A historic battle is taking place in Southwest Colombia involving two native tribes that date back hundreds of years.
The conflict has caught eyes around the world for its use of “traditional” weapons among the groups, which included people hurling stones before escalating to more deadly means.
‘Differences should not be resolved through confrontations.’
While there is no consensus on the pre-Hispanic history of the Misak, the tribe of around 21,000 is in a dispute with the Nasa peoples, who also existed before Spanish arrivals and now are believed to have a population of around 240,000.
According to Colombian magazine Revista Sur, members of the Guambía Indigenous Reservation (Misak) and the Pitayó Reservation (Nasa) went to battle for several days over the ownership of an 800-hectare area in Silvia, Colombia, about 10 hours south of Medellin.
The Misaks reportedly believe the land should be theirs by ancestral right and have accused the Nasa of illegally occupying the land for three months.
Videos of the tribal warfare have surfaced online, with one pointing out the use of “traditional weapons” garnering millions of views.
Outlet El Pais also noted that the conflict escalated from what originally consisted of people “using stones and sticks.”
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Soon, the clashes escalated to machetes, firearms, and even explosive devices, according to El Tiempo. Motorcycles and homes were also torched, with Colombian military eventually sent to calm the dispute.
However, AA has since reported six people are dead and more than 100 have been injured in the clash. The region has reportedly been plagued with illegal drug production and past territorial disputes, which have sometimes included forcible detainments of individuals by opposing groups.
Despite what the Misak have claimed, the National Land Authority has sided with the Nasa people, saying in March that the Authority knew there would be tension over the decision.
“There are no ‘defeated towns’ or ‘winning towns,'” the ANT reportedly said. “There are valid colonial titles, formalized reservations, and an institutional duty of the ANT to find solutions that respect agrarian regulations.”
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JOAQUIN SARMIENTO/AFP/Getty Images
Although the ANT included in its ruling that any Misak who lived in the area could not be displaced or “dispossessed,” 500 of the tribe members have been in the Colombian capital of Bogota since mid-May to complain about the government decision.
The Misak people are reportedly seeking guarantees about land they consider to be in their possession.
The Ombudsman’s Office reportedly called for calm and said that “differences should not be resolved through confrontations.”
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