Per la Pau / Peace in Progress

In a ruling made public on July 25, 2012, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights found the Ecuadorean state responsible for violating the Kichwa de Sarayaku community's right to be consulted and their community property rights, as well as their right to life and to judicial protection, among others. The Court noted the deep cultural, immaterial and spiritual ties the Sarayaku people maintain with their territory; the intimate relationship between the "living jungle" and its inhabitants. It is not limited to ensuring a livelihood; it forms part of their view of the world and their identity. This favorable ruling for the Sarayaku is the fruit of almost nine years of struggle.