State of the World's Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2016 - Venezuela

Events of 2015

As in many countries, the way indigenous and minority populations are identified through Venezuela's census has had a major impact on the numbers of people counted and how they are perceived. Up until the 1982 census, there was no clear criterion for recognizing the indigenous population. From 1992 to the latest census in 2011 the criterion was self-identification, thus allowing for better comparative analysis. Strikingly, the self-identified indigenous population increased by 41.7 per cent between the 2001 and 2011 census – an increase that suggests a growing sense of community identity. Within this population, which comprises 2.7 per cent of the national total, there is, however, a diverse range of indigenous cultures that differ substantially, depending largely on their location in the country: ethnographers distinguish 10 separate peoples in Venezuela, ranging from the coastal Carib indigenous communities, reliant on fishing and agriculture, to the Amazonian Arawak communities. In line with the country's avowedly multicultural Constitution, Venezuela has developed an innovative model of governance for its various indigenous communities, with a dedicated ministry for indigenous affairs, known as the Ministry of Popular Power for Indigenous Peoples. Its aims include strengthening the shared ancestry of indigenous communities, responding to their needs and promoting respect for their customs.

Notwithstanding these positive measures, indigenous Venezuelans still struggle with a historical legacy of discrimination that persists to this day. In particular, indigenous peoples have faced continuous pressure from state-owned companies and international corporations to appropriate their land for extractive projects such as mining – a cause of frequent displacement, violence, arrests and health hazards for these communities. Of particular concern during the year was Presidential Decree 1,606, passed in February without prior consultation or consent, awarding a 30-year lease over 24,192 hectares of land in the western region of Zulia to a Chinese-owned company, Sinohydro, for coal extraction and the development of a hydro-power plant. The project, which would have caused widespread environmental destruction in the area and potentially created a variety of health risks for the indigenous population, was subsequently revoked later in the year, when President Nicolás Maduro published a 'correction' in acknowledgement of the damage it would cause to the ecosystem and indigenous communities in the area. While two existing mines will continue to operate, the amendment in principle bars any further exploitation in the area, though indigenous activists remain wary of further attempts in future to appropriate their land.

Indigenous activists have frequently been attacked, even killed, in land-related conflicts with powerful interests who have often enjoyed high levels of impunity for their crimes. However, a historic ruling in August finally brought to justice the assassin of a Yukpa leader, Sabino Romero, murdered in March 2013 after leading a series of land occupations of his community's ancestral territory. The killing, which activists claim was sponsored by wealthy cattle ranchers, was one of many violent incidents inflicted against indigenous communities over the years. While the murderer received the maximum sentence of a 30-year term, community members are now seeking to bring those responsible for funding the attack to trial, and also calling for the retrial of a number of policemen who, despite being convicted for their involvement in the crime, received light sentences of only seven years.

Afro-Venezuelans, like Venezuela's indigenous population, have historically been under-represented and it was only in the most recent census in 2011 that citizens were able to self-identify as Afro-descendants – a term that itself may have been unfamiliar to many respondents and contributed to significant under-reporting. The community, long marginalized, have enjoyed stronger rights under the left-wing governments of former President Hugo Chávez and now Maduro. During the year, activists spoke out against the persistent impacts of discrimination on the community. Highlighting continued shortfalls in areas such as education and health, Francisco Tovar, communication coordinator of the Consejo Nacional para el Desarrollo de las Comunidades Afrodescendientes de Venezuela (Conadecafro), called for targeted assistance and investment to ensure greater equality for the Afro-Venezualan population. In particular, he argued that the state needed to counter the legacy of colonialism by acknowledging and celebrating the contribution of Venezuela's Afro-descendant population to its national identity, freedom and culture, moving beyond a purely 'folkloric' representation of African traditions.

A welcome milestone for the community occurred in October, when the first ever Afro-Venezuelan woman was finally given the honour of burial in the state mausoleum. Born into slavery in Guárico, Venezuela in 1790, Juana Ramírez fought against colonial rule during the Venezuelan War of Independence, commanding an all-women's artillery unit.