By Jiten Yumnam
Introduction:
Capitalism,
in the present stage of global imperialism also manifested in monopoly finance
carried out through banking cartels such as World Bank, ADB, etc, has a negative
impact on the indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples are the most marginalized
section of population within the countries where they are confined and ruled
upon. The indigenous peoples and their land, resources are reduced into source
of surplus value and object of exploitation within the overarching imperialist
globalization. What is crucial for analysis is that there is underdevelopment and
exploitation of indigenous peoples when a country is dependent to the global
imperialism, thereby keeping itself in semi or even an abject colonial
condition, or if it would uphold predominance of capitalist system. Since there
is correlation between capitalist recession and economic crisis, e.g., “global
financial and economic crisis of 2008,” the imperialist crisis severely
affected them through intensified policies of subjugation and underdevelopment.
Let me elaborate it under the following subheadings; (a) imperialist financial
and economic crisis of 2008, and (b) impact on indigenous peoples.
(a) Financial and economic
crisis of 2008
Financial
crisis of the capitalists, which is dominantly measured in terms of the
comparative decline of GDP rate of their respective countries, currency value
of those countries and their gold reserves in the stock exchange, have been
generally identified with economic crisis. But the global economic crisis in
the age of imperialism is largely the syndrome of capitalist recession and
exhaustion of resources. The “financial and economic crisis of 2008” that originates
in USA, considered as the epicenter of the global financial system, has
widespread economic impact on several countries since most of these countries
are subjected to structural constraints under finance imperialism.
The
USA syndrome would reveal that the immediate cause of the 2008 financial crisis
was the collapse of the sub-prime mortgage markets in the US. Other factors
includes complex processes - the expansionary monetary policies in major
financial centers; developments in the sub-prime mortgage markets of US;
extensive use of securitization, complex derivative instruments and shadow
banking system; excessive leverage in the financial system; poor assessment of
risk in the financial system; lax regulation and supervision by public bodies
arising from belief in efficient markets; and global macroeconomic imbalances.
Some say the crisis is related to the high oil price in 2008, which reach
nearly 150 USD a barrel. The crisis has
exposed fundamental problems, not only in regulatory systems of established
countries affecting finance, competition, and corporate governance, but also in
the international institutions and arrangements that were created in the name
of ensuring financial and economic stability.
(b) Impact on indigenous
peoples:
Indigenous
peoples, whose livelihood and way of life still revolves around the traditional
occupation, swiden farming, hunting, gathering of forest products, fishing etc.,
which used to be far more sustainable and self sufficient with low carbon foot
prints, has been trying hard to find direct and indirect impacts of the
economic crisis primarily due to lack of understanding due to their remote
locations and the complexity of the global financial system. Yet, there are
impacts of the crisis related to increased cost of goods and services, low
demand & or price of their food and cash crop, and lesser work or job
opportunities and also adverse affects
associated with loss of Land and natural resources for development projects. The
impacts among indigenous peoples differ from one situation to another,
depending on how the communities and the respective country where they live in
is integrated to the market-based global economy, the capitalist system. Crisis or not, Indigenous peoples have long
been confronting a survival crisis, due to non-recognition of their way of
life, their right to define, control and manage their own developmental affairs
in their own land, expropriation of their land and resources without their
consent and state subjugations with militarization.
IFI intrusion: The ne-liberal measures
adopted by the imperialists to deal with the financial crisis had negative
implication on the economic condition of the peoples who are not the direct
stakeholders of the imperialists grabs. This is primarily evident in the ever
increasing intrusion of international Financial Institutions to promote market
oriented investments. For instance, in the aftermath of the crisis, the World
Bank has committed a record $88 billion in loans, grants, equity investments,
and guarantees. In the post-crisis period countries that promote capitalism
have approached International Monetary Fund for financial assistance. Several
steps have been taken to expand the IMF’s financial resources. At the G20
London Summit in April 2009, capitalist representatives agreed that the New
Arrangements to Borrow (NAB) should be increased to $550 billion from the
current $50 billion in order to strengthen IMF’s capacity to respond in the
event of a crisis.
The
unprecedented involvement and role of the IFI in India’s North East has seen
unprecedented expropriation of land and brutal suppression of those who assert
for land and other democratic rights. Indian capital expansionism under the
cover of the jargon ‘Look East Policy’ is in reality an attempt to strengthen
Indian comprador control over the markets in Southeast Asia. The subsequent
investments in the tertiary construction sub-sectors, such as the Trans Asian
Highway, the Trans Asian Railways, and military stations, which are meant for
expanding neo-liberal trade system, would perpetuate further exposure of the
region to the imperialist globalization. All these projects are being carried
out through false propaganda, suppression, and without Free Prior and Informed
Consent of the people to be affected by such projects. The profit seeking
capitalist investors, in their scramble for super-profit have caused
unrestrained environmental destruction, displacement, divide & rule and
other forms of human rights violation in Manipur and other parts of India’s Northeast.
This process of deepening the role of IFI in the aftermath of the economic
crisis cannot be a solution to the imperialist financial crisis. On the
contrary it will deepen the global crisis, as the IFI’s involvement has already
led to destruction of indigenous peoples land and resources, thereby, having
negative repercussion on their identity and human rights.
Even
during the crisis, we have seen companies receiving financial stimulus from
Governments in developed world, such as General Motors expanding its sales
operations during the crisis even in far flung areas, simultaneously with
expansion for search for oil and other resources for exploitation.
Intensification of
extractive industries and related displacement: In order to recover from the financial
crisis, multinational companies are being funded by the international financial
institutions and nationalized banks to strengthen extraction and exploitation
of indigenous peoples in the name of development. In order to secure economic
growth of the imperialists, there has been promotion of extractive industries,
mining, oil drilling, destruction of forest, construction of mega dams in
several indigenous territories in India’s North East, Philippines, Bangladesh,
Indonesia, and etc. Mining and oil drilling lease to both foreign and national
companies and also for construction of mega dams is increasing despite the
economic crisis. Some countries which are quite complacent of its ability to
withstand the shock of the financial crisis, such as India and China are more
aggressive in using its nationalized banks to fund such mega projects
targetting indigenous territories.
Food crisis: The financial and economic
crisis interplayed with climate change disasters and adoption of false
solutions created food crisis among peoples who are either forced to export
food at their own costs in order to meet with imperialist trade quota and those
who are dependent upon food aid & subsidies by the food monopolies. The
food crisis has exasperated the extremely difficult situation of indigenous
peoples who were already greatly affected by the unprecedented rise in food and
energy prices. In many indigenous communities, where their food sovereignty has
been destroyed due to non-recognition of their rights, there is increasing
import of food from outside their territory and rise in both food and energy
prices adds further suffering to the already impoverished communities. Statistically
it is being estimated that the current food crisis had pushed roughly 150
million people, which includes many indigenous communities back into
poverty. Indeed, staple foods had seen
double digit cost increases. The year 2008 saw massive rises in the price of
the most basic of necessities – food.
The UN Food and Agriculture
Organization has warned that increasing prices have “triggered a food crisis”
in 36 countries, where several indigenous communities also lived. Again,
according to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), 12 out of the 16 ‘hunger
hotspot countries’ are in the LDCs (Afghanistan, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Guinea,
Haiti, Liberia, Mauritania, Nepal, Senegal, Somalia, Uganda, Yemen). Because
the majority of poor people in LDCs spend 70%-80% of their income on food, they
are very hard hit by the sharp increases in domestic food prices. In 2008-2009
Eritrea has produced only about 30% of its food requirements. The consequences
of the food crisis, which the head of WFP has called ‘a silent tsunami’,
include widespread misery and malnutrition for millions of people.
There are five major drivers of rising global food prices. They are:
(a) long term supply problems; (b) rise in oil prices; (c) Changes in demand
due to bio fuels; (d) depreciation in dollar and low interest rate in the US
and speculative activities; (f) export restrictions of developing countries. The food
crisis shows that the existing agro-industrial and market-led approach to food
security has totally failed to feed hungry people living in LDCs. Promotion of corporate
farming and the introduction of extreme dependence on external food supplies,
lack of productive investments in local agricultural systems, global warming,
trade imbalances and trade liberalization are also to blame for food crisis.
Employment question: Unemployment had soared up
among indigenous peoples in the aftermath of global crisis. It is worth
reminding that several thousands of migrant workers who have been drawn into
labor pool as a direct fallout of imperialist market based economic model and
who were being forced to migrate in search for work are employed in capitalist
enterprises in advanced countries and within urban metropolis within countries of
their confines with high prevalence of high connectivity to capitalist market
and investment. This section of the productive force is the first one to be discriminated
and targeted in job cuts. The IT sector,
construction sectors and others are ones where there are massive job cuts,
which also affect indigenous peoples. Declining exports more so with
agricultural (decline in cash crops sales in Indonesia, tea in Assam, NE India)
and other service sectors, such as tourism (Kenya) etc has led to serious
downfall of income and loss of employment among indigenous peoples. There is
serious decline in the volume of remittances among indigenous migrant workers
in the Americas and in Asia (Philippines). (Saudi Arabia announced on 1 July
not to hire Pinoys as domestic
workers anymore). Such racially twisted discrimination and job cuts had direct
negative impacts on the economic condition of the migrant worker, leading to
their impoverishment.
Deepening climate crisis: The current climate change
crisis is also a glaring example of destruction of ecological balance as a
result of unrestrained exploitation of natural resources by the imperialist.
Indigenous peoples disproportionately suffer from the serious impacts of
climate change because; (a) they are mainly dependent on the integrity with
ecosystems for survival, and (b) they lack material resource and political
compatibility to compete with the exploiting governments who promote finance
intrusion. They also suffer from climate mitigation measures of the governments
which failed to respect their rights. They are the ones who mainly bear the
costs of adapting to climate change. However, despite the proven limitations of
the current market based system, solutions to climate changes, viz, the market
based mitigation measures, such as emissions trading, carbon sinks, renewable
energy systems, and alternative fuels – will lead to further exclusion and
violation of indigenous peoples’ rights and deepening of climate crisis. To
cite a few examples, in several indigenous peoples territories forest and other
water bodies are being increasingly targeted for false climate crisis solutions.
Human rights violations: Imperialism is based on two
interrelated process of exploitation and suppression to maximize capitalist
profit. The economic crisis already has serious economic, social and cultural
impacts upon peoples affected by it. The most burning issue interrelated with
the question of exploitation and suppression is the issue of civil and
political rights. Peoples across the
globe who are affected by and dissatisfied with the structural constraints of
imperialism are raising democratic voices to defend their rights. In Peru and in
Chile, there were demonstrations throughout 2008 on Indigenous People’s rights
and rising living costs. Protests over grain prices in Haiti, Mozambique,
Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mauritania and other parts of Africa and a hungry
children’s march in Yemen are some examples. The response of the concerned
governments to such demands and voices has been characteristically militant and
repressive. For instance, in armed conflict prone Manipur in India’s North
East, rampant human rights violations by government troops under emergency
legislations like the Armed Forces Special Powers’ Act and other forms of
terror tactics has created an emergency situation that is similar to what is
being referred to as War on People in
the areas affected by the Operation Green Hunt in central India. Community
members calling for greater respect of their democratic rights continues to be
targeted. The human rights violations in happening in the context of denial of
indigenous peoples’ right to self determination. Impact of women’s rights due
to development aggression and militarization is another serious challenge.
Indigenous peoples’
perspective on development and way forward
Indigenous
peoples confront a structural policy that is obsessed with capital
expansionism, and which fails to fulfill economic development, social
development, protection of human rights, and ecological stability. Neoliberalism
which enforced unrestrained exploitation of resources as policy towards rapid
economic growth has led to over-exploitation of natural resources belonging to
indigenous peoples. The capitalist onslaught has negative repercussion upon the
indigenous peoples.
The
crisis highlighted that financial markets are inherently unstable and market
failures have huge economic and social costs, while the cost of market failure
has been borne by society. Indigenous peoples needs development that reflects
their own visions, perspectives as well as strategies that respect their
individual and collective rights, which is self determining, sensitive and
relevant to their situation and communities. Indigenous peoples want
development with culture and identity where their rights are no longer
violated, where they are not discriminated and excluded and where their free,
prior and informed consent for all development processes.
To
create more sustainable and people friendly development, it is important to
look into the visions, concepts and practices of indigenous peoples who still
sit in the territories which contain the earth's remaining natural wealth and
who are the bearers of much of what remains of the world's diverse cultures and
languages. The United Nations
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples provides a strong basis from
which indigenous peoples can affirm their rights and define their development
rights and aspirations.
Indigenous peoples’
interpretations of well-being have a several common elements such as:
o Importance of collective economic
actors and community economic institutions
integrity of indigenous governance;
o Purpose of production should not only
be considered in terms of profit but rather in terms of improving quality of
life.
o Enriching the notion of development
where human beings are in harmony with Mother Earth;
o Respecting Self-determination;
o Interaction between people, resources
and the spiritual aspects of life as well as strengthening indigenous peoples’
knowledge institutions.
It is also important to
underscore that Indigenous Peoples are rights holders, with an inextricable
link to their lands, territories and resources which they have traditionally
owned, occupied or otherwise used or acquired, and should not be treated merely
as stakeholders. And end to the
development model premised on unsustainable consumption and production, and
corporate globalization, which fuels the entry of extractive industries onto
their lands is foremost need.
Since
global financial issues affect the lives and livelihoods of vast majority of
people, these cannot be left in the hands of few experts, rich bankers,
financiers, IFIs. Any efforts to find solutions should not lead to further
intrusion into indigenous peoples' territories for resource extraction and
targeting them to a range of violations.
The
crisis cannot and must not be used as an excuse to limit the enjoyment and
progressive realization of these rights. Any unjustified limitations or
retrogressive measures on the level of enjoyment of economic, social and
cultural rights, for example, the removal or restriction of social protection
and welfare would be contrary to internationally recognized human rights
obligations. It is crucial that all States have effective laws and policies in
place to combat all forms of discrimination, including racism.
And
indeed, the crisis provides new impetus to global demands for reforming the
global financial system. The debates on
global financial issues could be broadened by the active participation of all
peoples including indigenous peoples and their representative bodies to ensure
that the global finance serves the needs of the real economy.
REFERENCES
1.Report of the International Expert Group Meeting
on Indigenous Peoples: Development with Culture and Identity Articles 3 and 32
of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, UN Permanent Forum
on Indigenous Issues 9th session, New
York, 19 – 30 April, 2010, E/C.19/2010/14, 5 Feb 2010
2.10th special session of the United Nations Human
Rights Council: "The Impact of the Global Economic and Financial Crises on
the Universal Realization and Effective Enjoyment of Human Rights" –
Friday, 20 February 2009
3.ISSUES PAPER 2009 ECOSOC High-Level Segment
Thematic Debate Dialogue 1 “Social trends and emerging challenges and their
impact on public health: Renewing our commitment to the vulnerable in a time of
crisis” Thursday, 9 July 2009
4.ECONOMIC CRISIS REVEALS DEEPER HUMAN RIGHTS
PROBLEMS, AP, 28 MAY 2009
5.“Indigenous Peoples' Actions Towards Solving the
Biodiversity Crisis”, by Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Chair, UN Permanent Forum on
Indigenous Issues presented at the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity,
UNESCO High-Level Event, Paris, 21-22 January 2010
6.“Insidious Intrusion of International Financial
Institutions in India’s North East”, by Jiten Yumnam and Mr. Ramananda
Wangkheirakpam and published by Forum for Indigenous Perspectives and Action,
Manipur and Intercultural Resources, New Delhi, April 2006
7.DRAFT WORKING PAPER PREPARED FOR UNICEF CONFERENCE EAST ASIA AND THE PACIFIC ISLANDS, 6-7
JANUARY 2009, SINGAPORE
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on Indigenous Peoples: Development with Culture and Identity Articles 3 and 32
of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, UN
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Ninth session, New York, 19 – 30 April, 2010, E/C.19/2010/14, 5 February 2010
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Perspective on Global Financial Reforms, by Kavaljit Singh, published in 2010
by MADHYAM and SOMO
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Crisis on Africa, Working series paper of African Development Bank, 2010
11.Global economic crisis opens up new space for
discrimination at work, ILO Press
Release, 16 May 2009
12.“Social Impact of the Global Financial Crisis in
the Philippines”, ADB, 2010
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and the least developed countries: citizens’ concerns, by Arjun Karki, LDS
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