INDIGENOUS COUNCILOR AND FIVE OTHER PEOPLE ARE ATTACKED IN BAHIA

 

Former indigenous chief Gerson de Souza Melo, of the Pataxó Hã-Hã-Hãe people, and current councilor for the Workers’ Party in the municipality of Pau Brasil, in Bahia, was attacked together with five other people on March 21 on the highway that joins the city of Pau Brasil to the Caramuru village. According to information provided by indigenous people, a Funai vehicle that was carrying them was attacked by three men who fired three shots at the councilor.

 

The shots, from high caliber weapons, perforated the vehicle in 28 places but did not hit any of the passengers. The attack was reported to the Civil Police and the Federal Police who have started to investigate the incident.

 

The councilor Gerson de Souza Melo, who has been receiving death threats from gunmen working for farmers in the region, believes that this attempted assassination is connected to his intransigent position in the defense of his people’s territory and the exposure he has given to the persecution and injustice suffered by the Pataxó Hã-Hã-Hãe people.

 

The Pataxó Hã-Hã-Hãe are carrying out an intensive process to reclaim ownership of lands traditionally occupied by them. The tension between farmers and indigenous people in the region persists and, for this land dispute to be settled, it is necessary for the Federal Supreme Court to judge an action to declare title deeds null and void which has been in the hands of the courts for 23 years.

 

IN THE ATY GUASU ASSEMBLY, GUARANI-KAIOWÁ REQUEST THE OFFICIAL CONFIRMATION OF THE BOUNDS OF THEIR LAND AND PERFORM RITUALS IN A QUEST FOR A BETTER LIFE

 

The Aty Guasu, the Great Assembly of the Guarani-Kaiowá people, was held from March 18 to 20 in the Ñande ru Marangatu indigenous land in the municipality of Antônio João, state of Mato Grosso do Sul, and brought together 320 indigenous people, including  adults, young people and children.

 

Along with the debates on the Guarani-Kaiowá’s struggle for the recognition and recovery of their lands, the assembly also has a strong ritualistic character. “The prayers and dancing were positive. We danced all night and prayed to calm down the spirits and for a better life when we can have our land and live our lives with renewed spirits,” said leader Anastácio Peralta.

 

Ñande ru Marangatu was the place chosen for the assembly because this land, which was recognized as a traditional indigenous territory, needs to be ratified to prevent an eviction order against the indigenous people from being carried out. The final statement of the assembly, intended for the President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, requests the “immediate ratification of the bounds of the Ñande ru Marangatu indigenous land along with all the disputed areas (tekoha) in the state.”

 

In the statement, the indigenous people take up a position opposing Senate Bill PLS 188 put forward by Senator Delcídio do Amaral (PT-MS), which proposes changes to the administrative procedure for demarcating indigenous lands. “These changes are designed to harm indigenous peoples in Brazil by slowing procedures down and declaring cases already in progress void,” they state.

 

The indigenous people once again link the situation of hunger in their villages in the state and cases of child malnutrition to the shortage of land: “The cases of malnutrition which have been registered in Kaiowá Guarani villages are not ‘simply’ due to the hunger and misery suffered by the people, because in reality, hunger, misery and also violence are a historical consequence of the shortage of land. In the case of Mato Grosso do Sul, almost all the indigenous lands should have their boundaries reviewed in the light of the Constitution, but the demarcation procedures have ground to a halt or have not even been started. Up to now, only 1 (one) tekoha in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, which is undergoing a boundary review process, has been ratified. This was the case of the Panambizinho indigenous land,” they say.

 

Anastácio Peralta, an indigenous leader from Dourados, focused on the part played by women in the Aty Guasu: “Sunday was very moving, with women speaking about the value of the land,” he said. Missionary Egon Heck also highlighted the female presence: “They made the most incisive speeches and demands. They were not only working in the kitchen and attending celebrations. They also attended plenary and group sessions,” he tells us.

 

The assembly finished off with a tribute to indigenous leaders Marçal de Souza and Dom Quiquito at the Campestre settlement, where Marçal de Souza was murdered in November 1983.

 

The next Aty Guasu has been scheduled for July in the Caarapó indigenous land, around 50 km from Dourados, state of Mato Grosso do Sul.

 

Brasília, 23 March 2005.

 

Cimi – Indianist Missionary Council