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Luis Barreto
www.luisbarreto.com
The Murui are an indigenous tribe in the southern part of the Colombian Amazon. Murui families are almost self-sufficient in terms of their alimentation. They rely mostly on fishing, hunting and farming but some other basic cooking ingredients need to be purchased in the nearest town which is about 3-5 hours away by boat.
Every Murui community has the right to farm Coca plants for their own traditional consumption. This is known as Mambe. The preparation of Mambe, which is an unrefined, green powder made from coca leaves and the ashes of various other plants is by a village member. The mambe, along with Ambil, a tobacco paste, is consumed by the male members of the community at a gathering to discuss issues in the community. They use the mambe as a tool for promoting productive conversations and for making decisions that affect the well-being of the village. The gathering take place in the Maloka, which is an indigenous word for house or cabin. These gatherings can go on long into the evening.
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