Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador

The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Spanish: La Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador) or more commonly, CONAIE, is Ecuador's largest indigenous organization. Formed in 1986, CONAIE has pursued social change on behalf of the region's significant native population using a wide range tactics including direct action. CONAIE is most well known for its organization of popular uprisings ("levantamientos populares") that often include blockading of commercial arteries and the takeover of government buildings.

Overview

CONAIE's political agenda includes the strengthening of a positive indigenous identity, recuperation of land rights, environmental sustainability, opposition to neoliberalism and rejection of U.S. military involvement in South America (for example Plan Colombia).

In 2013 CONAIE became more involved in discussions with other indigenous organizations surrounding land rights and environmental sustainability due to deals made by the government with large multinational oil companies. These deals primarily take place in the Amazon basin (but also in many other regions across Latin America) and would take over much of the indigenous land that is currently inhabited. These deals have been a topic of much debate for many years between the government, the indigenous peoples, and the oil companies.Chevron - formerly Texaco - is a major oil company which has had a presence in Ecuador and recently Chevron has come in to many Ecuadorian headlines regarding drilling rights that they have been attempting to receive. CONAIE has taken a stance against Chevron and the act of drilling on indigenous land.