million additional Latinos suddenly eligible to vote for president. The gains would be much bigger than those that Latinos are likely to receive from the new census tabulations or from any gigantic voter registration campaign, even bigger than the certain Latino voter backlash that has been provoked by lawmakers in Arizona.

For U.S. Latino empowerment, nothing could match the entry of Puerto Rico as the 51st state of the union.

Yet if and when that happens, it should be because we the American people, especially our Congress, respected the will of the Puerto Rican people. It should be because they were able to choose statehood over independence and their current commonwealth status in a free and truly democratic process.

When they vote in a new plebiscite to determine the political future of their precious island, Puerto Ricans should know that our Congress is bound to respect their decision and committed to act upon it.

Anything else would be a farce, another nonbinding beauty contest, a repeat of the plebiscites of 1967, 1993 and 1998 and another huge waste of time, money and emotions. That's what has happened in the past and what likely would happen again under the latest proposed plebiscite, which is already approved by the House and bound for Senate hearings.

Those who support this plebiscite, starting with pro-statehood Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno, argue that unlike the others, which were conducted by the government of Puerto Rico, at least this one would be "authorized" by Congress. Of course, that means absolutely nada. It still would be nonbinding. Once the Puerto Rican people made their choice, Congress still could ignore them - just as it ignores most controversial matters.

If Puerto Ricans were to choose statehood, for example, many linguistically impaired, ethnically challenged and xenophobically affected Republicans would have serious reservations. They would raise all kinds of racist objections to try to prevent the island from becoming the 51st state. They would insist, as they have in the past, that Puerto Ricans should speak only English and renounce the Spanish language and culture.

And before Puerto Ricans venture into statehood, many would like some guarantees that such racist restrictions would not be imposed on them.

Unfortunately, the bill passed by the House April 29 - by a bipartisan vote of 223-169 - is so flawed that even the three Puerto Rican-Americans in Congress couldn't agree on it. Rep. Jose Serrano, D-N.Y., voted for it. But Reps. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., and Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., voted against it.

Gutierrez argued that the legislation had been rushed through the House without clearly defining the options that would be offered to Puerto Rican voters, and Velazquez argued that it was skewed to favor the statehood option. Serrano, while recognizing some flaws, supported it because, he said, at least it began a process that could lead to the decolonization of the island.

Some background: Under the commonwealth status, approved by Congress in 1952 as a transitional arrangement, Puerto Ricans on the island are American citizens who are subject to federal law but don't enjoy all the rights of citizenship.

They serve in the U.S. military, often with remarkable courage, but cannot vote in presidential elections. They pay no federal income taxes, but their voice in Congress is limited to a single nonvoting delegate to the House.

A task force established by President Bill Clinton and revived by President George W. Bush five years ago recommended that unlike previous plebiscites, a new one should be conducted in two parts. First, Puerto Ricans would have to decide on whether they want to remain under the commonwealth relationship with the United States. If they voted for change, a second plebiscite would give them only two options, statehood or independence.

It seemed like a sound idea, especially because it nudged the Puerto Rican people to make a tough decision they have been avoiding, a decision with only two choices instead of three. Puerto Rico's commonwealth status, now 58 years old, never was meant to be permanent. Most Puerto Ricans acknowledge that sooner or later, they will have to move on to another arrangement. Yet when they had a choice of being a commonwealth, a state or independent in the three previous plebiscites, they clung to the commonwealth they claim they must let go.

The deadlock could be broken, some thought, with the two-plebiscite process suggested by the Bush panel. Yet others argued that because independence always ranks a low third among the three options, the two-plebiscite process would favor statehood. And their argument was so strong that the idea was stalled during the Bush years. When it was resuscitated again this year, as the Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2010, it still called for two rounds of voting, but it had three options in the second round - statehood, independence or free association, a poorly defined third option that involved sovereignty while maintaining some sort of association with the United States. In other words, they had managed to preserve the commonwealth option without calling it commonwealth.

But that wasn't enough. Because this new third option was clearly a farce and no one could explain what it would entail, amazingly, commonwealth was reintroduced as a fourth option! It was an amendment introduced by Republicans in a clear attempt to derail any movement toward statehood in Puerto Rico, and now we have a bill that is full of contradictions.

The amendment completely nullifies the intent of the two-round voting process. Now Puerto Ricans can reject commonwealth in the first round and still end up supporting it in the second. If commonwealth is still an option in the second round, why bother having a first round?

Every few years, the Puerto Rican people are taken on this emotional roller-coaster ride created by nonbinding plebiscites with more than two options. And like all riders of roller coasters, they always end up exactly where they started, clinging to commonwealth.

Unless the Senate corrects the many flaws in the House bill, Puerto Ricans are already in line for another emotional ride to define who they are as a people. And the rest of us U.S. Latinos are going to have to wait until they are given a fair chance to define their destiny.

Puerto Rican statehood could be great for U.S. Latinos, but only if Puerto Ricans really want it, Congress learns to respect their right to self-determination and they all agree to demolish the multiple-choice plebiscite roller coaster.

Author: Miguel Perez
Source: Creators Syndicate

Thousands call for Nuclear Disarmament in New York

Taino and Mohawk representatives among the thousands at nuclear disarmament rally in New York City

New York, NY (UCTP Taino News) – About 10,000 activists from around the world mobilized in New York City on Sunday, May 2nd 2010 to call for “real progress” toward global nuclear disarmament. During a rally held in Times Square and a march to the United Nations participants called for an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as a nuclear free future. The lead contingent of the march included survivors of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, government officials, and representatives of the indigenous Mohawk, Navajo, Aymara, Cherokee, Tlingit, and Taino Nations.

The day of action culminated with a International Peace and Music Festival held at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza across from United Nations headquarters. Over 50 organizations displayed their literature and networked with the thousands of people who attended. There was a tent where people had the opportunity to talk with survivors of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In addition, Sakue Shimora, a survivor of the bombing of Nagasaki, spoke from the main festival stage.

Among the diverse musicians and storytellers performing at the festival were members of the Cacibajagua Taino Cultural Society and Taino Iukaieke Guainia. In addition to presenting Taino songs honoring the Earth, the group linked the struggle in Vieques to the global disarmament agenda. The Taino also urged those in attendance to support the upcoming Spiritual Run for Peace and Dignity to be held in Puerto Rico, July 2010.

The rally, march, and festival coincided with the start of the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) being held at UN Headquarters this month. The NPT is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament and general and complete disarmament.

UCTPTN 05.03.2010

3rd Indigenous Leaders Summit On Course

Damon Corrie and Roberto Borrero at the offices of the Assembly of First Nations in Ottawa, Canada (UCTP Photo)

Ottawa, Canada (UCTP Taíno News) – A planning meeting for the upcoming 3rd Indigenous Leaders Summit of the Americas was held February 27-28, 2008 in Ottawa, Canada. The meeting was hosted by the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) and the Native Womens Association of Canada.

Three representatives from the Caribbean Region were invited to attend as members of the planning committee – Damon Corrie (Barbados), Albert DeTerville (St. Lucia), and Roberto Borrero (Puerto Rico).

The Indigenous Leaders Summit will present a Declaration and Plan of Action to the 5th OAS Summit of the Americas that will be held in Port of Spain, Trinidad from April 17 – 19, 2009.

The Summit location has not yet been confirmed, but current choices location choices include Venezuela, Panama, and St. Lucia. Trinidad is also being considered but as a result of the OAS Summit, logistics could present a problem. While the cost and other factors will determine the actual meeting site, members of the local indigenous community are still hopeful that the Indigenous Summit will come to Trinidad.

“To not have this meeting in Trinidad would be a shame” stated Chief Ricardo Bharath Hernandez of the Santa Rosa Carib Community. Currently, the Santa Rosa Community is the only community on the island recognized by the government of Trinidad and Tobago.

Close to 100 hundred indigenous leaders from throughout the hemisphere are expected to attend the meeting. Participants will be representative of 4 regions – South America; Central America & Mexico; North America (U.S.A & Canada ); and the Caribbean with about 20 participants per region.

Corrie was appointed to head the Communications Sub-Committee while DeTerville and Borrero will work with the Technical Committee. Outreach has already been circulated in the Caribbean Region for the delegate nominees.

The 3rd Indigenous Summit of the Americas will take place from April 14-15, 2009.

UCTPTN 03.05.2009

UA professor leads archaeological dig in Cuba

(Photo provided by the University of Alabama) Former UA grad student Paul Noe carefully digs within an excavation square at the site of a former native village in eastern Cuba.

A joint University of Alabama and Cuban archaeological dig in eastern Cuba is revealing how the natives there lived when Christopher Columbus found them and, more importantly, how Indians reacted to the Spanish.

“We have very few cases in the Caribbean where we can point to a certain place and say, ‘This is exactly what happened when Europeans hit the scene,’ ” said UA professor Jim Knight. “Of course, we have the Spanish documents, but archaeology can tell a different story sometimes. Some of these documents tend to whitewash what happened, but artifacts won’t lie.”

It took Knight nearly seven years to get permission and forms signed for UA to led an expedition in Cuba.

For the past two summers, UA graduate students worked alongside professional archaeologists with the Central-Eastern Department of archaeology of the science ministry of Cuba to dig through El Chorro de Maita, a large Indian settlement on a hillside off island’s eastern shore. The effort was sponsored by the National Geographic Society.

“It’s extremely rare for a U.S. institution to partner with a Cuban institution. It’s been our hope we could work something out from our end, and it worked out,” he said.

Cubans have long worked with European archaeologists and researchers, and the site UA wanted to work is widely known in Cuba. There is a museum there, and Knight compared it to Moundville here in Alabama.

Knight is well-versed in Native American culture in the Southeast and studying their encounters with Spanish conquistadors is a natural transition for the UA professor. The dig in Cuba recovered several thousand Spanish artifacts, far more than on any site Knight had ever seen, he said.

But archaeologists also found small stone idols, evidence the society had a hierarchical structure. The Arawakan Indians were similar to those at Moundville, the Mississippian Indians, in structure and sophistication when Columbus landed in Cuba in 1492. Although it’s likely that the explorer landed near El Chorro de Maita, it’s impossible to tell, Knight said.

The site was an Indian town from the late 1300s to the early 1500s, when Spain conquered Cuba and essentially wiped out Arawakan society. It is that interim time period from Columbus’ landing to Spanish society’s dominance that Knight and other researchers in the project are interested in understanding.

For instance, among the Spanish artifacts at the site were fancy tableware, which could mean Spanish settlers lived in the old Indian huts for a time or that Indians picked up the habits of their conquerors.

To understand more of the two cultures’ interaction, John Worth, a professor of anthropology at the University of West Florida, joined the team to decipher Spanish government documents from the day. Written in a Spanish barely recognizable as such by today’s standards, Worth is hoping to align the documents with the timeline established by the dig in order to understand how the Arawakans eventually melded into Spanish culture.

“We’ll eventually narrow down and pin down who we’re talking about, what the nature of the Indian contact was there because we really don’t know yet what kind of operation there was in that particularly district,” Knight said.

Author: Adam Jones
Source: Tuscaloosa News.com

*UCTP Taino News Editor’s note: This article is posted for information purposes and does not necessarily reflect the views of the UCTP Taino News Service or the United Confederation of Taino People.

Barbados born activist co-chair of Indigenous Caucus at OAS

Washington D.C. (UCTP Taino News) - Damon Corrie, the sometimes controversial Barbados born Indigenous Rights activist of Guyanese Arawak descent was 1 of 30 persons selected by the Organization of American States (OAS) to once again to attend the current 11th session (Dec 6-12) of negotiations on the draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; being held in the Colon Room at the OAS headquarters in Washington DC.

Hard negotiations between the Indigenous representatives and the diplomatic representatives of all the member states of the OAS will be held from December 9-12th.

Of the 30 Indigenous representatives from around the Hemisphere present so far, only 2 are from the Caribbean (Barbados and Puerto Rico) and both are delegates for the United Confederation of Taino People.

The other countries currently represented in the Indigenous Caucus are as follows Canada (4), USA (7), Guatemala (2), Honduras (1), Nicaragua (1), Peru (1), Argentina (2), Ecuador (1), Paraguay (1), Colombia (1), Costa Rica (1), Bolivia (1) and El Salvadsor (4) - with additional representatives from the USA, Panama, Dominica and St. Vincent expected.

On day 1 the Caucus voted for 4 Co-Chairs to head the Indigenous Caucus and the un-opposed nominated candidates were June Llorenzo of the USA (North America co-chair), Jaime Arias of Colombia (South America co-chair), Jose Carlos Morales of Costa Rica (Central America co-chair) and Damon Corrie of Barbados (Caribbean co-chair). Corrie was nominated by respected Taino elder Naniki Reyes Ocasio from Puerto Rico. He agreed to act as Caribbean co-chair only until Carib Chief Charles Williams of Dominica arrives.

Chair of the OAS Working Group, Ambassador Jorge Reynaldo Cuadros of Bolivia gave a very inspirational opening address to the Caucus. The Ambassador reminded the indigenous representatives gathered that "Bolivia should be viewed as the motherland of the Indigenous Peoples of the Western Hemisphere because Bolivia - with the only Amerindian head of state and government in the entire Western Hemisphere - is quite literally the sharp end of the spear in the Amerindian rights struggle for equity in the Americas".

In November 2008 President Evo Morales of Bolivia became the first Amerindian Head of State to have ever addressed the OAS.

Leonardo Crippa and Armstrong Wiggins of the Indian Law Resource Center presented evidence to the gathering that attested to the fact that as Global conflict over scarce natural resources escalates, indigenous peoples have increasingly become targets of human rights violations associated with efforts to confiscate, control, or develop their lands, territories and natural resources. Many countries in the OAS project a public image of respect for human rights while permitting and committing human rights violations at home.

The representatives were also reminded that the process to achieve the American declaration has been on-going for over 19 years, and the UN declaration took almost 21 years to finally be achieved.

There is a strong sense of hope that the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama will enact real change such as finally ratifying the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which is something the outgoing Bush administration strongly opposed.

UCTPTN 12.08.2008

Farmers ravage virgin forests in Dominican Southwest, El Dia reports

PEDENALES, Dominican Republic. - Thousands of hectares of the Sierra de Bahoruco National Park (southwest), in the area known as Los Brocosis, are being ravaged by farmers, with the Environment Ministry’s indifference, reports newspaper El Dia.

The farmers are lumbering virgin forests untouched even by the Taino Indians, said the biologist Nicolas Corona, who affirmed that more than protected area, the Bahoruco is becoming farmland. “Unfortunately the park is disappearing day by day, minute by minute. Right now they are cutting down thousands of tareas every year, and everything stays the same.”

Interviewed by newspaper El Dia, the scientist said farmers from the communities Pedernales, Las Mercedes, Aguas Negras and El Mogote participate in the activity, which he affirmed has already destroyed Bahoruco almost entire southwestern section, including Los Arroyos, Aguas Negras “and as rains erode the vegetal cover, those places no longer produce much, and so they destroy other places.”

After calling the practice a crime, Corona said 22 wildfires have occurred in the mountain range so far this year from farmers making clearings, especially in the higher part of Las Mercedes. “The farmers who are in Los Brocosis already depredated Los Arroyos, Las Mercedes, Aguas Negras, La Compañia, La Altagracia and Las Abejas.”

Source: Dominican Today

New Study Confirms Taino Ancestry Among Dominicans

Dominican Republic (UCTP Taino News) - According to a new DNA study conducted in the Dominican Republic a large segment of the country’s population retains indigenous Taino ancestry through their mother’s bloodline. The study, conducted by the University of Puerto Rico, reveals that approximately 15-18% of Dominicans have Native American Mitochondrial DNA out of a population of nearly 10,000,000.

The research is based on 1200 DNA samples taken throughout the island with some test areas revealing 90% of the subjects with Native ancestry. While the percentages are lower than similar studies conducted on the neighboring island of Puerto Rico, the estimates defy “popular” accounts that the Indigenous Peoples were completely exterminated on that island.

“This study is a confirmation of what we have already known and promoted for years” stated Roberto Borrero, a representative of the United Confederation of Taino People. “Our people continue to exist within the multi-cultural mosaic that is the Caribbean despite the genocidal campaigns that began against us 516 years ago with the arrival of Columbus.”

One interesting aspect of the study is that individuals tested in the Cibao region seem to have a different DNA sequence than those tested in the southern part of the island. While both sequences are indigenous the variants could shed some light on ancient migrations. The study also reveals that the Taino descendants from the Cibao area could have been relatively “un-mixed racially” until more recent times.

UCTPTN 10.10.2008

UCTP Opens Online Taino Shop

UCTP Taino News - The United Confederation of Taino People has created an online “Taino Shop” hosted at CafePress.com. The new virtual store located at http://www.cafepress.com/tainoshop features a number of high-quality products displaying unique United Confederation of Taino People (UCTP) graphics. Confederation representative Roberto Borrero notes that the “the new Taino Shop is an excellent opportunity to contribute directly to the precedent-setting work of the UCTP.” Proceeds from sales directly benefit the organization.

“There is no doubt that the UCTP has been pioneering the use of Information and Communications Technology to increase the visibility of Taino and other Caribbean Indigenous Peoples” continued Borrero. “Online sales - indigenous entrepreneurship - are just another part of Nation building.”

Orders can be conducted online or by phone toll-free at 1-877-809-1659 and merchandise is backed by a 100% money back guarantee. The product line at the Taino Shop focuses on the UCTP logo, which represents a unified Taino Nation reaching out in solidarity across the waters to relatives in all the sacred directions.

Taino Nation on My Space…

UCTP Taino News - Recognizing the importance and growth of social networking sites, last year the UCTP established web pages on the famed “MySpace” network and the “Yahoo 360” network. “These services are an excellent opportunity to extend our educational and advocacy initiatives in ways that were unavailable to us before” stated Roberto Múcaro Borrero, President of the UCTP’s Office of International Relations and Regional Coordination. “Our Nation is on the move and engaging in this form of outreach is a natural progression related to other precedent-setting initiatives the UCTP has undertaken within the realm of the Information Society”.

MySpace is currently the world's “fifth most popular English-language website” offering an interactive, user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups, photos, music and videos internationally. Yahoo! 360° is a similar social networking site run by Yahoo!

To review and link to the UCTP's MySpace page visit http://www.myspace.com/taino_nation . To link to the UCTP's Yahoo 360 page entitled "Taino Nation News Online" please send a request to uctp_ny@yahoo.com .