{"id":295,"date":"2020-04-22T16:35:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-22T16:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tierra.jerrejerre.com\/es\/?p=295"},"modified":"2021-05-01T23:34:45","modified_gmt":"2021-05-01T23:34:45","slug":"muerte-y-olvido-en-el-bosque-tol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tierraderesistentes.com\/en\/2020\/04\/22\/muerte-y-olvido-en-el-bosque-tol\/","title":{"rendered":"Death and Oblivion in the Tolupan forest"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Tolupan San Francisco de Locomapa Tribe, in Yoro, Honduras, has suffered murders, judicial harassment and attacks due to its opposition to the power generation projects in the territory where they have always lived, but which is now in dispute. In the past 20 years, 40 Tolupan indigenes were murdered, a population that faces its own extermination.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consuelo Soto speaks always looking at the other side of the street, as if expecting another attack from the members of her community who have harassed her for years. A couple of weeks ago, she was threatened again<\/strong>. She answers questions almost whispering, in front of her house, which preserves the memory of the violence perpetrated against the tribe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consuelo is one of the Tolupan leaders facing threats and attacks for defending the Tolupan territory of San Francisco de Locomapa in the Yoro department, North Honduras. The conflict within the tribe was triggered in 2009 when two companies, Venta Local de Madera y Transformaci\u00f3n Ocotillo (Velomato<\/span>) and Industria Maderera Rene Eleazar (Inmare<\/span>) along with the National Institute for the Preservation and Development of Forests, Protected Areas and Wildlife (ICF<\/span>, in Spanish,) developed forest management plans giving rise to the sale of wood extracted from forests located within Tolupan territory.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In San Francisco de Locomapa, there is a division based on different visions on territorial management. Although the Tolupan manage themselves through a hierarchical structure with a cacique, who provides advice in the decision-making process, and a Tribal Council responsible for taking them, not everybody in Locomapa agrees with these council\u2019s decisions.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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VESTIGES OF THE OLD SAWMILL IN THE COMMUNITY OF SAN FRANCISCO, LOCOMAPA, JANUARY 16, 2020. PHOTO: MART\u00cdN C\u00c1LIX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On the one hand, there is the Tribal Council and 800 people out of the tribe\u2019s total of 3,000 who agree on giving permission for chainsaws to extract and sell wood. On the other hand, the remainder of the tribe rejects that possibility or are afraid of expressing their opinions. In order to face the other side, they decided to create a parallel entity called the Preventive Council of Tribes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Tribal Council chairman, Jos\u00e9 Alberto Vieda, affirms that the forest is \u201crenewable\u201d and that most of the tribe members are making the decision on the sale. The 40-year-old man said he sold 14,800 mts of wood at 250 lempiras ($10) each to Honduran businessman Wilder Dom\u00ednguez<\/span>. He subsequently affirms the profit was distributed in the meeting. The community pays 15% over the sale to the Federation of Xicaque Tribes of Yoro (Fetrixy, in Spanish,)<\/span> an organization gathering all Tolupan tribes of the country, and an additional amount of 40 lempiras ($1.62) per cubic meter for municipal taxes, according to an investigation<\/a> conducted by the Study Center for Democracy (Cespad, in Spanish.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This potentially accounts for an approximate of 2.5 million lempiras (around $100.000) for the community. The approximate 800 persons agreeing with the cutting down receive 500 lempiras ($20) for each 5.000 meters of wood approved in meetings, according to the information published on the Tribal Council\u2019s Facebook page<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey also face discrimination, which makes them vulnerable to unfair and precarious working conditions\u201d<\/p>Victoria Tauli-Corpuz.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

93.9% of the Tolupan hardly cover the expenses of the basic food basket, living below the extreme poverty line <\/strong>according to a report<\/a> by the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples. \u201cThey also face discrimination, which makes them vulnerable to unfair and precarious working conditions,\u201d Special Rapporteur Victoria Tauli-Corpuz said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n