Ecuador

What happens to a democracy when its journalists and artists are too afraid to criticise those in power and express themselves freely?

This is one of the questions we ask Vilma Vargas – a rising talent in the Ecuadorian art scene who was twice selected for the “World Press Cartoon” in Portugal and awarded first prize at RESET 11.11.11 in Mexico for best caricaturist.

Under the current Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa the coerced closures of numerous media stations that do not comply with the new Law of Communication as well as lawsuits seeking millions in damages against journalists, some who have been forced out of work and threatened with imprisonment, physically assaulted and had their family homes raided at gunpoint by government officials have all contributed to what Vargas calls “one of the gravest moments” the free press in her country has ever faced.

This however hasn´t intimidated Vargas into censoring her outspoken style and while other Ecuadorian journalists have become fearful of rocking the boat her caricatures stand out like a Cotopaxi-sized-pimple on President Correa´s chin.

A Woman in a Profession Dominated by Men

Chekhov: When the newspaper El Comercio asked six artists to draw a comic with the theme “If Superheroes lived in Ecuador” you where the only woman selected. Does that mean there are 5 male artists for every female or do you think artists of your gender are often overlooked?

Vilma Vargas: Ecuador is characterized as having several renowned artists, as well as many caricaturists. Unfortunately in the realm of graphic humour there are some women who remain in the shadows and very few who have won a place in the press. But in graphic humour like it is in other areas: women are still relegated to second place.

Also history has always been written by men. In the history of art, there exists several women artists, sculptors, philosophers, between other important women that have also been looked over.

Chekhov: What advice can you give to younge female artists searching for their artistic voice and fighting to be noticed in the world?

Vilma Vargas: I believe that in my country, women and people in general are more worried about how to solve their basic needs than perform some type of art. However people who do choose to have an artistic vocation should know that art is a way of life where you need to embrace risk and to express yourself is the best form of freedom.

Chekhov: Then for art to become a lifestyle you need to focus on it 100% which is one of the reasons you left your career in architecture?

Vilma Vargas: I believe it was more of a necessity. Passions sometimes impose and its necessary to renounce certain areas of your life to focus on creative work. But I haven’t abandoned architecture completely, its just that “art” wont let me abandon it at all.

On Government Attacks Against Freedom of Expression

Chekhov: Do you receive enough from your caricatures published in the newspaper Hoy to support this lifestyle or do you need to find other sources of income?

Vilma Vargas: Like you know, the press is passing through one of its gravest ever moments because of government harassment regarding freedom of expression and that has affected various media outlets, including the newspaper where I work. I live off my drawings, illustrations, and ceramic murals.

Chekhov: One of the major themes to your work is Freedom of Expression, can you tell us the meaning behind drawings of yours like the one of Press Freedom being attacked by bats?

Vilma Vargas: That drawing is based on an engraving by Goya called: “The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters”. – What I wanted it to represent is the press being attacked by various shadows.

The worst part is reality is not like the caricature, if you have a different opinion you will not be disturbed by innocent bats but with the entire weight of the law which almost always responds with the interests of the Government.

Chekhov: What happens to a democracy when journalists fear investigating and criticizing those who are in power?

Vilma Vargas: First there wouldn’t be a democracy, because if not, you wouldn’t be afraid to have an opinion, to criticize others or yourself. The latent risk with these measures and pressures and media laws that infringe on our freedoms is that journalists and news media will start self-censoring, which impairs peoples ability to get information or adequate research on various topics.

The “Legalization” of Attacks Against Journalism

Chekhov: What is the new Law of Communication in Ecuador like and in your caricature who are the people in suits and ties coming out of the Trojan horse?

Vilma Vargas: Even before the implementation of the “Law of Communications” there was some pressure and harassment through various means. Now the only thing its done is “legalize” these practices. In the drawing I represent a law disguised as a gift which is lawful but inside swarm several beings that already have incorporated prohibitions in mind.

Chekhov: Can you tell us about the correlation between what is happening on the national level with respect to the journalists who fear criticizing president Correa and how that has empowered politicians on the municipal level to threaten, harass, and force out of work journalists who are investing municipal corruption like Ignacio Ramos Mancheno?

Vilma Vargas: The problem is that the government only believes in what they say and they put together an entire strategy on the Saturday TV Broadcast Chains to convince us of “their truth”. Thus, it is normal that there are lots of clashes with voices outside of the ruling party.

I don’t know very well the story behind Ignacio’s case, but its clear that like many other people working in the press they have closed the doors on him for not agreeing with the powers that be. Graphic humour is monitored as well, we can already see cases where caricaturists have been mentioned in the Saturday TV Broadcast Chains.

Chekhov: Can you tell us about my favourite caricature, The Zebra Cow, and how social networks helped spread messages like this caricatures and other images from citizen journalists in their fight to unseat and imprison the former mayor Juan Salazar on corruption?

Vilma Vargas: Its been a long time since I touched the themes of my city owing to bad experiences I had with the directors of a certain newspaper that censured my drawings, however given the importance of the issue, I was again expressing my opinion about the city and from that came the drawing of the mayor from which I understand did not offer any grace to his followers.

Chekhov: Recently a lot of your caricatures are focused on President Correas decision to drill inside the Yasuni National Park for oil. Can you tell us your feelings about the Yasuni and if you had the opportunity to visit it when you were painting the mural for the bus terminal at Coca?

Vilma Vargas: In effect, I had the opportunity to paint the Mural of el Coca and see the breathtaking nature we have. The city of Coca is a population that has been generated because of the extraction of petroleum.

Concerning the refusal to conserve the Yasuni is not up to the government to decide, its a decision of the country, its something that concerns us all. With this news the world will realise that we have a government that doesn’t give priority to conserving the natural wonders of Ecuador.

Chekhov: After the journalist Emilio Palacio wrote that President Correa was a dictator he fled to the United States where he received political asylum to escape three years in jail and 4 million dollars in damages. If you continue to draw caricatures of President Correa like the one with three heads that represent the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of government have you thought of the possibility that one day you to might have to leave the country if you wish to continue expressing yourself freely?

Vilma Vargas: To report and make art or say what one thinks always brings risks. To be free and feel differently too.

While my lucidity has permitted me to continue drawing it may sound counter-intuitive, but the worse the country gets, the more work there is for us caricaturists.

Chekhov: You can see more of Vilmas art on her website: http://www.vilma-vargas.com/
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“¿Qué pasa con una democracia cuando los periodistas y artistas tienen miedo de expresar libremente sus críticas a quienes están en el poder?”, es una de las preguntas que hacemos a Vilma Vargas, un talento en ascenso en el mundo del arte ecuatoriano. Fue seleccionada dos veces para el “World Press Cartoon” en Portugal y ganadora en RESET 11.11.11 en México como mejor caricaturista.

Bajo el mandato de Rafael Correa, actual presidente de Ecuador, el incumplimiento de la nueva Ley de Comunicación ha provocado sanciones, e incluso cierres, de algunos medios de comunicación. Además, ha habido demandas millonarias y amenazas contra periodistas, quienes en algunos casos se han visto obligados a abandonar el país. Esta situación ha contribuido a lo que Vilma Vargas señala como el “momento más grave en lo que a libertad de prensa se refiere”.

Sin embargo, esto no ha intimidado a Vargas, que ha continuado con su estilo franco; y mientras muchos caricaturistas ecuatorianos se han vuelto cautos a la hora de publicar sus trabajos, las de Vilma se destacan por su irreverencia.

Una Mujer en una profesión dominada por hombres

Chekhov: Cuando el diario El Comercio pidió a seis artistas dibujar un cómic con el tema “Si los superhéroes vivieran en Ecuador”… usted era la única mujer seleccionada. ¿Significa esto que hay cinco artistas masculinos para cada artista femenina en Ecuador, o cree que los artistas de su género a menudo se pasan por alto?

Vilma Vargas: El Ecuador se caracteriza por tener varios artistas de renombre, así como muchos caricaturistas. Lastimosamente, en el humor gráfico hay algunas mujeres que aún están en la sombra y somos muy pocas quienes nos hemos ganado un lugar en la prensa. Pero en el humor gráfico es como en otras áreas: las mujeres aún están relegadas a un segundo plano.

Además, la historia siempre está escrita por hombres. En la historia del Arte han existido varias mujeres artistas, escultoras y pensadoras; sin embargo, pese a su importancia, se las ha pasado por alto.

Chekhov:¿Qué consejos puede darles a las jóvenes artistas femeninas que buscan su voz artística y que luchan para que el mundo presta atención a su arte?

Vilma Vargas: Creo que en mi país las mujeres y la gente en general está más preocupada en solventar sus necesidades básicas que en realizar algún tipo de arte. Sin embargo, la gente que opta por alguna actividad artística debe saber que el arte es un modo de vida. Y arriesgarse y expresarse es la mejor forma de libertad.

Chekhov: Entonces, para que este se convierta en un modo de vida, hay que enfocarse ciento por ciento al arte. ¿Esta es una de las razones por las que usted dejó su carrera de arquitectura?

Vilma Vargas: Creo que fue una necesidad; las pasiones a veces se imponen y son necesarias ciertas renuncias para enfocarte en el trabajo creativo. Sin embargo, no he dejado del todo la arquitectura, sólo que es el arte quien no me deja que lo abandone…

Acoso Gubernamental Contra la Libertad de Expresión

Chekhov: ¿Con los caricaturas que publica en el periódico Hoy recibe suficiente para mantenerse, o tiene que buscar otras fuentes de ingresos?

Vilma Vargas: Como sabes, la prensa atraviesa uno de los más graves momentos por el acoso gubernamental en cuanto a la libertad de expresión y eso ha afectado a varios medios, incluído el Diario en el que colaboro. Por lo que yo vivo de mis dibujos, ilustraciones, murales en cerámica y también un poco del aire.

Chekhov: La libertad de expresión es uno de los temas más abordados en sus caricaturas. ¿Puede contarnos cuál es la importancia de la libertad de expresión y el significado existente detrás de dibujos como el de la libertad de prensa atacada por murciélagos?

Vilma Vargas: Ese es un dibujo que está basado en un grabado de Goya, que se llama “El sueño de la razón produce monstruos”. Lo que hice fue representar a la prensa acosada por varias sombras.

Lo malo es que la realidad no es como la caricatura; si aquí opinas diferente no te verás perturbado por inocentes murciélagos sino por todo el peso de una ley que responde casi siempre a los intereses del Gobierno.

Chekhov: ¿Qué le ocurre a una democracia cuando los periodistas tienen miedo de investigar y criticar a quienes ostentan el poder?

Vilma Vargas: En primer lugar ya no sería democracia, caso contrario no tendrías miedo de opinar, de criticar o de autocriticarte, inclusive. El riesgo latente con éstas medidas de presión y leyes de comunicación que atentan a nuestras libertades es que los periodistas y medios periodísticos ejercerán una autocensura, que a los únicos que perjudican es a la gente porque no te llega la información o la investigación adecuada de varios temas.

La “Legalización” del acoso contra el periodismo

Chekhov: ¿Cómo es la nueva Ley de Comunicación de Ecuador y quiénes son las personas de traje y corbata que, en su caricatura, salen del Caballo de Troya?

Vilma Vargas: Antes de la “Ley de Comunicación” ya existía cierta presión y acoso a varios medios. Ahora lo único que se hizo fue la “legalización” de esas prácticas. En el dibujo represento una ley disfrazada de regalo y de legalidad, pero que en su interior pululan varios seres que, en su pensamiento, ya tienen incorporadas las prohibiciones.

Chekhov: ¿Puede contarnos acerca de la correlación entre lo que está sucediendo a nivel nacional con respecto a los periodistas que tienen miedo de criticar al presidente Correa y cómo este ha colocado políticos en el nivel municipal para amenazar, hostigar y dejar sin trabajo a periodistas que investigaban casos de corrupción municipal, como el caso de Ignacio Ramos Mancheno?

Vilma Vargas: El problema que tiene el Gobierno es creer que lo que ellos dicen es la verdad y armar todo un aparato ideológico en las cadenas sabatinas para convencernos de “su verdad”. Así, es normal que existan muchos roces con voces no oficialistas.

Yo no conozco muy a fondo el caso de Ignacio, pero es visible que a él como a muchas personas se le han cerrado las puertas laborales por no comulgar con el poder. Incluso el humor está monitoreado, pues podemos ver casos de caricaturistas que han sido mencionados en las sabatinas.

Chekhov: En referencia a mi caricatura favorita, “la vaca cebra”, ¿puede contarnos cómo las redes sociales fueron claves en el momento de divulgar mensajes como el de esta caricatura, y de los periodistas y ciudadanos que lucharon para encarcelar, por corrupción, al ex-alcalde Juan Salazar?

Vilma Vargas: Hace mucho tiempo que yo no tocaba los temas de mi ciudad debido a malas experiencias con los directivos de cierto diario local que censuraban mis dibujos. Sin embargo, dada la importancia del tema, nuevamente estoy opinando sobre la ciudad en las redes sociales; de allí viene el dibujo del alcalde, que tengo entendido no le hizo ninguna gracia a sus partidarios. Es así, que las redes sociales son muy importantes para difundir las voces divergentes.

Logo de la campaña Ecuador ama la vida

Chekhov: Muchas de tus caricaturas recientes se centran en el tema del Parque Nacional Yasuní y de la decisión del Presidente Correa de explotar el petróleo. ¿Puede hablarnos de sus sentimientos sobre el Yasuní. ¿Ha tenido la oportunidad de visitar este lugar?

Vilma Vargas: Tuve la oportunidad de pintar un mural en el Coca y ver la sobrecogedora naturaleza que tenemos. La ciudad de El Coca es una población que se formó alrededor de la extracción petrolera.

En cuanto a la explotación del Yasuní, ésta no debe ser una decisión únicamente del Gobierno, sino de toda la población del país, porque es algo que nos concierne a todos. Con esta noticia, el mundo puede darse cuenta que tenemos un gobierno para el que no es prioridad conservar las maravillas naturales del Ecuador.

Los riesgos de ser libre y de opinar diferente

Chekhov: Después de que el periodista Emilio Palacio escribió que la presidencia de Correa era una dictadura, tuvo que buscar asilo político en Estados Unidos para escapar de tres años de cárcel y de una indemnización de 4 millones de dólares… Si usted continúa dibujando caricaturas de Presidente Correa, como la que aparece con tres cabezas que representan los tres poderes del Estado, ¿ha pensado en la posibilidad de que algún día usted también tendrá que salir el país si quiere seguir expresándose libremente?

Vilma Vargas: Denunciar y hacer arte o decir lo que uno piensa siempre trae sus riesgos. Ser libre y opinar diferente también. Mientras mi lucidez me lo permita seguiré dibujando porque, aunque puede sonar contradictorio, mientras más mal le va al país, más trabajo tenemos los caricaturistas.

Más sobre Vilma en su página web: http://www.vilma-vargas.com/

In the dense cloud forests that cover the western ridge of the Ecuadorian Andes an active guerrilla movement called the Pachamama Army roams.

Unlike other guerrilla armies further north inside this biodiversity hotspot biologists call the Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena, this movement believes in non-violent struggle over violent subversion.

Their revolution is one of consciousness via connection with nature and they are armed to the teeth with seeds, saplings, and shovels instead of guns and shells.

“The Pachamama Army are the protectors of nature,” says the movement´s leader Geovani Yanchaliquin Basantez, an indigenous Andino Yachac (Andean Shaman) pictured below, “We hold life in its natural state with utmost respect and guard over the plant and animal species in danger of extinction.”

Its a daunting task: Ecuador´s coastal cloud forests and humid montane forests are considered one of the most biodiverse hotspots on the planet, containing approximately 15-17-% of the world’s plant species and nearly 20% of its bird diversity.

Equally biodiverse are the Panamanian and Colombian sectors of the Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena where armed conflict between paramilitary groups and the Colombian military against FARC and ELN guerrilla forces have prevented deforestation and protected the natural biodiversity.

The blowback with peace in Ecuador however has been devastating.

The violent visual representation below shows how Ecuador´s coastal forests have lost land at a rate faster than Palestine between 1938 and 1988 due to slash-and-burn farming, illegal logging, monocultures, and population growth.

Today approximately 2% of Ecuador´s coastal forests are left in sparse disconnected patches scattering the country´s coast. These are the most threatened tropical forests on planet earth.

Forward Operating Base “el Kade”

el Kade is the Pachamama Army´s most remote outpost and it´s under siege. A plague of African palm oil, cacao monocultures and banana plantations swallow the surrounding countryside like a cancerous green shaded desertification.

Rivers flowing from the snow-capped volcanoes east that were once the supply lines of life for the mountainside are now clogged with cow shit and silt. The green corridors that connected this small patch of tropical cloud forest and provided safe passage for nomadic animals have been cemented over by the unceasing march of civilization.

[quote]The coastal forest of Ecuador are the country´s lungs and source of water. The coast is sitting on the cliff of extinction and if we do not reforest now, we will be in danger of losing everything that inhabits this zone. – Geovani Yanchaliquin [/quote]

el Kade is one of three terrains entrusted to the Pachamama Army for protection. On the terrain there are 38 hectares of primary forest and 5 hectares of secondary, the two wooden cabins are off the grid and built with recycled wood, and all food consumed is grown organically on site.

But the remoteness of el Kade´s virgin forest is both a blessing and a curse: in times past its isolation saved it while illegal loggings lust for cheap timber chopped down all the low hanging fruit.

Now that Ecuador´s environmental laws have been tightened and are more strictly policed that same isolation entices the timber barons here because the law is harder to enforce.

[pullquote align=”right”]Check out the powerful Global Forest Disturbance Alert System that uses NASA satellite technology to track down deforestation.

“I’m hoping the tool can help journalists and activists pinpoint areas where deforestation is occurring,” says Rhett Butler, founder and editor-in-chief of Mongabay.[/pullquote]”To stop deforestation it is necessary to identify and denounce the threat when illegal logging is discovered.” says Geovanni who uses before and after photos taken by members of his small army on routine reconnaissance missions to measure deforestation. With enough proof they alert Ecuador´s Ministry of Environment to intervene as a regulator.

After preventing deforestation and planting saplings over baron pastures the Pachamama Army´s other priorities include educating local farmers on the benefits of organic farming over pesticide coated monocultures and creating a seed bank, “a seed bank is urgent because most ancestral plants are disappearing fast due to the deforestation and invasion of hybrid plants and grasses.”

“Ecotourism as a word means to arrive at a harmonious state between man and nature, and that for us is a way of life outside of marketing and capitalism.” says Geovanni who has also developed Reforestation Treks in conjunction with the Ecuador Tree People, “All of the economic income from ecotourism will be reinvested in works that favour nature.”

It´s recommended that volunteers that want to work on these conservation projects to arrange to arrive at el Kade by mountain bike or horseback because by car it´s downright dangerous to get there.

Our 4WD Landrover almost slipped off the cliff lining the treacherous mudracked road and rope was tied around the tyres in a desperate attempt to give the car more traction. But it was worth the risk for views like this:

The Modern Day Shaman

For Geovanni the fight to save Ecuador´s coastal forests is also a fight to preserve his rich Kichwa heritage from being homogenised into the masses like a giant human monoculture.

The fast disappearing role of the Yachac or Shaman in the communal lives of the Kichwa´s and Andino´s that inhabit the Ecuadorian Sierra is especially troubling.

“The Shaman in the modern world plays a very important part in helping people return to their roots, to eat healthy and take natural medicine that doesn´t affect other parts of the body like chemical medicines.”

Geovanni learnt the secrets of Shamanic medicine from his father Victor Yanchaliquin, an indigenous medicine doctor and author of several books pertaining to medicinal plants.

This however is becoming increasingly rare in modern Ecuador where Spanish speaking Kichwa children cannot communicate in the Kichwa language to their grandparents.

In the 21st century the sacred ancestral knowledge that was once passed from generation to generation on the use and cultivation of medicinal plants is being lost as fast as the plants themselves.

“The wisdom of our ancestors tells us that we are already in difficult times,” says Geovanni, “but to conserve nature and our ancestral roots is our mission.”

When the mist grips el Kade it´s easy to get disoriented – when you´ve snorted water that´s been boiled with tobacco leaves and consumed half a litre of mescaline San Pedro cactus that disorientation expands time, place, and self.

On a full moon the clouds glow blue while the surrounding nature throbs with a kaleidoscope of calls from birds, mammals, amphibians, lizards, and insects. Hearing this call of life in its most pristine state is when you realise the importance of this beautiful living breathing organism all around us that sustains us and that are we are willing to sacrifice to make a quick buck.

[quote]”Pachamama in the Andean world is our mother, the spirit of nature, we are her children, and we have to fight to save her.” – Geovani Yanchaliquin[/quote][mc4wp_form]

By the look of the place you’d never guess half a million dollars of pre-Colombian art was buried beneath the mess. Stored on the bottom floor of a nondescript apartment in the Ecuadorian Andes, under an uncurled moldy mattress and boxes of broken electronics, are artifacts spanning the rise and fall of civilizations.

“These pieces have a power not for normal people to see,” an Ecuadorian archaeologist nicknamed Indiana told me.  He unwraps the newspaper covering a vase sized cup, a wooden chalice called a Queeo, used by the Incas in human sacrificial ceremonies.

“It was used to drink the blood of a virgin but only once.” Indiana says running his finger over the hieroglyphs on the four hundred year old cup’s circumference.  The engraved images show the virgin being bound and held by one priest as the second raises his sword, the virgin’s head is severed then held by the hair to drain the blood from her brain into the chalice. Value on the international black market: $10,000 – $15,000 USD

To my inexperienced eye, I note the apartment’s dusty conditions is far from ideal for ancient artifacts that should be under glass display, but Indiana assures me the pieces are spiritually “protected”.  He points to a paper maché mold mounted on the wall, the blue elephantine head of Ganesh, and places another cigarette as tribute in the gaping pottery mouth of Ekeko, the Peruvian God of good luck. Indiana tells me if that’s not enough to protect the place from intruders, or the visibly encroaching mold, the bones of his dead uncle are also hidden in the apartment.

“I donated $30,000 worth of pieces to a government museum but they disappeared,” he says and then tries to persuade me to take promotional photos of several hundred Valdivias, ceramics found on Ecuador’s coast that come from one of the first peoples to settle in the Americas between 3500 BC and 1800 BC.

“People overseas appreciate and take care of this art more than people here.” he says.   I agree with him.

The Plaza de los Ponchos in the Ecuadorian town of Otovalo is an indigenous market with everything from alpaca socks to authentic or fake antiques for collectors like Indiana that have the eye to spot the difference. Here Indiana meets a Swiss expat that trades in rocks: from shards of quartz, fools gold, and fossilized wood from Madagascar, to heavy Mexican masks made of Bromite.

Indiana tells him about his collection.  The Swiss man makes a passing comment, nonchalant and easy to miss, about a contact back home with a penchant for the phallic ceramics that bestowed fertility on ancient Valdivia.  A casual meetup come private showing is organized the next day.

If the Swiss agrees to do business what happens next is the ancient Valdivias will be taken by courier to the coastal town of La Pila. Like the town’s more famous neighbor Monticristi, which specializes in Ecuadorian Panama Hats, La Pila is a place where ceramics fresh from the kiln can be manufactured en masse for cheap. Here the priceless Valdivias will be packed with spin-off trinkets to camouflage the art en route to Zurich.

The ceramics of varying vintages will then be taken to the port city of Manta where one of Indianas’ guys will sign and send them overseas for a small three figure cut. Because its more dangerous to get artifacts out of Ecuador than into Switzerland, Indiana himself can pick them up in the Alps.

Once Indiana has the goods in Zurich he will make contact with the mark. “A personal introduction is worth much more than passing on a contact,” he says looking at his watch, “and of course an all expenses return trip from Quito to Zurich is included if he comes.”

But the Swiss doesn’t show and the Valdivias are left to collect dust with the bones of the archeologist’s crusty uncle a little while longer.