The Arhuaco (also known as the Ika) live on the south side of the Sierra. Their neighbours the Arsarios (or Malayo or Wiwa) live on the east, and a third Indian people, the Kogi, live on the north. Together they total at least 20,000. The ‘black line’ which defines the Indians’ homeland stretches invisibly around the mountains and incorporates some hot, lowland areas and a few stretches of seashore. The black line also links several sacred sites.
All three tribes are characterised by a complex spirituality and distinctive clothes and houses. Their basic foodstuffs are maize, manioc, plantains, and a variety of fruits. The Spanish invaders introduced coffee, sugar cane, wheat and some cattle.
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| Arhuaco man, Colombia.
© Survival |
Pigs are also kept. The Sierra Indians call themselves ‘the older brothers’, and believe that they have a mystical wisdom and understanding which surpasses that of others. They refer to other peoples as ‘the younger brothers.’ Unlike the Kogi and Arsarios, Arhuaco men wear a conical white hat, which symbolizes the snowy peaks of the Sierra.
The Arhuaco have been at the forefront of the movement for Indian rights in Colombia. In 1982 they expelled Capuchin missionaries, who had had a presence in the Sierra since 1693. Since the 1980s the lower slopes of the Sierra have been occupied by colonists growing marijuana and coca for the drug trade, and the mountain has become a battleground between the army, left-wing guerrillas and paramilitary armies.
Despite the Indians’ peaceful nature, they have frequently been caught in the crossfire, and many Indians have been killed in the quasi-civil war raging on their land. In February 2004 an Arsario village was bombarded for several days by the Colombian army, forcing the inhabitants to flee.
Survival International has supported the Sierra Indians’ land claims since 1974, and conducted numerous campaigns against the violence and conflict that wrack the Sierra. In 1993 two Arhuaco representatives came to Spain and Britain as guests of Survival International to raise awareness of the murder of three important Arhuaco leaders. Survival has also published a colour report on the Arhuaco, ‘Guardians of the Sacred Land’, available from the bookshop. Survival’s campaign for their rights continues.
