News-Letter Nr. 622

2nd Continental Meeting of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas

The 2nd Continental Meeting of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas will be held on July 21-25 in Quito, Ecuador. Six indigenous leaders from Brazil representing the Coordinating Board of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon Region (Coiab), the Association of Indigenous Peoples of the Northeast, Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo (Apoinme), and the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR) will attend the meeting, which will be one of the events marking the end of the Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, as declared by the United Nations in 1994.

The meeting precedes the 1st Social Forum of the Americas, which will begin on the 25th and has the following objectives: sharing the cultural wealth, struggle, and realities of the different indigenous peoples of each country; developing alternative proposals based on the vision that these peoples have of the world; fostering closer bonds of solidarity and joint actions to defend the rights and development of indigenous peoples; and establishing permanent mechanisms amongst the peoples to strengthen their participation in the World Social Forum and alliances with other social sectors on the continent.

During the five days of the meeting, indigenous people from different parts of the American continent will take part in conferences, round tables, and plenary sessions in which the following topics will be discussed: lands, territories and natural resources; autonomy and free self-determination; diversity and plurality; indigenous knowledge and intellectual property; indigenous rights and multilateral organizations; nationalities and indigenous peoples; social movements and the World Social Forum; indigenous women; political participation and alternative governments; and militarization. A ceremonial act will also be held every day, as well as an intercultural night and a march through the main streets of Quito.

According to Cimi's executive secretary, éden Magalhães, who will attend the meeting, the entity is expected to enhance its contribution to this worldwide search for alternatives to the hegemonic neo-liberal model.

Egon Heck, a Cimi missionary who will also attend the meeting in Quito, believes that the participants will engage in deeper discussions about the issues addressed during the first continental meeting and that, above all, strategies will be defined to continue the discussions during the next World Social Forum and other international meetings. “This second meeting shows that the process of building alternatives based on the struggle and experiences of indigenous peoples has advanced, but we have to advance further.”

Egon highlighted that because of the frustration experienced by indigenous peoples with the governments of their countries, as with the Lula administration in Brazil, “these large meetings inspire and strengthen local movements in the different countries and bring hope to them when governments try to defeat the aspirations and advances of the indigenous movement,” he concluded.

Osmar Pataxó, who will represent Apoinme and the Pataxó Resistance and Struggle Front, has high expectations in relation to this meeting. The exchange of experiences, the joining of forces with peoples from other countries and the possibility of disseminating the struggle of the Pataxó People are, according to this indigenous leader, the most important benefits afforded by the meeting. “The struggle of indigenous peoples should not be just a domestic struggle. We must joint forces with peoples from other countries in order to become stronger. We, the Pataxó people from the south region of Bahia, are fighting for the demarcation of the Pascoal Mount land, which is our traditional territory, and this meeting will allow us to disseminate our struggle internationally and to report the threats we have been receiving from gunmen hired by farmers in our region.” This is the first time that

Osmar will be leaving Brazil to represent his people in another country, a task he is taking very seriously and which touches him deeply. “Indigenous peoples from other countries will be attending the meeting, and this will enrich our people very much. I have the huge responsibility of representing the Pataxó People out of Brazil and I am thrilled with this opportunity to disseminate the struggle of the Pataxó people to the world.”

The 1st Meeting of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas was held in Ottawa, Canada, in March 2001.

Indigenous peoples and organizations linked to social movements in Mato Grosso do Sul reject proposal from senator

About 700 leaders from the Atikum, Guarani-Kaiowá, Terena, Kadiwéu, Kinikinawá, Ofaié and Guató peoples attended a plenary session held in Campo Grande on JuLy 2 by organizations linked to social movements of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul to further their mobilization efforts in defense of indigenous rights and against a report prepared by Senator Delcídio Amaral (Workers' Party/state of Mato Grosso do Sul).

The indigenous leaders, as well as representatives from 25 organizations, state attorneys of Campo Grande and Dourados, representatives of governmental agencies, and state representative Pedro Kemp, discussed the report prepared by the senator and approved by the Senate on June 8, which prohibits the demarcation of indigenous lands in border areas and of indigenous lands to which invaders have title deeds and conditions the demarcation of all indigenous lands to the prior approval of the National Defense Council and the Federal Senate.

The participants challenged and rejected the propositions made in the report, arguing the restrictions they impose on the demarcation of indigenous lands disregard historical rights of indigenous peoples and the Federal Constitution, in addition to fostering violence against indigenous people. On that occasion, a document was approved and delivered to the senator with proposals for ensuring indigenous rights provided for in the Federal Constitution, and accusing the Federal Administration and the state of Mato Grosso do Sul of unduly transferring indigenous lands to third parties and issuing title deeds to them. (click here to read the full document).

When he received the document, senator Delcídio promised to show the proposals to the President of the Republic and to turn them into a bill to be passed by the Senate.

Before this meeting, the participants in a plenary session held on June 23 had rejected the report of the senator and defended 13 proposals, among which a proposal to “maintain and apply Articles 231 and 232 and immediately enforce the provisions of Article 67 of the Transitional Constitutional Provisions.” (click here and read the document)

Faced with this reality, indigenous movements and organizations decided to remain mobilized and to continue to defend and follow up on the rights of indigenous people and the demarcation of indigenous lands at state and national level.

Brasília, July 15th 2004
Cimi - Indianist Missionary Council

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