C0VID-19 Daily News Digest – June 24, 2020
Peru indigenous leaders push quick Amazon protection vote, defying oil industry
“Until now, high risk extractive activities have been allowed in these territories,” Jorge Pérez, president of the Regional Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the Amazon, told Reuters in a statement.
“This reform will guarantee the lives and human rights of the Uncontacted Peoples,” Perez said, referring to an estimated 7,000 people in some 20 groups in the Peruvian Amazon who have very little or no interaction with the outside world.
Using photography and indigenous art to help Amazon communities during COVID
COVID-19 has reached all corners of the Amazon, no less so than in Peru and with the communities we work with. Again, the situation varies per community, depending on their geographical location and their connection / relationship to the cities. For example, the Shipibo-Konibo are one of the most populous ethnics in the Peruvian Amazon. Having been severely affected by the pandemic, be it their population in the city of Pucallpa or in the more remote communities along the Ucayali river, the high infection rates and many deaths have become a harsh reality. Some Shipibo-Konibo villages have reported infection rates of over 80% and they are still fighting the outbreak.
How the pandemic has impacted traditional Indigenous practices
“This is a first-time thing and it’s our way of responding to what’s going in society right now,” McIvor said.
“Based with the COVID-19 restrictions, this is the only way we could really do a quote-unqoute gathering or get out and reach out to the community and be in the community.”
https://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/how-the-pandemic-has-impacted-traditional-indigenous-practices-1.4995869
First Nation praises BC Ferries’ ‘phenomenal’ grocery delivery service to community
Klemtu and Bella Bella are accessible only by water or boat. Residents often use the ferry service to get their groceries from Port Hardy. The idea — proposed by a BC ferries employee from Prince Rupert — was a welcome relief for these remote central coast communities after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Residents could order their groceries online from the Port Hardy Save on Foods and BC Ferries would deliver it to the terminals at Bella Bella and Klemtu
In this indigenous village, two nurses care for hundreds of Covid-19 patients
It’s not just the deep Amazon that’s in trouble — the entire Ucayali region has been hard-hit by the coronavirus. At Pucallpa’s main hospital, workers have had to clear away bodies of people who died outside the doors. Inside, there are not enough staff to care for the sick.
“It’s been very hard to see people dying,” said Dr. Ricardo Muñante, head of the Covid Ward at Pucallpa Hospital. “To see people asking for help and not being able to do anything.”
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/23/americas/peru-coronavirus-caimito-nurse-intl/index.html.
Indspire Provides Record Funding For First Nations, Inuit and Métis Students Across Canada
“We have a responsibility as a society and a country,” says Jamieson, “to ensure all our students have what they need to follow their dreams and make the most of future opportunities. With the added stress of COVID-19, First Nations, Inuit and Metis students need help now more than ever. Their success will make our country stronger, more innovative and inclusive and better able to thrive in this changing world.”
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/4720879#ixzz6QIR5cleX
Indigenous women’s group wants RCMP action to end ‘needless deaths’
“We, as Indigenous women, did not need to read the recent spate of tragic news to understand the tragic outcomes that can occur when our people have encounters with law enforcement in this country,” Whitman writes.
“But we ask that you use this moment to begin taking the steps necessary to prevent further lives from being lost.”
The association also wants the RCMP and other Canadian police forces to join in forming a task force to rewrite the relationship between police and Indigenous women.
How an Environmental Justice Documentary Is Building Solidarity in the Midst of the Racial and Health Crisis
As we work to prevent the spread of COVID-19, environmental racism is presenting a deadly parallel threat for Indigenous peoples across North and South America, who continue to defend the lands and waters, protecting their communities from extraction and the pandemic. Meanwhile, the climate crisis has not paused as we battle racialized violence and COVID-19. On the contrary, as countries ease restrictions, emissions levels have rebounded to just 5% lower than last year at this time, and experts warn that we could be facing increased emissions by year’s end. Meanwhile those at the front lines of the struggle for climate justice are battling disproportionately high rates of infection from Covid-19 while facing heightened risks of violence and illness from the extractive industries.
Indigenous artist chosen to paint mural at Edmonton’s IKEA store
Lance Cardinal is currently working on a 40-foot-long (12-metre) mural that represents the Seven Grandfather Teachings: respect, honesty, truth, humility, courage, wisdom and love.
“These are such important teachings that we hold dear and that is the First Nations community, the Inuit community and the Metis community from the west coast to the east coast,” Cardinal explained.
At least 15 people killed, with several set on fire, in indigenous village in southern Mexico after they were intercepted by their attackers at COVID-19 checkpoint
Local media outlets reported the victims were traveling to a meeting in Huazantlán del Río when they were stopped at a COVID-19 road screening site. They noticed that the road ahead was covered with burning tires before a group of masked attackers opened fire.
‘Water Is A Keystone Upon Which Prosperity Rests,’ Says First Nation Chief
“It will put Indigenous communities in control of one of the most basic needs, and give us the freedom to stop worrying about the safety of our water, and it will allow us to create our own path and our own destiny in a way that simply wasn’t possible before,” he added. “I am hopeful that what today means for our communities is access to clean drinking water, wastewater that will result in healthier outcomes for all our people.”
SFU’s Honouring Feast for Indigenous grads goes virtual
Post-COVID-19, we had to shift gears quickly. It’s remarkable how this event was organised in a condensed time frame of less than two months.”
The Honouring Ceremony celebrated 143 Indigenous graduands, including 91 undergraduate students, 53 graduate students—including 18 MBAs—and 30 First Nations Language Program graduates (16 diplomas in First Nations Language Proficiency and 14 certificates in First Nations Language Proficiency).
Pandemic Profiteering: How Mining Companies Seek to Benefit from COVID-19
After analyzing hundreds of examples of wrongdoing by mining companies, we started to see four major trends emerging:
- Mining companies are ignoring the threat of the pandemic and continuing to operate, putting communities and workers at grave risk of infection;
- Governments and mining companies are using the pretext of a lockdown to exacerbate violence against defenders and repress community protests, in order to make way for more mining;
- Mining companies have been donating money, sanitary supplies and test-kits in an attempt to distract from their track record of harm and portray themselves as public saviours; and
- Governments and politicians are securing regulatory changes to eliminate public oversight for existing mines and expedite permits for new operations.
Indigenous-led conservation, natural law and a different future
“Indigenous Peoples around the world are still arguably the closest to an understanding of what place-based connection feels like and how to respect it, and what structures allow us to live within a sustainable model,” Atleo said. “It is my mission in life to bring people into that space, to understand how we connect to the natural world.”
Alberta environmental reporting and testing suspended due to COVID-19 to resume July 15
“Now that the public health emergency is no longer in effect and Alberta is reopening as part of our Phase 2 relaunch, industry can resume business while keeping communities and employees safe.”
Throughout May, the AER released a series of decisions that suspended some reporting requirements that it considered low risk for oilsands projects, in situ and conventional oil and gas operations.
Simulations help reduce the effects of a second wave of COVID-19
Herd immunity can only happen in a safe and ethical way if a vaccine is discovered and a high proportion of the population is inoculated. Unless a vaccine is discovered, we can only deal with the pandemic through behaviour: physical distancing, the use of masks, cough and sneeze etiquette and extensive hand-washing
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-06-simulations-effects-covid-.html
COVID-19 is Worsening Food Insecurity in Nunavut
COVID-19 has resulted in mass layoffs, furloughs, and hiring freezes across Canada, contributing to a rising unemployment rate and demand for government income support. This has left many Canadians with significantly reduced incomes and increasingly precarious situations. This means higher risk of falling into food insecurity, as food insecurity is strongly tied to poverty. However, specific communities are much more at risk due to pre-existing challenges with food security, which are now being compounded by the economic and logistical challenges posed by the pandemic. One study published by the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that nearly 46% of households in Nunavut, a territory in which 84.7% of the population identifies as Inuit, were living with food insecurity in 2019.
Elder Carole Dawson, champion of Indigenous health, dies from COVID-19 in Vancouver
“She was deeply loved and trusted by our people … She was a powerhouse of knowledge with respect to our community and our leadership,” he said.
“With Carole’s passing, we honour her immense work to improve the health outcomes of Indigenous peoples, and we pledge to continue her work in overcoming the challenges to comprehensive, culturally appropriate Indigenous health care,” it said.