I'm constantly amazed at how the Universe works. Just when you start to lose faith, or question whether there is any justice, a miracle happens. On Wednesday December 13, 2006, one such miracle occurred. By a 2 to 1 margin, the Botswana High Court brought an end to the longest running, most expensive court case in their history, brought by the "poorest" and least "educated" indigenous group, the San or as they are commonly referred to, Bushmen. The San contend they were forcibly evicted from their ancestral land, the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR) by the government and moved to resettlement camps outside the reserve where they were not only dependent on the government for everything from water to medical care, but were exposed to alcohol, AIDS, TB and among other maladies. Sadly, this story is all too common when governments choose to provide "development" to indigenous cultures - whether they like it, or whether or not they ask for it.
This is a story of the oldest culture on the planet. They are considered to be somewhere between 20,000 and 70,000 years old, a society where there is no gender bias and their main source of survival is their highly regarded hunting and gathering skills. This culture knows no warrior mentality and generally does not have tribal chiefs or stratified leadership. This is a culture built on mutual respect and community. Their healing tradition of trance dance is well known throughout southern Africa, where they number somewhere around 100,000, mostly living in poverty.
For nearly 1500 years invaders have preyed upon the San; first Central African Bantu tribes pushed south, and then, some 350 years ago Europeans muscled there way through southern Africa. The new arrivals took the most fertile land, pushing the San into the Kalahari Desert. Next, and still today, the local Setswana population discriminated against the San, naming them "Basarwa", which means "people without cattle". White settlers once hunted the San for sport.
The recent December ruling reverses over 20 years of government policy "encouraging" the San to leave the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. The boundaries of the reserve were originally established by the British in 1966, before Botswana gained independence. The original intent of the reserve, which is roughly the size of Switzerland, was to create a space to preserve the culture of the San, and the native wildlife of the Kalahari; The San are widely recognized to be among the best conservationists on the planet.
More aggressive resettlement tactics began in the late 1990, when authorities began cutting services, and offering payments to those who volunteered to move outside the reserve. Those who resisted saw their hunting licenses revoked, boreholes that provide water were sealed, and the cultivation of crops and domestic livestock were banned.
Justice Phumaphi, one of the judges who ruled on the case said this was effectively "condemning the residents of the CKGR to death by starvation."
Several factors make this story even more important. It sets a clear precedence for other indigenous groups who are experiencing or have experienced a similar fate at the hands of government or multi-national companies, willing to sacrifice human life for bottom line profits. Many would argue that indigenous communities around the world must assimilate to the modern world because it is encroaching upon their lands at a far faster rate than they can sustain. To be sure, this is the truth; there are very few places on the planet where indigenous communities can still live a traditional life.
What makes indigenous land so attractive to developers is the fact that because of the inherent conservationist nature of these communities, the lands which they inhabit still possess the great natural resources which translate to riches in the modern world, like rainforest, oil, and in the case of the San, diamonds.
In the case of the San V. Botswana, the government claimed their reasons for moving the San were motivated by their desire to develop the park for tourism, as well as their "concern" for dwindling wildlife of the Kalahari. However, many others believe the Botswana government was motivated by their very prosperous partnership with diamond giant DeBeers, and the funds generated by granting mining concessions to companies like BHP Billiton. The CKGR is currently being explored for possible mines.
In my estimation, it is more about the Botswana government's arrogance and, frankly, an embarrassment over a culture they considered to be "backward" and "ignorant". The President of Botswana has been quoted as saying that if the Bushmen do not assimilate, they will "perish like the dodo".
The controversial resettlement of the 1990s, propagandized as a way to bring the San into the future, has brought them even closer to extinction. Twelve percent of the initial 150 or so applicants have died. To make matters worse, the government built cattle fences around the park, which cut off natural migration routes and water for the animal population, and now the percentage of animals inside the park is down to five percent of levels from 30 years ago.
I believe the Botswana government is inherently a good government. They want to do the right things for their citizens, provide them with education, and healthcare (despite having one of the highest rates of AIDS in Africa, nearly 1 in 3).
But the price they are willing to pay may be too high. Perhaps instead of pushing the indigenous populations within their borders aside, they should consider working together to provide solutions for the country.
My interest in and passion for learning about indigenous cultures began as a child. I began working with them in 1998 after a trip to Ecuador and formed my first non-profit, Journey to the Heart (JTTH) in 1999. I co-founded a second in 2004 to address land rights' issues. The Indigenous Land Rights Fund (ILRF) was one of the organizations, as well as JTTH, that supported the San's fight. We brought a small group from Botswana and South Africa to the US in 2004 lobbying the UN, the World Bank and International Finance Corporation, the Human Rights Caucus, and several Senators. We also worked with Artists for Amnesty and Native American tribes in the Southwest.
My background is not in fact in advocacy work or mediation, but rather marketing and promotion in the music industry. I remember having a conversation with Rodolfo Stavehagen, a special rapporteur with the UN about how my previous experience in the music business helped me in my advocacy work. Oddly enough, I explained, it was pretty similar. It is all about relationships. Yes, you need the background and knowledge, but you need to know who to go to get things done. It illustrated to me that yes, one person can make a difference. It doesn't matter whether you have a college degree (I don't). It doesn't matter whether you have the contacts or even the funding. What does matter is that something or someone touches you in a way that you know, if you don't do something, you will be haunted for the rest of your life.
What motivates me to continue to work in this area, even through some extraordinarily difficult personal financial times, is the wisdom and compassion that are inherent to indigenous cultures. Their willingness to share whatever they have with anyone who asks. It is also my personal belief that if we are willing to listen, they have much to teach us. They understand the fragility of our planet and the delicate balance we must maintain if we are to continue to live as a global community.
Our seemingly never-ending need for natural resources, our greed over open space, and our ignorance of the consequences if we continue to allow global warming to grow unchecked, are mysteries to them. Without fail, they weigh what impact their actions will have on future generations, and consult their ancestors on the best way forward
The San's situation is one more example of the attempt to force change on communities without taking into account those very communities' best interests. Oddly enough, even though they were sitting on country's most valuable resource, diamonds, the San never said they didn't want mining to happen. They understand it supports their country and its citizens. Perhaps even better than the government, the San understand that development is not only inevitable, but desirable. The difference is that the San, like other indigenous communities, know that you cannot sustain a future without honoring the past.