Under the attentive eye of scores of Guarani and the rhythmic sound of mbaraká and takuara, of the nhanderu and nhandesi (religious leaders) of the Guarani Peoples of South America, three helicopters landed tranquilly on the soccer field. The Ministers of Culture of Brazil and Paraguay and authorities came in observance of a protocol previously sent to the coordinators of the Assembly of the Guarani peoples of South America, held in the small village of Añetete, in western Paraná, in the Paraná river valley.

 

Silence

There was not much talk, because authorities have no time to lose; only the essential. Arrive, see and be seen, to hear and sign the document and to say that they came. Shaking hands, distributing smiles, showing off sympathy. This appears to be the orientation of the protocol of the Ministry of Culture. For the Guarani, recognized as the "people of the word", this represents a mutilation of their right to have their say. After all, there was much they had to say and wanted to say. Suffocated by suffering, their rights threatened, confined to small plots of land or camped on the edges of roads and estates, subjected to physical violence and discrimination every day, this is all they meant to the Ministers of Culture of Brazil and Paraguay. They wanted to be heard by the authorities. In the final account there had been two days of debate about the serious situation experienced by more than 600 Guarani communities in Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia and Uruguay. There are over 300 thousand persons, their lands and cultures invaded and plundered.

 

Dispersed

In an irony of history, the people who wrote one of the most beautiful pages of resistance on the Continent, who built one of the most promising models that confronted the colonial model, characterized by Piere Lugon as  "The Christian “Communist” Republic of the Guarani” [1610-1768], these same Guarani Peoples, dispersed throughout a large territory extending from the Rio de la Plata to the Amazon, are now demanding recognition of their rights as people who want to be respected, to live in peace and felicity in their lands, now subjected to so many ills.

 

Permanent forum on Guarani Rights

Following the introductions, there was a reading of the document of the Assembly in which they call for the  "Creation and support of a Special Secretariat of Representation of the Guarani People linked to the MERCOSUL Cultural [entity]." Furthermore, the document proposes the creation of a permanent forum of discussion in defense of Guarani rights within MERCOSUL. The document also calls for to conducting cultural activities, seminars, exchange, public policies and ensuring the punitive measures in cases of  discrimination, prejudice and violence against the Guarani people.

 

 

Unfortunately what had been the central theme of debates and manifestations of the Guarani People during the Assembly was not included in the final document signed by Ministers: the question of land. That was firmly addressed by participants in the evaluation. It was alleged that there had been a typing error, so later was added the phrase "to guarantee the demarcation and/or restitution of lands and territories traditionally occupied by the Guarani people, and the revision of boundaries conforming to their uses, customs and traditions."

 

At the closing of the assembly another document was read and approved, which did address the historical process of colonial invasion and of the urgent need for the regularization of Guarani lands. A special document addressing the grave situation of the Guarani Kaiowá in Mato Grosso do Sul – where the meeting should have been held, but was impeded by the authorities – will only be published in the publication on the meeting by the Ministry of Culture.

 

The Assembly of the Guarani Peoples of South America took place between 2 and 5 February in the village Añetete in the city of Diamante D’Oeste, in Paraná, with the participation of approximately 800 Guarani of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia.

 

The Guarani people and the borders

The assembly document calls to "guarantee and respect, through changes of the border laws, the cultural free transit, in accord with the traditions of the indigenous peoples on the borders between Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia, understanding that for us, Guarani people, the ethnic and ancestral territories always pertained to us – open borders". 

 

Minister Juca Ferreira, in his brief speech, highlighted the importance of the Guarani on the border: "This cooperation and this presence of the indigenous peoples in the proximity of the border, far from being a problem is a solution for Brazil. For us in the Ministry of Culture we have no fear, no fear of the presence of indigenous peoples and demarcation of their territory near the border. The indigenous peoples have that right, and in addition to that right, they are security for ecological, social and political stability in the measure to which they establish affective relationships with relatives living in the other countries".

 

Minister of Culture of Paraguay, Ticio, went further. He said that we have much to learn from the great Guarani nation, which has not only been of the Yvy (land) but the "tekohá" (traditional territory) of MERCOSUL, which is of a higher order than the nations, the borders.

 

At the closing, a note of solidarity was read, sent to the assembly by Via Campesina. "The Via Campesina understands that the peasants and indigenous peoples have an important role in preservation of the environment and agrobiodiversity. We hope that the articulation made by the Assembly consolidates a real solidarity and strengthening of the Guarani People" (Via Campesina in Parana).

 

In the evaluation of the vast majority of participants, despite some limitations on the agenda of the assembly, the meeting was an important step forward in building and strengthening unity of the Guarani people, from the perspective of the Culture. Not forgetting that [culture] develops in a territory and that therefore, the primary and most important way to support the Guarani culture is to ensure their lands and territories.

 

Indigenous hero and saint Sepe Tiaraju

On the day of Sepe Tiaraju, assassinated more than two and a half centuries ago, recognized as one of 10 national heroes in Brazil and seen as saint by the people in Rio Grande do Sul, the Guarani say to the world that they are not only of the past, but are in the present struggle and would like join in building a different kind of solidarity and a new political and economic configuration in South America.

 

Egon Heck

 

Original text in Portuguese: Ministros assumam causa Guarani

 

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