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The primary mission of our non-profit association is to offer assistance to the Matsés
indigenous communities so that this native Amazonian tribe can conserve their
native culture and indigenous lands in a sustainable and autonomous manner. Please
note that the Matsés Movement does not solicit nor accept donations from the public.
Small donations do little to help and can create internal conflicts.
The Matsés Movement
is
distinctive in that it is the first non-profit association whose directors are
entirely from the Matsés tribe itself rather than being controlled by outsiders. In
the past, various
NGOs composed entirely of non-natives acted as self-appointed representatives
for the Matsés tribe with few benefits to the Matsés people. It is our belief
that with education and
experience, the Matsés nation is capable of determining its own future,
independent of the wishes and interests of outsiders. The Matsés Movement is an
association whose members are entirely composed of individuals from the Matsés tribe offering assistance to the Matsés people.
The origins of
the Matsés Movement can be traced to a grass-roots movement by the Matsés people
which originally established this nonprofit association in 2006 as the Movement
in the Amazon for Tribal Subsistence and Economic Sustainability - M.A.T.S.E.S.
To understand how the Matsés Movement came about in the first place, you need to
understand the present situation of the Matsés tribe. There are fourteen
different communities within the Matsés Native Community in the Amazon
Rainforest and living conditions are much the same as they were before the
Matsés tribe made permanent contact with the outside world in 1969. There
are few phones, no public transportation, and almost no governmental projects of any
kind there. Little medical or other aid is being provided by the Peruvian
government. Incredibly, there are hardly any health care professionals
present in the entire indigenous reserve. The only thing that could be
remotely interpreted as significant governmental aid is the presence of teachers whose
salaries are paid by the Peruvian Ministry of Education. There is little
travel by the Matsés outside the reserve. However each year during the
school summer vacation, the teachers are brought to Iquitos by the Ministry of
Education where they take classes on bilingual education. It is from the
teachers that our organization was formed. The Matsés Movement is
truly a grass-roots organization in that the Matsés people themselves formed
this organization through the participation of their teachers.
The Matsés
Movement is a non-profit association situated in the Peruvian Amazon working for the future of the Matsés and other indigenous people
and is independent of the Matsés Native Community.
For more information on indigenous
Amazonians, please visit
Amazon-Indians.org,
Amazon-Tribes.com,
Amazonz.info,
Matses.info, and
Friendsoftheamazon.org. For information on the
indigenous people of the Andes Mountains, please visit
Incatrails.org and
Camino-Inca.info. To learn about Iquitos,
Peru where the Matsés Movement is located, please visit the
Iquitos News.
For additional information on our non-profit association, please call or write:
The Matses Movement
Address: Calle Los Lirios No. 126, Iquitos, Peru
Telephone: (+
51) 965-000650
E-mail :
info@matses.org
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