According to Mindiola, the Juan Manuel Santos administration has granted about 200 mining titles and is assessing over 300 applications, including some for megaprojects, to exploit Sierra Nevada’s mineral resources. He says that not only his people but also other Colombian tribes, university collectives and unions oppose such permitting spree.

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Así se vivió la gran movilización por la defensa del agua y la Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, realizada en #Valledupar y convocada por los indígenas Arhuacos pic.twitter.com/qJrTemqgDv — CUT Colombia (@cutcolombia) November 23, 2017

“We don’t sell our motherland and we think that when it comes to megaprojects, there is no consultation required because they shouldn’t be approved. Mining should be banned on the Sierra Nevada,” he told EFE (in Spanish).

The goal of today’s protest was to reach Valledupar’s town hall. Once there, the Arhuacos presented a series of demands centrered on forbidding any kind of mining in their territories, implementing protection and development programs for local First Nations, and guaranteeing that authorities and private companies adhere to existing laws and decrees regarding Aboriginal rights and environmental defence.