FREE ESSAY ON THE U'WA PEOPLE

THE U'WA PEOPLE

The U'wa people strive in the cloud forests of Colombia, they are being threatened by an
American based oil company Oxy (occidental) who are starting to invade the territory to
drill. The U'wa are a 
Non-fighting tribe, they believe that oil is the blood of the mother Earth. On the edges
of the territory Oxy (occidental) has started to drill against the wishes of the U'wa but
the wishes of President Clinton and President Pastrana (of Colombia) and Al Gore. The
U'wa said if Oxy drills they will commit mass suicide of a sacred cliff. In Colombia
there is a war between FARC (the armed forces of Colombia) and the ELN and the Para
military which are rebel gropes who fight against each other about the way things should
be and oil development, and coca (cocaine) money. These several gropes are constantly
killing each other, and any one in their path. Some of the gropes like FARC who are happy
about the oil, other like the ELN are not and they are blowing up the pipe lines. Then
the oil floods into the only water source the U'wa have and they have no choice but to
drink the contaminated water. My brother was working to stop Oxy from drilling, he would
travel to Colombia to talk with the U'wa about what he should do to stop the project from
happening. On his last trip he took to Native American leaders with him the U'wa were
asking for a school where the children can learn Spanish and English because they speak
only U'wa their traditional language. On their way back they were kidnapped by the FARC
and killed. Recently the U'wa were sitting blocking the dirt road up to the drill sight
so the trucks couldn't get through and the police came and pushed the U'wa into the river
and three U'wa children drowned and 11 U'wa adults were missing. The same people who
killed my brother were escorting the Oxy people into the cloud forest and that company
knew who my brother was they could have been behind the whole thing.