The 93 park, in Bogotá, is dressed with Wayús fabrics

It will be a tribute to Colombianness, which we all share for having been born in this country; It will be to honor our identity, culture, diversity and will highlight the colors of all regions of the country. It will be a celebration to highlight the best of Colombia: its regions, history, culture and nature.

“The Tawala Wayuu Fest is more than a festival; It is a celebration of Colombian identity and diversity. Through its editions, not only the Wayú culture is highlighted, but also the ability of art to unite and empower communities,” Ruth Chaparro, director of the Caminos de Identidad Foundation, Fucai, which promotes the event, tells EL TIEMPO. and who, together with Carolina Mayorga, director of Tawala Wayuu Fest 2024, worked with the communities and private companies to make it a reality.

La Fucai, which won the 2015 Bartolomé de las Casas Spanish Prize for working to strengthen the identity and autonomy of indigenous peoples, promotes capabilities in excluded populations and enhances their own processes of sustainable socioeconomic and environmental, political, organizational and educational family development.

“The first edition of the Tawala Wayuu Fest, in 2022, was a milestone in the promotion of Wayú culture. It allowed the weavers of this indigenous people to obtain not only income for their craft work, but also offered attendees an immersive experience in the tradition and worldview of the Wayú community,” says Chaparro.

And remember that “through a ‘forest book’, where each tree represented a chapter of their rich cultural heritage, the people of Bogotá were able to learn and appreciate fundamental aspects of Wayú life.”

That first festival left a positive balance of 24 million pesos that were used in the construction of a community center care of life in the community of Merrunai, in the municipality of Manaure, department of La Guajira.

“Children and their families now have better conditions for the care and development of their abilities. So Tawala Wayuu Fest is a project that offers a work of art as a public service, generates income for women weavers and leaves room for social investment in the community, thanks to the sponsors, businessmen who believe in Colombia, in solidarity. , in social responsibility and in overcoming great inequalities,” says Chaparro.

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This year, he adds, the central theme of the Tawala Wayuu Fest is “Colombianness, highlighting the diversity and cultural richness of the country. Each tree at the festival will wear a colorful hand-woven dress, symbolizing the best of Colombia: its people, its diversity and its regions.”

The central theme of reflection will be water. Chaparro considers it important to reflect on “human behavior” in this regard and that we join the campaign of the District Secretariat of Culture of Bogotá: “A pact for water because every drop counts.”

“We will have a tree dedicated to water, full of hand-woven water drops, the result of a huge ‘tejetón’, where weavers from Bogotá and the country join in this beautiful festival. On June 8 at 11 am the tree will be collectively dressed to honor the water. In a pact ritual for water, woven handcuffs will be distributed as a symbol of that commitment,” Chaparro reveals.

On May 21, a 350-meter rug, woven by Wayú women, was spread over the famous Bogotá park on 93, which will later be used to dress each of the its 35 trees before the inauguration of the Tawala Wayuu Fest 2024.

“Each tree dressed in its colorful fabrics represents an aspect of Colombia’s cultural and natural wealth, showing that, despite contradictions and challenges, the country is a beautiful interconnected paradise. Weaving, as a form of writing, allows Wayú women to express their thoughts, their hearts and their vision of a united and diverse country,” says the director of Fucai.

He explains that each of the trees symbolizes a chapter of Colombianness, such as, for example, the yellow butterflies, “a tribute to the work of Gabriel García Márquez and magical realism.” There are also other natural and cultural values, such as the 7-color sea of ​​San Andrés and Providencia, the Barranquilla Carnival, the vibrant celebration of the Caribbean; Cabo de la Vela, a sacred and tourist place in La Guajira, and vallenato and accordion, among many others.

Each tree at the Tawala Wayuu Fest 2024 is sponsored by a company that donates the resources to make this work of art possible in the 93rd park.

The Wayús handcraft hammocks, hammocks, backpacks, earrings, bracelets and bracelets, which are printed with the kanas, a mark of ancestral heritage and the maximum expression of their fabrics.

For this year’s festival, women gathered and knitted to showcase an interconnected and diverse country. The hands of 150 Wayú weavers from 11 communities reconstructed the fabric of Colombia and created unique pieces whose sale will be used to support their families.

His work is, therefore, “a tribute to the diversity and cultural richness of the country. “It is an inspiring example of how art and tradition can generate significant economic opportunities for communities,” according to the organizers.

“The Wayú weavers, with their skill and creativity, will show how their fabrics can represent a country full of contradictions and exclusions, but that remains beautiful and full of hope.”

This festival is not only a celebration of Wayú art, but also a manifestation of the ability of these women to weave a country more united in diversity through their art,” says the director of Fucai.

For this reason, it specifies that the Tawala Wayuu Fest “It is not only a platform to display and sell artisanal products, but also an opportunity for education and cultural awareness.” He summarizes that the main purpose of this year’s festival is “to show Colombia as a fabric of diverse regions, historical customs and shared hopes.”

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The organizers assure that this year’s festival will be a window “to the different regions of Colombia: from the flavor of the Pacific to the vibrant energy of the Caribbean, passing through the lush Amazon, the majestic Andean mountains and the vast Eastern Plains.”

They remember that what is celebrated is the cultural and natural wealth of Colombia, such as the traditional vueltiao hat, the Barranquilla Carnival, the magic of Cabo de la Vela, the Sierra (Nevada de Santa Marta) with the Wayús, the yellow butterflies and the sea of ​​7 colors. Also the flavor of chontaduro, the majesty of the whales and the passion of the sauce.

Likewise, the joropo and the sunsets of the Orinoquia, the enormous biodiversity, the flying rivers and the fruits of the Amazon, the frailejones and orchids of the Andean region, the beauty of the paramos and the crafts of the native peoples.

The Tawala Wayuu Fest 2024 will also be a space to reflect on the situation they are going through and the problems faced by Colombian indigenous peoples.

“We want indigenous peoples to be recognized for their capabilities and not for their shortcomings, so that they can live from what they are, what they know and what they do without having to give up their identity and their ways of inhabiting the land,” says Chaparro.

And he adds: “We believe they have a lot to teach urban and industrialized societies. And we seek to overcome racist imaginaries and stigmatizations that distance us from achieve that inclusive, equitable and diverse social state of law, agreed upon in the 1991 Constitution.”

It mentions that “Colombia has more than 36 towns at risk of disappearing as culturally differentiated towns due to causes such as armed conflict and unmet basic needs due to inequality, exclusion and effects of climate change.”

He remembers that the malnutrition and infant mortality rates are higher than the national average and says that the situation of the Embera, displaced in Bogotá, the Awá of Nariño, the Wayús in Middle and Upper Guajira, “who face a “unconstitutional state of affairs that cannot be overcome despite the judicial rulings of the Constitutional Court.”

In his opinion, the importance of the Tawala Wayuu Fest It lies in several aspects: in the economic aspect, “it provides Wayús weavers with a significant source of income, valuing and marketing their artisanal work. In terms of education and culture, it offers the public a deeper understanding of the Wayú culture and worldview, promoting respect and appreciation for their heritage.”

It also “promotes diversity by highlighting the cultural richness of Colombia and showing how different traditions and regions contribute to national identity” and promotes unity and hope because, through the art of weaving, Wayú women “transmit a message of unity.” and hope, showing that, despite the difficulties, the beauty and strength of the country lies in its diversity.”
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​GLORIA HELENA KING
​For TIME