QuitoDecla ra tion Cha rter forWor ldMounta inPeople (4September2003) TherepresentativesofMountainTerritoriesfromfortycountriesmeton20September2002inQuito(Ecuador)takinginto account the declarations issued at preparatory meetings

of Achocalla (2225 August 2002, Bolivia) and Yuksam (1519 April 2002, India), adopted the main points of the following declaration. The present text drawn up in compliance with these directives was widely distributed to collect observations of mountain communities. In view of the results of this consultation it was decided finally to adopt it after modification on 4 September 2003by the APMM office meeting at Ispoure(FrenchPyrenees). 1. We believe in the futur e of mountain regions! Leaving the mountains is a painful experience for all its children. Because the mountains demand strength and patience,renouncement and sacrifice,energy and courage, imagination and combativeness,becausewehavelearnedtorespectandtodefendtheirintegrity,ourattachmenttothemountainsisstrong. Because inreturn, themountain territory offersusthebeauty and serenityof its landscapes,inspiring thoughtfulness and meditation,andnaturallykeepingusinharmonywithnature,itisasourceofinspirationandelevation.In themountains, we maintain the memory of generations before us who have shaped our territory. We are grateful to them for having transmittedthisheritageandthisculturetous. Wemustnotletthister ritorydeterior ate,th isheritagebedilapidated , thiscultur ebecometrivial.Wearenotcondemnedtoabandonmentorexile.Ourterritorycansupportallitsinhabitants andwelcomeothers.Realperspectivesexist.Contemporarysocietyexpressesgreatexpectations.Technicalprogressdoes noterasethedifficulties,butitdoesreducethem.Agriculture,stockgrazing,forestry,recovernewvitalitybyofferingnew products and exercising new functions. Our crafts and our industry show their capacity to adapt to the new economic context.Wedisposeofmajornaturalresourceswater,energy,minerals,spacethatcanbebetterupgradedeconomically andecologically,and theirproceeds can be bettershared. Tourism,when undercontrol,can be a factor ofmajor, shared financialflows.Ourlocalvaluesandknowhow,ourintimateknowledgeofourterritory,continuetobeexceptionalassets forprogress.Wearedeterminedtomakethispotentialareality:forthisreasonwebelieveinthefutureofthemountains. 2. We claimour r ightfulpla ce in society. Mountain areas are different they need not be separate. Society must not excludetheirpeoplenormarginalize theirterritory. Nor mustit try tostandardizeor assimilate,ignoringthe specificities andparticularitiesoftheseregions.Mountainpeopleshouldhaveaccesstothesamesocialandpoliticalrightsandthesame opportunityfordevelopment. We know thereisa long way togobeforeweachieve this. Certainmountainpeoplehave taken that path, always with great difficulty: they now are both recognized and respected. Too many others are still rejected,plundered,heldincontemptandconfined.Somearerichbutsubjecttoanincreasinglydemandingmarket.Others have attemptedtogainstatus throughassistance. Stillothersperpetuateunfairnessintheir owncommunities. M ountain peopled onotdemand equivalence ofsituations, theydemandequ ityin or der to sustainably corr ectdisadvantages andinju stice.Theyareawarethatfirsttheymustapplytothemselveswhattheydemandofothers.Wewanttoconstructa society thatprovides key services for social, economicandpolitical progress to all its members: vocational training and education,housingandhealth,thepossibilityofcommunicatingandtravel.Mountainpeopledonotwanttocontinueinan inequalitythatjeopardizestheirdignity.Theydonotwanttoappearaseternalsupplicantswhentheyaredemandingonly justiceandrights. They want todispose of the means of expression and representation to democratically and forcefully defendboth. 3. We want to broaden the r ange of possibilities for mountain ar ea s. Our territory, which was long held in disdain, increasinglyinterestsourcontemporaries.Forsome,itisanareaforleisureandrelaxation,forothersanaturalenvironment dedicated to conservation. The mountains cannot be reduced to these two dimensions. We need to assume these two recreationalandenvironmentalfunctionsthat are necessary fora balanced society and tomaintainnaturalwealth and our development,butweshouldnotidentifywiththem.Wedonotwanttobeexclusivelyahostterritory,guardiansofnatureor aservicesociety. Wehaveothera mbitionsandothera ssetstopr omote.Wewanttoconstructasocietyfoundedonthe diversityoftrades, andsocial andhuman components, asa factor of economic solidarity and social enrichment.Wewant

APMM(Association des Populations des Montagnesdu Monde) 50boulevardMalesherbes 75008Paris Tel.:+331.42.93.86.60.Fax:+331.45.22.28.18.Mail:c.stanislas@apmmwmpa.o rg

activitiesrelatedtothesoil,agriculture,stockgrazing,forestry, thatmakea livingforthepopulation,maintainandrenew naturalresources,tobeconsideredofgeneralinterestinmountainareas.Werefusetobasethewealthofthemountainson thesaleofitsheritageandfarmingouttheterritory.Thewealthofthe mountainsmustgrowfromourcapacitytoproduce and create real value added, without deteriorating our capital, to the greater benefit of mountain people and the national community.Inthisway,Wealsowishthatouryoungpeopleshouldcontinuetheworkofearliergenerations,toperpetuate thevitality ofthe mountain territories.Wemustoffer themotheralternativestoleaving and invitethem toinvestalltheir creativityinafreshdevelopmentofthemountains,whicharetheircountry . 4.Wewanttorecovercontrolofourdevelopment.Wehavethefeelingthatwehavelessandlessinfluenceonthefuture ofourterritory.Strategicdecisionshavetoooftenbeentakenbycompaniesfromoutsidetheareathatdecideonthefuture ofour resourceswithoutus.Themanagementof theterritory is in thehandsof an administration that wants tonarrowly control its usage. Outside agents, institutions or organizations too often impose models or techniques that undermine the structureoflocalsocieties.Wearesubjecttodiverseandvariouslobbiesthatwanttodecideonourhappiness,withoutus andoftenagainstus.Themountainstendtobecomeasubordinateterritory,anobjectterritory,whosefateissettledwithout consultingthelocalpopulation,townsandcommunities thatmakeitup.Forlackofasufficientholdonthesituation, we becomepowerlesstochangethecourseofevents,tocontroltheeconomicandsocialforcesthatcancausesharpbreachesin the evolutionof our society. We wa ntto putan end to this situa tion: we wa nt tobe theadvocates of our country. Mountainpeople mustreclaimtheirrole as the real agents oftheir future.They must recover the powertomanagetheir territory,notwithout submittingto rules forpublicutility thatmustbedevelopeddemocraticallyandinconsultationwith theirrepresentativeswhohave genuine practicalskills.Wewant tomasterexploitation ofour resources and fullybenefit fromtheireconomicresults.Wewanttochooseourownpathforthedevelopmentandmanagementofourterritory,revive and balance the economic and human relations between the mountain and the other territories, with which their future is linked.Byimprovingourcapacitytoconceiveanddecide,wewanttogainbettercontrolofthechannels forourproducts. Wewantscientistsandexperts,whatevertheirspecialtytoworkalongsideus.Wewanttobepresentathigherlevelswhere strategicdecisionsthatinfluenceourfuturearetaken.Wewanttoberecognizedasrealpartners,throughourcommunities andourorganizations,withacontractualrighttocontributetodecisionsaffectingus. 5.Wewanttoactbymeansofstr ong,unitedcommunities.Individuallywecandomuchforourterritory,eachperson inhis/herfieldofactivityorresponsibility.Themountains verymuchneedtheseinitiatives.Butourrealcapacity tomake headwayfortheentirecommunitytowhichwebelongcan onlycome fromajointeffortofall,aconvergentactionof the inhabitants,poolingtheresourcesinourmountaintownsandcommunities.Itisuptothemtosparkandcarryourcollective determinationtogoforward.It isuptousalltogivethemthe concrete meanslegal, financial,technical,scientificto better manage the common territory, provide services to the population, develop facilities, valorize collective resources, promote economicdevelopment, maintainthe richness oflocal cultures. Itisuptothe communities togain apositionto exercise these missions through cooperation. Our commitment a s citizens is a lso the key to collective success. If management must be delegated, it must also be assisted upstream by close participation of citizens and reinforced downstreambyregular assessment. This isthe priceof consolidating the community's capacity tomake headwayandto ensureprogressof allitscomponents,particularlythe mostdisadvantagedorisolated.Havingmobilizedallourresources andfulfilledourownobligations,wecandemandthattheStatemeetthoseofthenationalsocietywithregardtomountain communitiesthathavereducedmeanstocopewithamoredifficultenvironment.ThefirstobligationoftheStateisjustice: different situations require different policies. The second is freedom of management: a democratic community, means autonomousmanagement. 6.Wewan ttoor ganizein ord er toinfluenced ecisionsconcer ningus.Thedevelopmentofmountainareasstilldepends to a large extent on the rules of the economic game applied at national level or retained in international agreements. Agriculture, services, the forest, industry, trade, even culture are strongly subject to the mechanisms set in motion. Mountain regions are particularly vulnerable to liberal policies in many ways, because of their fragility and limited competitiveness.Theyarealsoverydependentonpublicactionduetotheweaknessoftheirownmeans. For thisr eason , we must be pr esent ever ywher e decisions a re taken concerning our terr itor ies, from the local tothe internationa l scale.Ourspokesmenwillbebetterheardiftheyarerepresentativeofmountainpopulations.Theywillbethatmuchmore convincing if they base their arguments on highquality studies and dossiers. We need to give them the democratic legitimacy and the capacity to negotiate on behalf of representative mountain organizationshaving real means of action. The existence and the strength of these organizations are particularly needed for mountain people because they are in a situationofunderrepresentation intheirowncountriesandmust fightanaturalmovementthattends tosatisfypopulation centersratherthan territories.Soweneed toensurerepresentationofmountainterritorieseverywhere toobtain favorable arbitration.Butwealsoneed todiscover the universalaspects inour particularproblemsand join forceswiththose who defendthesamevalues. 7.Wewan ttoconstr uctthecommunityofmounta inmenandwomen .Weconsiderthatthecauseofthemountainscan
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bring together mountain people from all continents, from south and north, from east and west, in the same movement, because, despite our differences in culture, income, living conditions and social organization, we all have something in common:attachmenttoourmountainterritory,andthedeterminationnottodissolvetherelationshipthatbindsustoit,to continue to live in the mountains and to ensure that they last. We consider that we are confronted with the same fundamentalchallenge,equitabledevelopmentunderourcontrol,inahistoricalcontextwhereidentitiesarewaninginfavor ofasingleculturalmodelwheretheweakestarethreatenedwithgrowinggapsanddelays. Wewa nttocometogeth er to an swer these ch allenges by h elping each other and mobilizing our resour ces to the benefit of all mountain commun ities. Wewanttocreateacommunitywherethemostdisadvantagedwillbedefendedfirst.Wewanteveryoneto be aware mountain populations, nations, the international community of what the mountains represent and whatthey contribute to humanity in terms of products, services, environment, social practices, collective management, spatial management,values,cultures.Wewant tototallyassumeourresponsibilitieswithregardto thenationalandinternational communities.Mountainpeople will achieve this betterwhenthey aredemocratically organized and control the futureof theirterritory. Ourallianceshouldenableverydifferentpeopletocometogetheronacommonprojectthatisverydeartothem:takingthe destinyoftheircountryinhand.Startingwithlocalcommunities,wecanthusconstitutearealcommunityforthefutureof allmountainregionsintheworld. ToensureachievementoftheobjectivesofthisC har ter wh icha re: developingnewperspectivesformountainareas conqueringnewsocialandpoliticalrights broadeningtherangeofpossibilitiesformountainareas recoveringcontrolofourdevelopment reinforcingcohesionandindependenceofcommunities constitutingrepresentativemountainorganizations constructingasociallyconsciousworldwidecommunity andanxioustoensureequalityofthesexes Wemak eacommitmentto: 1. Work to achieve these objectives in our field of activity and responsibility, to inform and encourage mountain communitiesandorganizationstoadheretothem 2.Promote thecreationofamovementofmountainPeopleforthispurpose: meetingineachcountryinanassociationofmountainpeopleconstitutedwithreferencetotheWMPAstatutes,drawing supportfromlocalterritorialcommunitiesandassociatingrepresentativesoforganizationsthattakepartinthemanagement andthedevelopmentoftheterritory,aswellasfromresearchersandexpertsworkingalongsidemountainpopulations grouping these national associations, oncethey havebeen constituted, in larger organizations on the scale of mountain rangesorcontinents unitingintheWorldMountainPeopleAssociation 3.Developactionsandencountersbetweenmountainpeoplefromvariousmountainterritories 4.Und er takecooperationactionsbetweenmountainpeoplebymeansoftheseassociationsorotherorganizationswiththe helpofNGOpartners 5.C onstru ct alliances or partnerships with movements or organizations that have similar objectives and have the same values.

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