DECLARATION OF RESPECT FOR THE INDIGENOUS CULTURES AND NATIONS OF THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

"When We Signed the Peace" is a faithful and rigorous account of the adventure that led us, as Spanish Representativeso of the Quincentennial, to sign the peace between the Kingdom of Spain, (a peace signed without this Kingdom being fully aware of it), and the Indigenous Nations of the Americas, in 1992, in the now impossible setting of the Windows of the World floor, at the top of the Twin Towers in New York. Scanned document at the end of post.

On October 12, 1992, the New York Times published an editorial picked up in Europe by the International Herald Tribune, which welcomed the Spanish position, declaring that "we did not want to celebrate anything and considered our declaration of respect and recognition a milestone." 

Full story in the book of essays and stories: "La Vez que Firmamos la Paz". Ref. in English. When Spain signed a peace with the indigenous nations  Atalayar. 

The Spain ’92 Foundation, representing Spain’s North American Quincentenary program, issues on this day of October 12^th, 1992, the following

DECLARATION OF RESPECT

FOR THE INDIGENOUS CULTURES AND NATIONS

OF THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

 Recognizing that the Americas have been inhabited since time immemorial by numerous indigenous or Native peoples, with a diversity of rich and highly complex cultures;

Recognizing that the Native peoples of the Americas have suffered and continue to suffer from the legacy of the European conquest, colonization, and settlement of their lands; that their religion have been attacked as “pagan” and their socioeconomic and cultural systems have been called “backward”; that their lands have been taken; that their current living conditions place them among the poorest and most dispossessed sectors of society; and that in many areas, Native Americans still face the threat of violence;

Recognizing nevertheless that many Indian communities, clans and nations have shown remarkable perseverance and tenacity in surviving the consequences, both deliberate and unintentional, of the encounter, and that enclaves of population and culture have endured, in some countries as majorities of the national population and in others as minorities, and that all have developed vital traditions and perspectives;

 Recognizing that unbalanced, narrow, and, at times, even self-serving historical interpretation have frequently distorted the educational landscape, with the histories written of the conquest and subsequent five hundred years often dismissing the role of the Native peoples and cultures, when in fact Native American peoples played an integral role in the creation of the new civilizations of the Americas and the development of the modern world;

Recognizing that the Quincentennial must involve appreciation of other views, and that intolerance keeps us from learning the valuable lessons different cultures have to offer, as cultural diversity is an essential aspect of the world’s patrimony;

 Recognizing that a crucial part of the modern world’s foods and pharmaceuticals were developed by Native Americans, and that, in addition, important forms of representative democracy were introduced by the Iroquois and Algonquin confederacies, and, perhaps most important of all, that the modern world’s nascent ethic of conservation and ecological thinking has greatly benefited and could yet find such guidance in Native American ecological traditions;

 Recognizing the need to make October 12^th a day of respect for Native Americans which can bring the fore such issues as protecting the environment and guaranteeing the sanctity of American Indian religious freedoms and sacred sites;

 Recognizing the wisdom of Native concepts like reverence for Mother Earth and making decisions with a view to the seventh generation, and that the philosophies and ethics of Native cultures lead the way to a profound understanding of and appreciation for the natural world;

 Recognizing the importance of building on such initiatives as the 1989 Guatemala Declaration in defense of Native rights, the establishment of the Fondo Indígena at the Inter-American Development Bank, and the coming 1993 United Nations Year of Indigenous Peoples;

 Recognizing these an all the other pressing concerns facing Native peoples in the Americas, the Spain ’92 Foundation reiterates King Juan Carlos’s appeal to “enhance the decisive contribution of the Native American philosophy to the western world” and, guided by true feelings of amity and good will, declares that on this occasion of the 500^th anniversary of our first encounter with the American Indigenous peoples, we hereby issue

A PLEDGE OF RESPECT

FOR THE INDIGENOUS CULTURES AND NATIONS

OF THE AMERICAS,

GRAND CONTRIBUTORS TO MODERN CIVILIZATION,

WHOSE CONTINUED EXISTENCE PROVIDES HOPE THAT OUR

COMMON HUMANITY WILL FIND WAYS TO LIVE IN HARMONY WITH OUR MOTHER EARTH.

In this spirit shall our mutual contacts and mutual endeavors from this day forward be pursued

   Rafael Mazarrasa Martín-Artajo

President, Spain ’92 Foundation

IN THE PRESENCE OF THE FOLLOWING SIGNATARIES:

-         Chief Jacob Swamp, Wolf Clan, Mohawk Nation, League of the Haudenosaunee

-         Rosemary Richmond, Mohawk, American Indian Community House and the Native American Council of NYC

-         Tonya Gonnella Frichner, Esq., Onondaga

American Indian Law Alliance and the Native American Council of NYC

-         Alex Ewen, Purepecha, Solidarity Foundation and the Native American Council of NYC           

-         Susan Shown Harjo, Cheyenne, 1992 Alliance/Morning Foundation

-         José Barreiro, Nación Taino, Akwe: Kon Press and Cornell University American Indian Program

-         Simon Brascoupé, Mohawk/Algonquin, Artist and Professor

-         Mac Chapin, Cultural Survival, Inc

-         Gail Chehak, Klamath, Morning Foundation

-         Katsi Cook, Mohawk, Midwife and Community Health Researcher

-         Tony Del Plato, Akwe: Kon Press 1992 Speakers Campaign

-         Susan Dixon, Ph.d, Akwe: Kon Press

-         Billy Frank, Jr., Misqually Tribal Leader and Chairman of the Northwest Fish and Wildlife Commission

-         Elsa Guevara, Bolivian Quechua Community Leader

-         José Tono Martinez, Encounters Magazine

-         John Mohawk, Seneca, Historian, Lecturer and Writer

-         Víctor Montejo, Jacalteco Mayan from Guatemala, Author and Fellow oat SUNY-Binghanton

-         Daniel Sánchez, All-Indian Pueblo Council, Official Representative

-         Harriet Skye, Association on American Indian Affairs

-         Dave Warren, Santa Clara Pueblo, Writer and Lecturer

-         Mildred Wilson de Levy, Miskito Community Leader from Nicaragua