Hilaria Supa
Encyclopedia
Hilaria Supa Huamán is a human rights
activist, an active member of several Indigenous women organizations in Peru and the world and a Peru
vian politician. She is currently a Congresswoman
representing the Cusco
for the period 2006-2011, as a member of Ollanta Humala's Partido Nacionalista Peruano party.
Hilaria Supa was raised by her grandparents on her mother Helena Huamán's side, who were peasants in a hacienda
or a big farm owned by rich families.
During her childhood she saw the hacendado or farm owner mistreat her grandfather and rape the local women, which had a crucial impact on her life. Her grandfather, who fought for farmers rights, was murdered in 1965. When she was only six years old, she had to travel to Arequipa
, where she was forced to work as a maid but when she asked her relatives to get her back to Cusco, she found out that her grandmother had also died.
Afterward Hilaria Supa worked as a house maid in Cusco
, Arequipa
, and Lima
. She was raped at 14 when she was working for rich families in Lima. Her partner and father of her children, died in an accident when she was 22. As a result of physical abuse and forced labor as a child, she suffers of generalized boy arthritis. She has wrote a book about her life titled "Threads of My Life" -available in Spanish, English and German, and soon in Quechua- where she tells how she become stronger facing these adversities.
In the 1980s she became involved with other Indigenous women in organizing a community program that provided with free meals for poor children. She became leader of the Micaela Bastidas Committee in Anta, Cusco and took part in the fights for land rights, which finally resulted in the land reform
legislation under the government of Juan Velasco Alvarado
. She was also leader of the Federación Departamental de Campesinos del Cusco, the regional organization of the Confederación Campesina del Perú
in Cusco
.
In 1991 she became the Organizational Secretary of the new founded Women's Federation of Anta (Federación de Mujeres de Anta FEMCA), where she was responsible for alphabetization programs, traditional medicine preservation and pesticide
issues.
Hilaria Supa has taken part in numerous international women rights meetings, where she has actively used and promoted her Native Quechua language. In 1995 she led a protest and lobbying against forced sterilization of women and men, done under the Alberto Fujimori
dictatorship with health minister Alejandro Aguinaga
. This racist health policy resulted in enforced sterilization
of 363,000 Indigenous women and over 22,000 men.
Hilaria Supa was elected to the Peruvian Congress in 2006, becoming the first parliamentarian in Peru's history to take the oath in the Quechua or any Indigenous language
, followed by her fellow Congresswoman María Sumire
, for which both were sharply criticized by Congresswoman Martha Hildebrandt
and some other members of Congress for her lack of preparation and experience in the field.
Congresswoman Hilaria Supa has participated twice at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, where she has denounced the crisis that her community is facing, after free trade policies and abusive decrees have been passed by the current Peruvian government in complicity with the U.S. government. She is working now to rescue Machu Picchu and other Native sites, and return them under the management of the Indigenous peoples of Cusco.
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist, an active member of several Indigenous women organizations in Peru and the world and a Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian politician. She is currently a Congresswoman
Congress of Peru
The Congress of the Republic of Peru or the National Congress of Peru is the unicameral body that assumes legislative power in Peru.Congress consists of 130 members of congress , who are elected for five year periods in office on a proportional representation basis...
representing the Cusco
Cusco Region
Cusco is a region in Peru. It is bordered by the Ucayali Region on the north; the Madre de Dios and Puno regions on the east; the Arequipa Region on the south; and the Apurímac, Ayacucho and Junín regions on the west...
for the period 2006-2011, as a member of Ollanta Humala's Partido Nacionalista Peruano party.
Hilaria Supa was raised by her grandparents on her mother Helena Huamán's side, who were peasants in a hacienda
Hacienda
Hacienda is a Spanish word for an estate. Some haciendas were plantations, mines, or even business factories. Many haciendas combined these productive activities...
or a big farm owned by rich families.
During her childhood she saw the hacendado or farm owner mistreat her grandfather and rape the local women, which had a crucial impact on her life. Her grandfather, who fought for farmers rights, was murdered in 1965. When she was only six years old, she had to travel to Arequipa
Arequipa
Arequipa is the capital city of the Arequipa Region in southern Peru. With a population of 836,859 it is the second most populous city of the country...
, where she was forced to work as a maid but when she asked her relatives to get her back to Cusco, she found out that her grandmother had also died.
Afterward Hilaria Supa worked as a house maid in Cusco
Cusco
Cusco , often spelled Cuzco , is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cuzco Province. In 2007, the city had a population of 358,935 which was triple the figure of 20 years ago...
, Arequipa
Arequipa
Arequipa is the capital city of the Arequipa Region in southern Peru. With a population of 836,859 it is the second most populous city of the country...
, and Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
. She was raped at 14 when she was working for rich families in Lima. Her partner and father of her children, died in an accident when she was 22. As a result of physical abuse and forced labor as a child, she suffers of generalized boy arthritis. She has wrote a book about her life titled "Threads of My Life" -available in Spanish, English and German, and soon in Quechua- where she tells how she become stronger facing these adversities.
In the 1980s she became involved with other Indigenous women in organizing a community program that provided with free meals for poor children. She became leader of the Micaela Bastidas Committee in Anta, Cusco and took part in the fights for land rights, which finally resulted in the land reform
Land reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
legislation under the government of Juan Velasco Alvarado
Juan Velasco Alvarado
Juan Francisco Velasco Alvarado was a left-leaning Peruvian General who ruled Peru from 1968 to 1975 under the title of "President of the Revolutionary Government."- Early life :...
. She was also leader of the Federación Departamental de Campesinos del Cusco, the regional organization of the Confederación Campesina del Perú
Confederación Campesina del Perú
Confederación Campesina del Perú is a farmers' movement in Peru. CCP was founded on April 11, 1947. Its first general secretary was Juan Hipólito Pévez Oliveros, a peasants leader from Iquique. Another of its leaders was Hugo Blanco...
in Cusco
Cusco Region
Cusco is a region in Peru. It is bordered by the Ucayali Region on the north; the Madre de Dios and Puno regions on the east; the Arequipa Region on the south; and the Apurímac, Ayacucho and Junín regions on the west...
.
In 1991 she became the Organizational Secretary of the new founded Women's Federation of Anta (Federación de Mujeres de Anta FEMCA), where she was responsible for alphabetization programs, traditional medicine preservation and pesticide
Pesticide
Pesticides are substances or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling or mitigating any pest.A pesticide may be a chemical unicycle, biological agent , antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against any pest...
issues.
Hilaria Supa has taken part in numerous international women rights meetings, where she has actively used and promoted her Native Quechua language. In 1995 she led a protest and lobbying against forced sterilization of women and men, done under the Alberto Fujimori
Alberto Fujimori
Alberto Fujimori Fujimori served as President of Peru from 28 July 1990 to 17 November 2000. A controversial figure, Fujimori has been credited with the creation of Fujimorism, uprooting terrorism in Peru and restoring its macroeconomic stability, though his methods have drawn charges of...
dictatorship with health minister Alejandro Aguinaga
Alejandro Aguinaga
Alejandro Aurelio Aguinaga Recuenco is a Peruvian physician and fujimorist politician. He has been Congressman, representing Lambayeque, since 2006....
. This racist health policy resulted in enforced sterilization
Compulsory sterilization
Compulsory sterilization also known as forced sterilization programs are government policies which attempt to force people to undergo surgical sterilization...
of 363,000 Indigenous women and over 22,000 men.
Hilaria Supa was elected to the Peruvian Congress in 2006, becoming the first parliamentarian in Peru's history to take the oath in the Quechua or any Indigenous language
Indigenous language
An indigenous language or autochthonous language is a language that is native to a region and spoken by indigenous peoples but has been reduced to the status of a minority language. This language would be from a linguistically distinct community that has been settled in the area for many generations...
, followed by her fellow Congresswoman María Sumire
María Sumire
María Cleofé Sumire de Conde is a Peruvian politician. She is currently a Congresswoman representing Cusco for the period 2006-2011, and belongs to the Union for Peru party....
, for which both were sharply criticized by Congresswoman Martha Hildebrandt
Martha Hildebrandt
Martha Luz Hildebrandt Pérez-Treviño is a Peruvian linguist and politician. Martha Hildebrandt was the second woman to occupy the Presidency of the Congress of the Republic of Peru in 1999...
and some other members of Congress for her lack of preparation and experience in the field.
Congresswoman Hilaria Supa has participated twice at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, where she has denounced the crisis that her community is facing, after free trade policies and abusive decrees have been passed by the current Peruvian government in complicity with the U.S. government. She is working now to rescue Machu Picchu and other Native sites, and return them under the management of the Indigenous peoples of Cusco.
Works
- Hilos de mi vida – el testimonio de Hilaria Supa Huamán, una campesina Quechua. Willkamayu Editores, Lima 2002 (Spanish).
- Threads of My Life - The Story of Hilaria Supa Huaman, A Rural Quechua Woman. Theytus Books, B.C., Canada. 2008.
External links
- Hilaria Supa Huamán - cv (in Spanish)
- Congresswoman Hilaria Supa Huamán (in Spanish)
- Entrevista a Hilaria Supa. Peru: Sé que va a haber discriminación. (in Spanish)