Wednesday the 10th of December the Federal Supreme Court will continue the judgement of the Raposa Serra do Sol case. Meanwhile the indigenous people of that area continue to raise support all over Brazil for their.

 

During a massive protest in Brasília, the 3^rd of December, about 20.000 workers supported the current demarcation, in its continuous nature. The Raposa-case under judgement in the Federal Supreme Court revolves around that question. 

During the March, the Makuxi chieftain Ednaldo André testified for the workers and parliamentarians of the history of violence in the Raposa region. He also spoke about the struggle for justice that the indigenous people endured for the last 30 years. Thanking for the support received of the various social movements, he reaffirmed the confidence of the indigenous people that the STF will maintain the actual demarcation.

 

Indigenous Cultures Prize

The current demarcation was also defended in São Paulo, during the ceremony of the Indigenous Cultures Prize, of the Ministry of Culture. President of the National Art Foundation (Funarte) Sérgio Mamberti underlined that the ceremony should be seen as a manifestation of support for that indigenous area. Chief Dionito Makuxi reminded the audience that the judgement will happen on a very symbolic date: exactly sixty years ago the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed.

 

Raposa Background
In the indigenous area of Raposa Serra do Sol, in the Northern state of Roraima, live over 19 thousand indigenous of the Makuxi, Wapichana, Ingaricó, Taurepang e Patamona people. In April 20005, the area was demarcated by presidential decree, in a continuous area of 1,743 million hectares. Until 2008 the Federal Government tried to negotiate with the non-indigenous inhabitants occupying land in the area a peaceful handover of the land. The vast majority accepted the indenisations and left. However, a small group of rice farmers rejected all proposals.

Three times the Federal Police tried to evict these large land owners, the last time in March 2008. They were stopped by the violent reaction of these land owners. They organised violent resistance, including bombings, arson, road blocs, burning of bridges and murder attempts on indigenous leaders. They also demanded that no action were taken until the federal Supreme Court had judged a pending case concerning the legality of the actual demarcation.

The STF sided with that claim, suspending the eviction operation of the Police. The first vote, of the promoter of the case, judge Carlos Ayres Britto, was in favour of the actual, uninterrupted demarcation and in favour of the eviction of the non-indigenous people in the area.

After that vote, the second judge, Minister Carlos Menezes Direito, asked for extra time to consider this vote. Coming Wednesday, December 10, the case will return to the Supreme Court to continue the voting session.

 

 

Conference:

O grito de Makunaima – 60 anos da Declaração Universal dos Direitos Humanos e os Povos Indígenas da Raposa Serra do Sol

 

The topic of this conference is the relation between Human Rights and the indigenous question.

December 8, 15.00 – 1800 hrs, Ministry of Justice, Brasília

 

 

Brasília, 5^th of december 2008

Cimi – Indianist Missionary Council

www.cimi.org.br