12/Aug/2019
By Luma Lessa for Collaborative Coverage of the Indigenous Women’s March (translated by Daiara Tukano
Sunday (08/11) dawned with the cultural presentations of women’s delegations from over 100 indigenous peoples from all over Brazil. Then about 1,500 indigenous women gathered for the activities of the Indigenous Women National Forum. Sonia Guajajara opened the event by inviting women from 21 states to talk about the theme: “Territory: our body, our spirit.” The discussions addressed the building of concrete demands and strategies of indigenous women for their empowerment, the violation of health, education and security rights, the right to land and resumption processes, and the occupation of indigenous women in politics.
In the afternoon, tables brought guests to discuss networking between movements. Joenia Wapichana, Federal Deputy (Rede-RR), indigenous women from Latin America, indigenous representatives from Peru and Ecuador, and a representative of UN Women Brazil attended the meeting. There was also the roundtable for National Alliances, which was attended by representatives of the Brazilian Articulation of Indigenous Peoples (APIB), the March of Daisies, Black Women, Brazilian Women’s Articulation (AMB) and the National Coordination of Quilombola Rural Black Communities (CONAQ).
In Monday (12/08) the focus is the “Indigenous Women in Defense of Indigenous Health SASI-SUS” Act. The march left the headquarters of the camp in Funarte towards the Special Secretariat of Indigenous Health (Sesai). The first walk of the 1st Indigenous Women March took to the streets of Brasilia to protest the end of The indigenous Health System municipalization and the immediate departure of Silvia Nobre, current coordinator of the SESAI. The arrival at the secretariat faced the attempt of the Military Police to block the entrance of the indigenous leaders to the building. However, the women managed to enter and occupy the space. The day ends with the participation of a women’s delegation in the hearing, scheduled to start at 17h, in the Supreme Court (STF).
The walk continues tomorrow, August 13th, at 7:00 am with the departure from the Indigenous Women’s March from the main camp at FUNARTE towards the Esplanade of Ministries. The March joins the National Act Against Dismantling of Public Education, scheduled for 9am. At the same time will take place the Solemn Chamber of Deputies with the Daisies. In the afternoon, there are workshops and activities with the Daisies in the City Park, followed by the opening of the Daisy March at 19h in the same place.
The Indigenous Women March ends on Wednesday (14/08), joining forces with the March of Daisies in a joint walk. The daisies and indigenous meeting will take place at Funarte. The expectation is about 100 thousand people for the March 13 and 14 August. The last activity of the day, scheduled for 2 pm, will be the Plenary for the approval of the Final Document with the theme “Watering Seeds: The Future of the Forum and the Indigenous Women March”. In the end, delegations return to their places of origin renewed with the forces and strategies shared between indigenous women of diverse peoples and with peasant women in these intense days of mobilizing the largest female action in Latin America.
12/Aug/2019
By Andressa Santa Cruz, and free translation by Mahe Maia, for Collaborative Coverage of the Indigenous Women’s March
Hundreds of indigenous women occupied the building of the Special Secretariat of Indigenous Health (SESAI) today in Brasilia, calling for an end to the dismantling of indigenous health and the immediate departure of coordinator Silvia Nobre Wajãpi who declined to meet with the leaders and left the building under crowd boos. “Silvia does not represent the majority of indigenous women. We came here to talk and were not received. This shows the contradiction.”says Celia Xakriaba.
Since Silvia Nobre was designated by the current government in April, indigenous health policies have been weakened. The delay to transfer funds, the dismantling of the“More Doctors”Program, and the termination of the management team, impacted the villages since the first month, when indigenous across the country began to mobilize against the scrapping. In July, 115 indigenous camped in the SESAI building for two weeks and only left on the 22nd, after a meeting mediated by the Federal Prosecutor’s Office and Funai, in Brasilia, when the Ministry of Health and SESAI signed an Adjustment Agreement of Conduct (TAC) committing to accomplish the demands.
For Nyg Kaigang, from the south of the country, one of the objectives is the revitalization of the organ, “we will strive to ensure a specific health care based on the alignment of knowledge of traditional medicine, the way we think about the healing of our bodies”.
Check the moment of entry into the building:
Indigenous women occupy Sesai building demanding the immediate departure of coordinator Silvia Nobre. Photo: Douglas Freitas
Indigenous women occupy corridors and rooms of Sesai – Special Secretariat of Indigenous Health in Brasilia. Photo: Douglas Freitas / Collaborative Coverage
Indigenous women occupy Sesai building demanding the immediate departure of coordinator Silvia Nobre. Photo: Kamikia Kisedje / Collaborative Coverage
Indigenous women occupy corridors and rooms of Sesai – Special Secretariat of Indigenous Health in Brasilia. Photo: Lia Biachini / Collaborative Coverage
Indigenous women occupy Sesai building demanding the immediate departure of coordinator Silvia Nobre. Photo: Kamikia Kisedje / Collaborative Coverage
Indigenous women occupy Sesai building demanding the immediate departure of coordinator Silvia Nobre. Photo: Kamikia Kisedje / Collaborative Coverage
Indigenous women occupy Sesai building demanding the immediate departure of coordinator Silvia Nobre. Photo: Daniela Huberty / Collaborative Coverage
31/Jul/2019
We, members of the Wajãpi Village Council, would like to share new information about what is happening in our Indigenous Land and ask once again for support from either the Federal Police or the Army to ensure the safety of the Wajãpi people.
Yesterday (07/30/19), we received a visit from Senator Randolfe Rodrigues during the morning. He came to hear our perspective about what is happening in our Indigenous Land and asked for better clarification on some information he has received.
The senator declared he will keep on supporting us so that the police can continue investigating the invasion until they arrest the invaders. He also said we should stay in the Wajãpi territory, protecting our communities until we are sure the attackers are no longer inside. Moreover, he invited some Wajãpi people to the physical location of the Federal Prosecution Service to report what they saw and what they know about the invaders.
Last evening, we received some information from the residents of the CTA village, located on the limits with the BR 210 highway. Around 6 pm, a young man from that village went to bathe in the stream nearby the village and heard someone shouting “Hey!” from behind him. When he turned around, there was a tall, strong man with long curly hair and beard pointing at him with a weapon that looked like an automatic 12-gauge shotgun. He got very scared and ran back to the village to call someone for help. Right after that, he returned to the stream with five other men but they no longer found the invader. They found two pairs of barefoot footprints, each of them going in a different direction. They took some pictures and made some videos to present to the police. They decided, however, not to follow the tracks because it was getting dark. According to the young one, the man with the shotgun was wearing a long sleeve black t-shirt.
After receiving this information from the CTA residents, people from other villages by the highway got together to guard the entire portion of the highway located inside the Wajãpi Indigenous Land limits over the night.
This morning, CTA residents found new tracks of two people near the village and warned the other settlements. The residents of the villages by the highway formed groups to search for the invaders. They are still searching.
We, the Wajãpi people, would like to use this note to thank for the great support we are receiving from the organizations of our indigenous movement, such as APOIANP, COIAB, APIB, AIM, Hutukara, CIR, FOIRN, Senator Randolfe Rodrigues, former Senator João Capiberibe, MP Joênia Wapixana, from support organizations as our partner Iepé, CIMI, other civil society organizations like OAB, Association of Judges for Democracy, Brazilian Association of Anthropology, Brazilian Archaeological Society, Greenpeace, WWF, Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network and many others. Not to mention the UN, the Organization of American States (OAS) and people from all over the world.
28/Jul/2019
UNITE TO ORGANIZE, STRENGTHEN TO CONQUEST!
COIAB NOTE AGAINST ATTACKS ON THE WAIÃPI PEOPLE.
The Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon – COIAB, together with its state, regional and local grassroots organizations, mainly together with the APOIANP (Articulation of the Indigenous Peoples and Organizations of Amapá and Northern Pará), come out to publicly express their full solidarity and support for the Waiãpi indigenous people given the recent events of gold miners’ invasion in their territory. Meanwhile, we are expressing our deep and vehement repudiation against this kind of action and which has been intensified, mainly fomented by the intransigent, irresponsible, authoritarian, prejudiced, arrogant and disrespectful declarations of the present government, especially of the Republic President Jair Bolsonaro , with the attacks he has been making against indigenous peoples’ rights in this country, especially against territorial rights already guaranteed in indigenous lands, completely demarcated and regularized in the 1989’s Federal Constitution, and which this government has been constantly trying to back down.
Indigenous peoples who inhabited this country at the time of Brazil’s invasion and who lived free in all its length, today must occupy territories delimited under the juridical figure of indigenous lands, which should at least guarantee adequate conditions for the survival and maintenance of indigenous peoples’ forms of society and culture. However, there are numerous threats to the full enjoyment of already demarcated and approved lands and even greater are the invasions of these territories. These problems have been faced by indigenous peoples since the sixteenth century, when the European invasion and geopolitical occupation of our territory, mainly motivated by economic projects unrelated to the needs and desires of the original peoples in that century. The invasion for prospection in the indigenous territories, mainly in Amazon, has been happening without any state control and despite the impact in indigenous communities. The Yanomami case is an example where thousands of gold miners, since the 1980s, have been invading their lands, located on the Brazil-Venezuela border, leaving a trail of death and destruction that still haunts that region to this day.
This week’s case in the Waiãpi Indigenous Land of the invasion of gold miners in their already demarcated and approved territory since the 1990s, as well as several other recent cases, are scenes already seen for a long time as well recently. We can emphatically attribute and associate these new attacks on indigenous territories, whether for prospection, logging, land grabbing or any other kind of illicit act in indigenous territories, to the greatest enemy of indigenous peoples today, the President of the Republic Jair Messias Bolsonaro and his anti-indigenous ministers and allies, which they systematically come since the time of his campaign until now in his 7 months of government, attacking indigenous peoples, criminalizing indigenous leaders and organizations legitimately representative of these peoples, co-opting and playing indigenous against indigenous peoples and trying at any cost to usurp social and territorial rights guaranteed to the indigenous population; arming the enemies of the indigenous peoples at the base and intensifying the conflict in the territories – all with the unique and exclusive goal of privileging the historical invaders of the indigenous lands, their political allies and the enemies of indigenous peoples, for the illegal exploitation of our lands, with the old discourse of “social and economic development of the country”.
We emphasize our obstinacy in remaining firm in the fight for the defense of rights of indigenous peoples through our indigenous organizations and leaders from our base in the Brazilian Amazon, emphasizing that we are willing to face everything and everyone in the defense of our territories, reinforcing here all our support to the Waiãpi indigenous people, their organizations’ local representatives and APOIANP, stressing all our necessary support to face this situation and demand from the municipal state and federal public authorities the immediate intervention in this situation, aiming to guarantee Waiãpi people’s and territory’s safety, avoiding further aggravation and conflict in the region.
Manaus/AM, July 28, 2019.
FOR THE DEFENSE OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE AND TERRITORIES.
FOR SUPPORTING THE WAIÃPI PEOPLE
FOR THE LIVING WELL OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
29/Apr/2017
Indigenous mobilize in record numbers in a display of democracy to the government that works to end native Rights.
The 14th Free Land Camp (Acampamento Terra Livre – ATL) ended today (4/28) in Brasilia, after days of intense activities and protests. The results were historical. More than four thousand indigenous, originating from 200 communities throughout the entirety of Brazil, were present displaying the force of the indigenous movement. The initial balance was that approximately 1.6 thousand individuals would come the nation’s capital for the event. Today we can observe that this was the largest ATL ever.
“We affirm that we will not tolerate violence, loss of rights or threats perpetrated by the Brazilian State and by economic oligarchs acting against our lives and our rights. We also call upon all of the Brazilian society as well as the international community to join the fight of the original peoples in defending traditional territories and mother nature, for the good of all living beings” states the camp’s final document.
Photo: Mídia Ninja / MNI
The document was received by the Federal House and the Ministries of Education, Health and Justice. The indigenous movement, however, has refused to participate in meetings requested by the Minister of Justice, Osmar Serraglio, and by the Government’s Chief of Staff, Eliseu Padilha. The two are ruralist politicians and the main proponents of measures against indigenous rights within the Federal Government.
Throughout the week, also due to pressures caused by the mobilization, the National Indigenous Fund (Funai) published reports identifying four Indigenous Lands belonging to the Guarani people, one in Paraty (RJ) and another three in Vale do Ribeiro, in São Paulo, as well as one land of the Pipipã people, in Pernambuco. All in all, the areas represent territories corresponding to 70 thousand hectares.
The Brazilian indigenous movement has consolidated unity on its fight and has been forming an international alliance with indigenous leaderships of six countries (Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Ecuador, Bolivia and Indonesia). It has strengthened protagonism among indigenous women and youth and has received support from other social movements in the country. It has also disseminated indigenous culture and its demands like never before, leaving a tough message for the Temer government: “we do not accept attacks on the rights of original peoples.”
Ana Terra Yawalapiti. Photo: Mídia Ninja / MNI
Over the last four days, work groups discussed, among other themes, the pause in demarcation of indigenous lands; the weakening of public policies and institutions supporting indigenous issues; anti-indigenous legislation being proposed in Congress; the “Time Frame” thesis which considers indigenous lands to be only those that were controlled by indigenous communities at the time the Constitution was promulgated (on October 5th, 1988).
Coverage of the camp made by indigenous communicators and partners reached 8.5 million people on social networks throughout the week on the movement’s official page alone. National and international press disseminated the march of thousands of indigenous in Ministries’ Esplanade, main access to government buildings in Brasilia, and published images of the “Demarcation Now” image on banners held up high in front of Congress. Today, the world is more aware of the plight of indigenous peoples in Brazil.
At the beginning of the week, a music video was released showcasing the participation of more than 25 renowned Brazilian artists which was entitled “Demarcation Now”. In the video were artists such as Maria Bethania, Gilberto Gil, Ney Matogrosso, Chico César, Carlos Rennó, Lenine, Nando Reis, Zeca Baleiro, Letícia Sabatella, Elza Soares, Zeca Pagodinho, among others.
Katãn Kaingang baby. Photo: Luíza Calagian / MNI
The ATL also taught a lesson in democracy to the Temer government. On Tuesday (4/25), on its first march of the week, indigenous were received with teargas and rubber bullets in front of Congress. On the next day, they were prohibited from entering the Senate to watch a public hearing and were intimidated by police on the way to and from the camp. In spite of this, on Thursday (4/27) the indigenous held another peaceful march in the center of Brasilia to show their indignation with the treathening and the loss of rights.
For all this motives, the 14th Free Land Camp was a milestone in the fight for and defense of indigenous rights. And the fight goes on.
20/Apr/2017
There are only a few days left for the beginning of the Free Land Camp 2017. The entire program aims to bring together in a large assembly leaders of indigenous peoples and organizations from all regions of Brazil to discuss and position themselves on the violation of the constitutional indigenous rights and the anti-indigenous policies of the brazilian State. Check out the complete grid:
Monday (April 24th)
9am – Free Conference on Women’s Health
Location: Indigenous Peoples’ Memorial
9am/6pm – Presidents of CONDISI Forum
Location: SESAI – 510 North
6pm – Dinner
Location: ATL
7pm – Opening Plenary
Location: ATL
8:30pm – Documentary: ‘Preconstituinte’
9pm – Publication Launch (Unified Report): UN special Rapporteur to the indigenous people; Rapporteur about indigenous rights (Dhesca Platform) and parallel Report to the RPU.
Location: ATL
10:30pm – Surprise artistic presentation
Location: ATL
**All day: Delegations arrival and camp set up
Tuesday (April 25th)
6am/8:30 am – Cultural Activities: singing, dancing and body painting
Location: Delegation tent
7am – Breakfast
Location: ATL
8am – Opening Plenary – welcoming dancing and singing
Location: Main tent
8:30am – Opening Plenary with traditional leaders from the 5 regions
9am/1pm – Seminar “Indigenous Peoples and Original Rights”
Location: Ministério Público Federal
10am – Debate on threats to indigenous rights in the three branches of government
Location: ATL
- Executive Power: Deconstructing the institutions and public policies directed to indigenous people (the paralyzation of demarcation, the dismantling of Funai and Sesai, decrees, etc.).
Participants: Weibe Tapeba and Adriana Ramos
- Legislative Power: anti-indigenous legislative initiatives (Inquiry Parliamentary Commission – CPI; Law Proposals – LP; Constitutional Amendment Proposals – CAP; Legislative Decree Proposals – LDP).
Participants: Sônia Guajajara and Maurício Guetta.
- Judiciary System: “Time Frame” thesis, judicialized demarcation processes; Repossessions of Property; denial of Access to Justice rights; criminalization of leadership.
Participants: Valéria Buriti and Adelar Cupsinski
1pm/2pm – Lunch
Location: ATL
3pm – Guidance for the march
3:30pm – March / National Congress Act
6pm – Dinner
Location: ATL
6pm/7pm – Terra Livre Audiovisual show
7pm/8pm – Monologue Theatre Piece: Gavião de Duas Cabeças
8pm – Indigenous Women Plenary with Angela Kaxuyana and Samanta Xavante
11pm – Cultural Activities
Wednesday (April 26th)
6am/8:30 am – Cultural Activities: singing, dancing and body painting
Location: Delegation tent
7am – Breakfast
Location: ATL
7:30am – General Plenary – welcoming, dancing and singing
Location: Main tent
8am – Plenary: Themed Work Groups Guidance
Moderator: Ceiça Pitaguari and Marivelton Baré
9am – Themed Work Groups
* Indigenous Lands and Territories (land situation, indigenous land demarcation)
* Enterprises that impact indigenous territories (Right to consultation and Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), consultation of community protocols).
* “Time Frame” thesis; right to access justice; indigenous communities and the criminalization of leaders
* Indigenous Health / Indigenous Health Special Secretary (SESAI): background, current situation of the special policy and prospects.
* Indigenous School Education: past, current and prospective situation of the special policy
* Indigenous legislative proposal, national and international (Law Proposals – LP, Constitutional Amendment Proposals – CAP, International Treaties).
Note: In addressing the themes, consider the basic text of the ATL and the proposals deliberated by the First National Conference of Indigenous Peoples (I CNPI).
12am – Lunch
2pm/3:30pm – Plenary: sharing the conclusions of the Themed Groups
Moderator: Dinaman Tuxá and Nara Baré
3:30pm/6:30pm – Debate and ways forward
Note: Invited participants for the plenary: government authorities; members of the Parliament; Jurists and MPF representatives (participants in the Seminar “Indigenous Peoples and Original Rights”).
External
2pm – Public Hearing at the CDH of the Federal Senate, with the participation of a commission of 80 to 100 leaders representing the ATL.
** Table: Kretan Kaingang; Lindomar Terena; Eliseu Lopes; Paulinho Guarani; Paulo Tupiniquim; Sônia Guajajara and Darã Tupi-Guarani
Location: Federal Senate
6pm – Dinner
6pm/9pm – Terra Livre Audiovisual Show
9pm – ‘Demarcação Já’ Concert with indigenous and non indigenous people
Thursday (April 27th)
6am/8h30am – Cultural Activities: singing, dancing and body painting
Location: Delegation tent
7am – Breakfast
8am – General Plenary welcoming dancing and singing
Location: Main tent
8:30am/9:30am – Plenary: “Unify the fights in defense of indigenous Brazil”, with the presence of representatives from urban and rural organizations and social movements.
9:30am/4:30pm – Plenary: “International mobilization and unification of the indigenous peoples fights”, with the presence of APIB indigenous leadership and international indigenous movements.
10h30am/11h30am – Approval of the Conclusions of the Women’s Free Conference
11:30am/12:30am – ATL Final Document
12:30am – Lunch
3pm – March and Demonstration to the Ministries of Environment, Health, Justice and Education, besides Planalto Palace, to file the Final Document of the ATL.
4pm/6pm – Hearings and filing of the Final Document of the ATL and other texts in the offices of the STF Ministers.
6pm – Dinner
6pm – Maracatu
7pm – Terra Livre Audiovisual Show
Movie: Movie Martyrdom
Friday (April 28th)
6am/8h30am – Cultural Activities: singing, dancing and body painting
Location: Delegation tent
7am – Breakfast
8am – General Plenary – welcoming, dancing and singing
Location: Main tent
9am – General Strike: integration with social movements
12am – Final referrals
Additional activities:
1. Meeting of indigenous parliamentarians, mayors and vice-mayors
2. Meetings of indigenous communicators.
3. Meetings of indigenous lawyers.
4. Meetings of Women and Indigenous Youth
5. Other joint meetings.
6. Shows: audiovisual, musical and other cultural and artistic manifestations.
Note: Complementary activities should take place at times other than plenary sessions, working groups, marches and demonstrations, preferably during ATL evenings.
