COMUNICADO Nº 3-98

CONVOCATORY

TO GREAT 9th ASSEMBLY OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND ETHNICAL COMMNUNITY OF THE ATLANTIC COAST

TO COMMUNITY LEADERS, INDIGENOUS ORGANIZATIONS, POWERS OF THE STATE, DIPLOMATIC CORPS, INTERNATIONAL ORGANITATIONS AND PEOPLE IN GENERAL

From: COUNCIL OF ELDERS OF THE ATLANTIC COAST

The Council of Elders of the Atlantic Coast, maximum instance of the indigenous peoples on whom rest the authority of convoke to its General Assembly, due to the exigency of the communities of not to continue postergating its celebration, make knowledge to the public opinion both national and international, the following:

• On the basis of compromises acquired by the President of the Republic, Dr. Arnoldo Alemán flunky, in front the organizations participant in the National Dialogue and also the diplomatic body, to support the realization of the 9th Great Assembly of Indigenous Peoples and Ethnical Communities, the Council of Elders has decided to convoke to its Great Assembly of the 20 to 25 of February of irrevocable and umpostegable character.
• We reiterate our demand to Mr. President of the Republic, who is also President of the National Commission of Territorial Demarcation of the indigenous Lands (CNDT), so comply with his compromise to backround support their Great Assembly, now that since the failure mechanisms that the same National Dialogue created for the follow-up and compliance of these agreements.
• The urgency of convocating to this Assembly its is to adopt immediate measures that wil put a stop to the destruction accelerated of the environment, our natural resources and our communitary system, also to touch upon themes related to territorial demarcatioón, laws that should rule indigenous communities and their ecological [soursurding] environment, creating the bases for its true development.
• To this event are invited to the President of the Republic, and expresident Mrs. Violet Barrios de Chamorro, representatives of the powers of the State, to the diplomatic corps, to the international organitations, notables personalities, indigenous, social and political organizations, hte political parties that are participating in the present local election and delegates from the communities so that all we together share an only criterion in safeguarding the forests, the environment and the natural richies [wealth], that are all of us patrimony.
• Our hope in that great effort culminates in an ample proposal and of the same time serves to establish a regional agenda of Emergency so that all this may be asumed as a national compromise that strenghtens the development of the nation.
• The out-come of this Assembly will contribute to the handling different alternatives of solution to our problematies; wil laydown the bases for a compromise with all the political parties and overcomes the actual electoral apathy.

Bilwi, January 23th, 1998.