Programs / Human Rights / Communities / Embera Puru «

 

About Embera Puru

Embera Puru is an indigenous community of 44 homes with a population of

approximately 266. Located in the Darien Province in Eastern Panama, Embera

Puru is an Embera community, one of the largest indigenous groups in Panama

and Colombia. Embera Puru is a primarily agricultural community, relying on the

production of rice, yucca, ñame, and otoe, a local root vegetable. The women

also work on the farms, make traditional crafts, or take care of the home.

Working in collaboration with Business and Microfinance Brigades, Embera

Puru was able to establish their own community bank in December of 2013.

Embera Puru is one of Global Brigades' Holistic Communities, with ongoing

projects and collaboration with Medical, Dental, Public Health, and

Environmental Brigades.

 

Embera Puru's Barriers to Justice

Legal services are difficult to access in rural eastern Panama for two primary

reasons: location and cost.  Most often, there are no legal services set up

within rural communities and are instead concentrated in urban areas. 

Therefore, rural Panamanians must travel multiple hours to access these

services. Not only does traveling to these urban areas cost money, but the

legal services themselves are frequently too expensive.  

 

In addition, there is an attitude of mistrust amongst the rural clients. 

Historically, there have occurred many cases in which lawyers have come to

rural communities, the community members have paid for the legal services,

but the lawyers have returned to the city without resolving the cases. 

Therefore, it is a challenge to gain  trust of the community members when it

comes to dealing with their personal human rights issues, and to prove not

all lawyers will take advantage of them.

 

Civic Engagement and Empowerment

By focusing on specific aspects of legal access and inclusion, Global Brigades’ Human Rights Program aims to empower communities like Embera Puru to overcome the obstacles mentioned above. Starting in January 2015, Brigaders have been able to tackle family law cases, execute pro-bono legal clinics, and perform educational workshops.

Family Law: Starting June 2015, brigades have been able to address one of the most commonly cited legal needs in Embera Puru: Family Law representation.

Legal Clinics: Global Brigade’s Human Rights Program has been able to offer their pro-bono legal services to community members in Embera Puru with the help of volunteers and Panamanian lawyers. Taking place in Embera Puru's community center, both community members and volunteers work together to challenge the stigma of lawyers in the region by offering real, professional services for free.

Educational Workshops: Volunteers have performed numerous workshops in the middle and high school of Embera Puru. Capitalizing on the use of education as a tool for community empowerment, volunteers lead discussions and workshops with students and families about issues that have direct consequences and effects in their everyday lives, including: the right to education, child abuse, drug use, and child labor laws.

 

 

Human Rights Brigades Chapters that Worked in Embera Puru
Human Rights Brigades Chapter	Month	Volunteers
Bristol/Bath	June 2015	19

 

  

Visit Other Programs in Embera Puru

Global Brigades strives to implement a model of Holistic Development in communities through a system of collectively implementing health, economic, and education initiatives to strategically meet a community's development goals. Learn more about the other programs being implemented in Embera Puru:

 

BusinessDental  Environmental Medical  Microfinance Public Health