The Center for Intercultural Medical Studies (CEMI) is a non-governmental organization that accompanied 18 indigenous communities from five Indigenous organizations in the Colombian Amazon during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of these communities are located far from urban centers, have limited communication resources with the outside world, lack Western health services, conserve their territories and traditional livelihoods and keep their ceremonies, rituals and traditional knowledge systems alive, with the presence of traditional medicine experts.
Although these populations are considered highly vulnerable because they are minority populations at risk of extinction, with hazardous material and economic conditions according to Western indicators, and with the hypothesis of having more significant immunological weakness due to their relative geographic isolation, the morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19 were significantly lower than that recorded in the urban centers of the Amazon region and even more so compared to the national data.
How to explain this paradox? United around their traditional authorities, they promoted isolation and control of mobility, limiting people from leaving the community and banning the entry of people from outside. Thanks to their agro-food system, they managed adequate sustenance without depending on Western products. Above all, they performed disease prevention ceremonies and rituals following the recommendations of their shamans, including dietary restrictions, consumption of medicinal plants and body cleansing practices such as purging and vomiting. Cemi provided remote support for these measures and was responsible for communication and coordination with local, regional and national official health authorities.
