Maka Indigenous people march to protest for the recovery of ancestral lands in Asuncion, Paraguay, Feb. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz, File)2025-02-03T13:03:04Z ASUNCIN, Paraguay (AP) Many Mak traditions have slowly faded. Yet a few elders among these Paraguayan Indigenous people recall how their songs imitated birds. Men used to say that, as they sang, they travelled to Iguazu Falls or to the mountains, said Gustavo Torres, a Mak teacher based near Paraguays capital, Asuncin. Their songs imitated nature.Next to him smiled Elodia Servn, who only speaks the Mak language but had Torres help as a translator. Her skin is covered in wrinkles and she has forgotten her age, but a memory sticks: A long time ago, when she was healthy and strong, she loved dancing in Fray Bartolom de las Casas, a territory her people are now fighting to get back. The land in dispute is an 828-acre (335 hectare) terrain that the Mak claim ownership over. Paraguays government has rejected most of their arguments, designating part of it to build a bridge connecting two cities across the Paraguay River. Fray Bartolom, as the Mak call it, was offered to them through a decree issued in 1944 by strongman Higinio Mornigo, then Paraguays president. It was meant as a present, the Mak have said, to acknowledge their courage and the role they played during the Chaco War against Bolivia in the 1930s. That place is sacred for us, said Mak leader Mateo Martnez, 65. It was a gift we thanked God for because it was given through people that loved us. His ancestors, Martnez said, guided soldiers through the mountains and quenched their hunger and thirst during the war.Only the Indigenous people knew where to find water, he said. If a Paraguayan soldier had gotten lost there alone, he would have died.Aside from the decree, details of the gift were never put on paper. The ownership titles were issued in the 2000s, and once they were, less than half of the promised acres were granted to the Mak.Officials have said that a piece of land was indeed given to the community by Mornigo, but its size was never determined nor were its coordinates precise. Both sides meet on a regular basis to discuss a potential new agreement, though no consensus has been reached yet. We are open to talking, Martnez said. But the government wont listen to us or tries to deceive us.The Mak are one of the 19 Indigenous communities of Paraguay. In the South American country of 6.8 million, more than 140,000 are Indigenous people. The latest census from 2022 estimates that around 2,600 Mak are distributed in both urban and rural areas.Mariano Roque Alonso, where Servn and 1,600 other Mak live, is located across the Paraguay River, not too far from Fray Bartolom. Floods forced them to relocate in the 1980s, and they havent been able to move back since.Younger generations have learned Spanish, but their native language remains predominant. A few steps from the Baptist church most of the community attends, the prayers painted on a wall are in Mak.Our elders had other beliefs, Martnez said. They used to believe in the forces of nature. They prayed to the Venus star. To the moon for good health and crops. Among their most treasured traditions, the Mak still make a feast when a young woman transitions from puberty to adulthood. Men drink chicha, made of fermented corn, or fight as part of the celebrations. Women like Servn sing.Our songs come from our ancestors, she said. I now want to bequeath them to younger generations. To my daughters and granddaughters.Many like her who sell bags and other embroidered products make a living from craftsmanship. Patricio Colman, 63, produces necklaces, bracelets, arrows and bows. He, too, grew up in Fray Bartolom and recalls his peoples long-gone traditions. When hunters were still alive, they gathered to go hunting and stayed up to three months in the mountains, Colman said. But no one does that anymore.Back in the day, he said, the Mak had various leaders. One for hunting, one for fishing, one for youth and one for dancing. Now Martnez is the only one left.Even then, when officials used to visit, the distribution of the territory was unclear, Colman said. There had always been a threat of invasion. The Mak not only weep for the loss of the land itself, but the distance keeping them from their loved ones buried in Fray Bartolom. Among them is Juan Belaieff, a Russian soldier and cartographer who mapped the region during the Chaco War. According to Martnez, then-elders thought of him as a white deity who served as a link between the community and God. They loved him deeply, and he was venerated by our grandparents, the leader said.Non-Mak people might find it hard to spot their cemetery. With no tombstones or crosses on-site, officials have doubted their claims.We are a different culture, though, Martnez said. When a Mak perishes, we dont use a cross. The community does dig graves for loved ones who have recently died. Relatives cover the bodies with a cloak and the persons belongings, but no other rituals are performed and graves are not marked.Relatives feel the absence so profoundly that we dont do any ceremonies or console each other, Martnez said. Its a moment of respect.The Mak now bury their people in Quemkuket, about 11 miles (18 kilometers) from their current settlement, but they hope to eventually get their ancestors remains back in one place. The Mak are warriors, courageous warriors, Martnez said. We have been fighting for this for five or six years and have no intention of ever giving up.____Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. MARA TERESA HERNNDEZ Hernndez is a reporter on the APs Global Religion team. She is based in Mexico City and covers Latin America. twitter mailto