APFT Pilot report - English - C - THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THIS REPORT

C - THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THIS REPORT

The expression 'native American Indians' is understood as including the descendants of pre-Columbian populations identifying themselves as an indigenous entity with a specific name and culture (Carneiro da Cunha, 1986). It is not in any way a biological definition. Researchers are the ones who created this all-inclusive term, and it does not actually coincide with a concept to which the populations concerned might refer. For political reasons however, and especially in the context of political activism, the people themselves do use the words 'native American Indians' to draw a clear distinction between themselves and other populations, especially mestizos.

The picture we see today does nevertheless present socio-cultural features inherited from the pre-Columbian period. We are faced with an infinite variety of populations speaking a whole array of different languages (GRIMES, 1988), neither of which is particularly dominant.

There are four main differences between the present situation and the time of the Spanish Conquest :

*The number of different ethnic groups has been greatly reduced ; meanwhile, after reaching a very low levels (which happened at different times for different groups), the total population is far from having recovered its former strength.

*At first very much a minority, non-indigenous populations only became an overwhelming majority from the end of the 19th century onwards (MOREIRA NETO, 1988).

*Indigenous populations only significantly occupy fractions of the area covered by this report, and often the upper reaches of the major watercourses.

*As a consequence of the preceding factors, the pattern of land occupation has altered : from being spread out evenly over the whole area, indigenous populations are now concentrated in patches. In the process, isolated groups have emerged, and the rich complex of commercial networks and intensive cultural exchange was disrupted. Evidence for the complexity of these relationships has been brought forth by comparing recent archaeological research with 16th and 17th century texts (Roosevelt, 1989).

*Today, there is continual discrimination against native American Indians, and great pressure on them to accept an integration which would make them second class citizens (JIMENO, 1989).