Current Movements involving
the Quichua People

The Shuar Federation was founded in 1964 in reaction to the Ecuadorian government's encouragement of colonization by farmers of communally-owned Shuar lands in the Amazon region of Ecuador.  I am including a description of the Shuar Federation (not a Quichua organization) because it was the first ongoing Indian right's organization in Latin America and therefore important to the development of Quichua rights' organizations (Brysk 2000, 64).  Since 1964, the Federation has worked to establish and maintain collective ownership of Shuar tribal lands.  Miguel Tankamash, a founding member of the Shuar Federation, says members are "committed to rediscover and revalue this land, with all its resources that are our life" (article referenced below).  The Shuar Federation helped form CONFENIAE in 1980 and became one of its member organization along with OPIP (discussed below).

For more information on the Shuar Federation, read an article about the history of the Shuar and the state of their natural resources or visit a webpage that gives a brief history of the Shuar Federation.  Native Web also has information about the Shuar.  Native Web is an excellent source to find information about indigenous organizations throughout Latin America.
 

OPIP organized the Indigenous March in April 1992, an event that was widely supported by indigenous communities and the general public (CONAIE's website, "A Brief History," Dec. 1992).

For more information on OPIP, visit their website (in Spanish but has an intro in English).

The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon was founded in 1980.  As you can see from the CONFENIAE logo above, the Shuar and Quichua Indigenous Groups are represented by CONFENIAE.  CONFENIAE is comprised of  850 member communities and represents several nationalities within the Amazon region of Ecuador.  To see the  areas CONFENIAE and OPIP represent, click on the map to the right for a larger version.  The Equadorian government legally recognized the organization in 1984.  CONFENIAE worries that the encroachment of mining, timber, and oil companies onto indigenous lands is placing Ecuador's ecosystems in grave danger and is negatively affecting the physical and cultural survival of the indigenous populations they represent.  The goal of CONFENIAE is to promote the social, political and economic development of the indigenous communities.  The organization works to defend indigenous territories and protect the ecosystems and natural resources on their lands.  They seek to preserve the cultural identity of each nationality they represent and gain the Ecuadorian government's recognition of their rights.  As its mission, CONFENIAE tries to counteract the attempts of big business and government to divide the indigenous groups by maintaining open lines of communication with sympathetic non-governmental organizations and other international actors (CONFENIAE's website, mainpage).

For more information about them, visit their website (English and Spanish).

The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador was founded in Ecuador in 1986 from a collaboration between ECUARUNARI and CONFENIAE.  The Catholic Church influenced the formation of ECUARUNARI, a regional organization of the Sierra, in 1972 (CONAIE, "A Brief History," Dec. 1992).  The organization became increasingly independent over the next decade before it helped to form CONAIE.  CONAIE represents all the indigenous groups of Ecuador, including those with a formal organization and those without.  To get an idea of where the lands of the indigenous nationalities of Ecuador are located, click on the map to the right for a larger version.  CONAIE works to strengthen indigenous organizations and help indigenous communities deal with territorial disputes and unfavorable government policies.  CONAIE also works to promote indigenous cultures and bilingual education, encouraging people to learn and use their traditional language alonside Spanish.  CONAIE feels that, although language separates the indigenous groups of Ecuador, the problems they face unite them.  They promote the Quichua language as a way to unite the indigenous groups (CONAIE's website, mainpage). 

CONAIE has supported several uprisings against the Ecuadorian government.  CONAIE was an instrumental participant in the 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance Campaign.  In late May/June 1990, CONAIE organized a peaceful uprising throughout the Sierra.  One million indigenous people stopped working on May 28 and shut the country down for a week.  CONAIE participated in the First Continental Conference on 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance in Quito, Ecuador, following the uprising that summer.  As part of the campaign, they asked for the return of traditional community held lands, the recognition of Quechua as an official language, and compensation for the environmental damage caused by the oil companies (Foley 1995, 24).  CONAIE organized subsequent uprisings in 1992 and 1994 (Brysk, 73).

For more information about CONAIE, visit their website (English and Spanish).  Or, visit a webpage that gives a brief synopsis of CONAIE's history and current issues.
 

In January 2000, CONAIE and the Movimiento Pachakutic began a campaign to oust President Jamil Mahuad of Ecuador.  Mahuad had announced his government's plan to adopt the U.S. dollar as Ecuador's official currency.  A coalition of indigenous people, students, unions, and others marched to Quito and Ecuador's other main cities and demanded the end to Mahuad's presidency.  They succeeded only to have Mahuad's vice president, Gustavo Noboa, installed as Ecuador's new president in short order, giving way to the U.S. dollar as Ecuador's currency of choice (McInerny, Feb. 2000).  If you'd like to know more about the events of January and February 2000, read two news stories about these events from CONAIE's website.