A handful of indigenous guards watch over the jungle to prevent a tragedy that their grandparents see in their dreams: the destruction of their "sacred houses", the hills. A young leader remembers the day that the tranquillity was disrupted in his community. When he learned that there was a 30-year license granted on his territory to extract coltan, one of the most scarce and precious minerals, used by the world's big technology industries when manufacturing cell phones, computers and electronic devices. In Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo has the largest number of reserves of what is considered the new 'black or blue gold'. In Latin America, there are mines in Venezuela and Colombia.
The right to prior consultation has been disrespected and the entry into the indigenous territories, for mining exploitation, has been done through deception in Vaupés, Colombia. The licence granted in an indigenous reserve is unlawful.
The previous surveys of the territory - where the Murutinga, Timbó de Betania and Bogotá Cachivera communities in Vaupés are settled - for the granting of a mining licence for the exploitation of black or coltan lands were made by means of deception.
