Den Internationale Vanddag fredag var en oplagt lejlighed for Parakuiyo Masaierne – et nomadefolk i Tanzania – til at gøre opmærksom på værdien af den livgivende væske, som der er alt for lidt af i deres karrige region af det østafrikanske land.
“We have water but just not clean water,” says Adam Ole Mwarabu, coordinator of the Parakuiyo Pastoralists Indigenous Community Development Organization (PAICODEO), according to a press release Friday from the Copenhagen-based NGO IWGIA (Den Internationale Arbejdsgruppe for Indfødte Folk).
“The laws of Tanzania allow us to own water and insist on water right. Yet, the government is failing to supply adequate and clean water in the pastoralists’ community as a result many people suffer from water borne diseases”, noted he.
Each year the International Water Day highlights a specific aspect of water and this year it is advocating for the sustainable (bæredygtig) management of fresh water (ferskvands) sources.
Vand til kommende generationer
Indigenous peoples believe it is a collective responsibility and obligation (forpligtelse) to ensure and protect the availability and purity of water – for present and future generations.
Sustainable development of water resource management calls for a mechanism to ensure the balance between the roles of the state, the market and local communities.
Unfortunately, the market is still the predominant player and the role and participation of indigenous peoples and local communities is continuously undermined in designing policies and programs on water.
Vand: Mere end en menneskeret
Friday was the day to underscore that indigenous peoples cannot separate their efforts to reclaim their water and their general struggle for the recognition of their fundamental rights as peoples.
For indigenous peoples, water, more than being a basic human right, is the source of life.
The waters, territories and lands are the physical, cultural and spiritual foundation of indigenous peoples’ existence and identity as distinct peoples.
Today, it should be stressed that the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNFPII) has reaffirmed the right to water as a fundamental human right. Today is the day where indigenous peoples around the world should call for the development of international standards for the use, management and regulation of water.
Tre store knaster
Indigenous people have according to the Secretariat of the Permanent Forum for Indigenous Issues (SPFII) highlighted three major concerns regarding water resources, namely lack of access to water, contamination (forgiftning) of water and privatization of water (som salgsvare).
Over one billion people around the globe still lack access to safe drinking water and in many places indigenous peoples are unfortunately still sidelined and excluded from debates about State-water management.
Contamination of water is affecting several indigenous communities and one of the biggest polluters is the mining and quarrying (stenbruds) industry whose activities are contaminating the water.
Contamination from the mining industry affecting peoples’ livelihoods and well-being are reported worldwide from Peru to the Philippines.
Privatization of water is a key area of focus for indigenous peoples. In Chile conflicts related to natural resources in extractive (udvindings) industries involve critical issues related to privatization of water.
For more information on this issue see
http://www.iwgia.org/publications/search-pubs?publication_id=554 (only in Spanish).
Vand tilhører os alle
One, of the main arguments from the SPFII against privatization of water is that water ‘belongs to everyone and anyone’.
It belongs to the Earth and living things, including humans. It should be equally distributed according to needs, customs, and community norms depending on its cyclical availability.
For all three issues it is imperative that governments and the United Nation agencies alike ensure respect for articles 32 and 25 in the UN Declaration on the Rights of indigenous Peoples.
The declaration outlines, respectively, the rights of indigenous peoples to determine the priorities in the development or use of the lands and resources, as well as their right to strengthen their distinctive spiritual relationship with their territories, waters and costal seas.
Den internationale udviklingsdagsorden
Water is on the international agenda as a part of the 2015-development framework that will develop new goals for when the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs – 2015 Målene) expire.
The last decade water has also been a focus in the MDGs. In regards to clean water and sanitation the MDGs were as good as met.
However, for indigenous peoples who are predominately rural, it is crucial to recognize that geographic disparities (forskelle) mirror ethnic inequities (uretfærdigheder) in relation to poverty, hunger, health issues, gender inequality, education, environmental degradation (nedslidning) and not least access to clean water.
For the MDGs reflecting water issues, the disparities between urban and rural population continue and despite encouraging figures for improved water sources, focus must be directed to areas of need.
Indfødte folkeslags stemmer må høres
That is why it is so important that the voices of the indigenous peoples are spread today, on the annual International Water Day, IWGIA states.
Today, the Parakuiyo Maasai people in Tanzania together with many other indigenous peoples around the world request that the International Water Day gives priority to communities with shortage of clean water and related water issues.
And they request that organizations dealing with water issues help advocate for the right to water in their home areas. Let us hope that their voices are heard.
Se mere på
http://www.unwater.org/water-cooperation-2013/home/en
Se også telegrammet
http://www.u-landsnyt.dk/nyhed/07-03-13/helle-thorning-m-dt-af-dansende-masaier-som-nu-f-r
