“Our dream is to maintain, protect and conserve this area for many years to come… It’s the only green area we have that purifies the air of the constant contamination from oil operations… Our resistance is tireless, non-negotiable… We want peace and tranquility. Let us live in our own way.”

-Eduardo Mendúa

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On February 26, 2023, Eduardo Mendúa, an Indigenous forest defender who was fighting to protect Ecuador’s Amazon rainforest from oil extraction, was murdered at his home by gunmen. Mendúa, the director of international relations for CONAIE, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador, and a member of the A’i Cofan people, was part of a group who have been blocking the state-owned oil company, PetroEcuador, from expanding its oil extraction operations on forested A’i Cofan lands. His murderers have not been apprehended but there is no doubt that he was assassinated due to his vocal and fearless resistance to oil extractivism.

The horrific murder of Eduardo Mendúa is part of a long war against Indigenous and frontline environmental defenders systemically punished for standing up to mining, logging and fossil fuel extraction on their ancestral lands across the world. In a continuation of historic patterns of coercive extractivist violence, countless thousands of Indigenous people continue to be intimidated, displaced, brutalised and killed for defending their homes and places.

ONCA is honoured to show new work by Ecuadorian artist Vilma Vargas in the window gallery. Vargas’ political cartoon portrait of Eduardo Mendúa serves to remind audiences of the ongoing atrocities faced by Indigenous people on multiple fronts, due to colonial extractivist industries.

The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador, CONAIE is an organization that brings together the Indigenous Nationalities, Peoples, communities, Centres and Associations of Ecuador. The work they undertake protecting their territories is invaluable in the global fight for climate justice. If you can, please consider making a donation to CONAIE.

Talk & Workshop

On Saturday 25 March, 3-6pm, join campaigner Helena Müllenbach Martínez and artist Lilophilia (Colombia) in the ONCA Gallery along with renowned Zapatista muralist Gustavo Chávez Pavón (Mexico) joining via Zoom for Muralism: Art that breaks Walls – a discussion and practical workshop on the power of revolutionary street art in social change.