The Kichwa leader from Sarayaku, Ecuador, and former president of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA), spoke at the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime in Vienna, Austria. There, she warned of the spread of illicit economies in indigenous territories and called on states to recognize the role of indigenous peoples in protecting the Amazon.
Security in the Amazon requires recognizing the rights, ancestral knowledge, and leadership of indigenous peoples. This was the central message of Patricia Gualinga Montalvo, a member of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII), during her address at the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC), held in Vienna, Austria.
As a Kichwa woman from the town of Sarayaku in the Ecuadorian Amazon, Gualinga participated as part of a delegation of indigenous Amazonian representatives, with the aim of conveying her peoples’ concerns and recommendations regarding the growth of illicit economies and organized crime in their territories.
“There will be no security in the Amazon or in any indigenous territory without the indigenous peoples,” she stated at the conclusion of her remarks, in which she emphasized that indigenous communities are not merely victims of the threats affecting the region, but also key actors in the conservation of biodiversity and the defense of life.
Illicit economies threaten indigenous lives and territories
During his remarks, Gualinga explained how activities such as illegal mining, drug trafficking, illegal logging, and human trafficking have spread across various indigenous territories, causing serious environmental, social, and cultural consequences.
She warned that these activities do not operate in isolation but rather share routes, financial resources, and structures of violence. In certain areas, criminal groups impose their rules, extort communities, and recruit young people, while mercury pollution affects rivers, food supplies, and the health of local populations.
The leader also noted that illegal mining contributes to deforestation, the contamination of water sources, and various forms of human exploitation, including human trafficking for sexual exploitation and slavery.
These dynamics undermine communities’ livelihoods, cause displacement, and threaten the continuity of their cultural and spiritual practices. Furthermore, those who defend these territories face increasingly greater risks.
In this context, Gualinga recalled that, according to data presented in her remarks, at least 296 human rights defenders were murdered in the Amazon between 2014 and 2022. She also emphasized the disproportionate impact of this violence on Indigenous women, who face specific risks in territories affected by illicit economies.
Indigenous Peoples: Key Players in Protecting the Amazon
Against this backdrop, Patricia Gualinga highlighted that indigenous peoples have protected their territories for thousands of years thanks to their ancestral knowledge, their own governance systems, and their relationship with Mother Earth.
Indigenous guards, community monitoring systems, and indigenous institutions are essential tools for caring for ecosystems and defending collective rights.
From this perspective, the protection of the Amazon cannot be limited to security strategies focused exclusively on combating criminal organizations. It also requires strengthening communities’ capacities, respecting their forms of organization, and ensuring conditions that allow them to exercise their territorial rights free from threats or violence.
“Solutions will be more effective and sustainable if they incorporate the rights, knowledge, and institutions of indigenous peoples,” said the representative of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
Her remarks highlighted the need for States to recognize the role of indigenous authorities and guarantee their full and effective participation in decisions affecting their territories.
A Call to States and the United Nations System
Within the framework of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, Gualinga urged States parties to incorporate the recommendations of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues into their deliberations and responses to organized crime.
Among the main demands, he highlighted the recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples, the protection of leaders and territorial defenders, the fight against impunity, and the guarantee of effective mechanisms for indigenous participation.
He also reported that the Permanent Forum is preparing a study on illicit economies and organized crime in the territories of indigenous peoples, which is scheduled to be presented in 2027. This study aims to contribute to the analysis of an issue that affects indigenous communities in different regions of the world and to provide insights for strengthening institutional responses.
The participation of indigenous representatives in these international forums is essential to ensure that security and cooperation policies respond to the realities of these territories and do not exacerbate the vulnerabilities of their inhabitants.
Defending Indigenous Peoples Means Defending Life in the Amazon
Patricia Gualinga’s statement poses a challenge that calls upon both states and the international community: to recognize that the security of the Amazon is closely linked to guaranteeing the rights of the peoples who inhabit and protect it.
For the Church with an Amazonian face, this call also invites us to reaffirm our commitment to the defense of life, the dignity of Indigenous peoples, and the care of our Common Home. Listening to their voices, standing in solidarity with their struggles, and promoting their effective participation are essential paths toward building an Amazon where justice, peace, and respect for diversity are a reality.
The protection of this territory—which is fundamental to the planet’s ecological balance—requires comprehensive responses that combat illicit economies, protect those who defend the rainforest, and strengthen the communities that have historically cared for its ecosystems.
As Patricia Gualinga reminded the international delegations, there will be no security in the Amazon without indigenous peoples, because defending their territories also means defending life, human dignity, and the future of all humanity.