Return to the CONAIE home pageThe following definitions were established in the fifth congress of CONAIE in December of 1996 and further developed during 1997, in order to clarify the political declaration, political views and the political project of CONAIE.
POLITICAL PROJECT: The set of principals, ideas, objectives and ambitions that are designed in order to increase the well-being of the whole society. Also includes the concrete steps that need to be taken in order to make the objectives come about.
POLITICAL DECLARATION: The act of spreading out information about fundamental policies and ideology on both national and international level.
INDIGENOUS NATIONALITIES: Indigenous nationalities have the same origin, historical background and each of them their own language. In Ecuador exist the following nationalities:
QUICHUA, SHUAR-ACHUAR, CHACHI, TSACHI, SIONA-SECOYA, HUAORANI, COFÁN, AWA, EPERA.
Indigenous nationalities have a right to their own way of governing on economical, social and political level in their territories.
AFROECUADORIAN NATIONALITY: The people with African origin who settled (or were forced to settle) during the colonialistic invasion in the provinces of Imbabura and Esmeraldas.
HISPANIC-ECUADORIAN NATIONALITY: The people whose ancestors where Spanish colonialists. In this nationality also belong the people who have ancestors both in Spanish and Indigenous nationalities. This nationality speaks Spanish, and has its own juridical, political and administrative system.
PLURINATIONAL SOCIETY: A plurinational state is formed when the different nationalities agree on the same constitution and same governing. The plurinational society has to be distingueshed from the present system of Ecuador, in which the form of governing and the constitution are formed by only the dominating class.
PLURINATIONAL GOVERNING: Governing that supports the direct participation of all the different nationalities and social groups. Plurinacional governing also is in favour of decentralization.
COMMUNITARIANISM: The Indigenous nationalities have always practiced a communitarian way of living that is based on solidarity and equality. A communitarian society expects an active involvement from all of its members.
PLURINATIONAL DEMOCRACY: Means the permanent participation of all the people and nationalities in the political and administrative decisionmaking.
PROPERTY OF THE PLURINATIONAL SOCIETY: All resources that belong only to the state. For example the strategic recourses like petroleum, electricity and telecommunication.
THE INDIGENOUS RIGHT (DERECHO INDÍGENA): The set of norms and laws that defend and administrate the land and territory of the Indigenous nationalities, in order to maintain peace and order in the Indigenous communities. The Indigenous right also strengthens the national unity.
UNINATIONAL STATE: The economical, political and military sectors are controlled only by the dominating class, that has excluded the Indigenous nationalities from the political decision-making both on national and international level.