18 B) ORAL AND EXPERT EVIDENCE 83. At the public hearing held on November 16, 17 and 18, 2000 (supra para.62), the Court heard the testimony of eight witnesses and four expert witnesses offered by the Inter-American Commission, as well as the testimony of one witness summoned by the Tribunal, exercising its authority under article 44(1) of the Rules of Procedure. Said testimonies are summarized below, in the order received: a. Testimony of Jaime Castillo Felipe, member of the Awas Tingni Community (Interpreter: Modesto José Frank Wilson) The witness was born in Awas Tingni on June 15, 1964, and he currently lives in the Awas Tingni Community. He is a member of the Mayagna ethnic group, and his mother tongue is “Sumo Mayagna”. The other members of the Awas Tingni Community are also Sumo. It is true that there are persons in the Community who are not of the Mayagna ethnic group, but they are few, having come to live there or having members of the Community as spouses. They have been in Awas Tingni for over fifty years, and before they lived in Tuburús. He does not know exactly in what year the hamlet of Awas Tingni was established. They are the owners of the land which they inhabit because they have lived in the territory for over 300 years, and this can be proven because they have historical places and because their work takes place in that territory. There were members of the Tilba-Lupia Community who lived in Awas Tingni. He could indicate the persons who constitute the Community. He was Syndic of the Awas Tingni Community from 1991 to 1996. The Syndic is the person in charge of resolving conflicts which might arise within the community, as well as of taking steps, in coordination with the communal authorities, before State entities. During the time he was Syndic, he dealt with INRA to attain titling or demarcation of lands in favor of the Community, but those steps were unsuccessful, since there has been no response to date. On March 12, 1996, he addressed the Regional Council of the RAAN. The authorities’ response was that they were going to study his request, but he has not received any reply in that regard. At that time he submitted maps of the Community, the census of the population of Awas Tingni, and a document on the territory of the Community, prepared by Dr. Theodore Macdonald, of Harvard University. He and the members of the Community make their living from agriculture, hunting, and fishing, among other activities. To hunt they make a 15-day trip. The Community selects what is to be consumed, so as not to destroy the natural resources. The lands are occupied and utilized by the entire Community. Nobody owns the land individually; the land’s resources are collective. If a person does not belong to the Community, that person cannot utilize the land. There is no right to expel anyone from the Community. To deny the use of the land to any member of the Community, Saldaña, Director of the State Forestry Administration of MARENA, and Efraín Osejo and others, members of the Board of Directors of the Regional Council of the RAAN.