Nagore Eceiza denounces in ‘Zona Wao’ the violence against indigenous women due to the “oil colonization” of the Amazon

Director Nagore Eceiza denounces in her new short documentary ‘Zona Wao’ that the activity of oil companies in Ecuador is generating new forms of violence against indigenous women, since they are victims of abuse or sexual diseases due to the high consumption of alcohol or prostitution by men.

“The colonization of the oil companies has led to a gender gap between indigenous men and women, since the oil company jobs are for men and they have to do the land work,” said the filmmaker in an interview with Europa Press. The short film is up for nomination for the Goya Awards on February 28 and can be seen at a press screening at the Film Academy in Madrid next Monday, December 15.

This gender gap and colonization, according to the filmmaker, has firstly changed the way of socializing that these communities have had “since ancient times” and secondly the needs of men. “The oil companies themselves have created needs for them, such as alcohol or prostitution. And all of this directly affects women with abuse at home and even with illnesses,” she denounced.

Likewise, this colonization is evident in education and health, since Eceiza assures that it is the oil companies themselves who assign professionals to the area. “Maybe they are not the best at diagnosing certain diseases,” suggests the director.

In terms of education, he states that there are no teachers who teach classes in Guaraní, the language of the indigenous communities, which is why he warns that their ancestral culture “is also at risk.”

The documentary ‘Zona Wao’ arose from a “very shocking” photograph in which a protruding artificial grass soccer field was seen in the middle of the jungle, and which was the result of “compensation” for the pollution suffered by the rivers, says Eceiza. “They were proposed to build a sewage plant or a soccer field and the community chose the latter,” he laments.

The filmmaker has indicated that during the filming of the documentary they suffered “pressure” from the oil companies, which expelled them from the perimeter of one of the companies when they used a drone to record. “We launched a drone without being able to enter the perimeter of the PetroEcuador oil company and when they found out, they contacted the community leader and kicked us out. They were not happy that we were telling what was happening there,” he recalled.

Finally, Eceiza calls on Spanish consumers to be “aware” of the practices that are being developed on the other side of the planet by the companies that provide them with services. “The idea of ​​sustainability and eco and the green label does not give you the sense of ecology that companies try to give us. What really creates balance in the world is that we are consistent with our consumption and that we do not go overboard,” he concludes.