Colombia opts for oil over indigenous rights.

• Author: Runyan, Curtis
• Position: Brief Article

The Colombian government in September 1999 granted Los Angeles-based Occidental Petroleum a license to drill for oil near the lands of the indigenous U'wa people, who in 1997 threatened to commit mass suicide if companies were allowed to drill for oil in their territory.

The ruling comes as a heavy setback to the U'wa, who say the land approved for exploration is part of their traditional territory; which lies about 200 miles northeast of Bogota. "This action once again reveals how the rule of law ...is subsumed by a higher order of decrees and norms which serve local and transnational special interests," said Roberto Perez of the U'wa tribal council. "These interests not only threaten our ways of thinking and living, but they also restrict our capacity to protect our people."

Last year, Occidental backed down from its efforts to drill for oil on officially recognized U'wa lands after facing intense international scrutiny when a number of tribe members pledged to walk off a cliff in an act of mass suicide. U'wa spokesperson Berito Kuwaru'wa in 1998 was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for his role in heading off oil development by leading the tribe's 8,000 people in nonviolent resistance since Occidental was first granted the tight to drill on U'wa lands in 1992. While the company dropped its original plans, it has now received approval to drill just outside the U'wa reserve--500 meters from the border. Occidental estimates that the land could sit on top the country's largest oil field, possibly holding 1.4 billion barrels of oil.

Colombian environment minister Juan Mayr had hoped to forge a compromise by spearheading government efforts to increase the U'wa's territory while approving the oil project. In August 1999 the government expanded the reservation from 400 square kilometers to...