Respect and Solidarity

When the Europeans invaded the "New World" over 500 years ago, more than 2000 distinctive ethnic groups of "indios" lived there. Today in Brazil, out of what was then an estimated 5 - 6 million, there are 325,000 people in 215 indigenous societies , making up 0.02% of the national population.

Trying to turn back the clock on 500 years of history, in a country where the land question is one of the most disastrous in the world, would be utopian. The structure of rural property is as out-of-date as black slavery was in the last century (see article on agrarian reform) and also shows the insatiable greed and fierce barbarism of many non-indians. This has strongly marked a long and intense history where the "indios" have witnessed a thorough negation of all their rights. To instance a case, a 44 year old Pataxo Ha-Ha Hae, while in Brasilia campaigning for the return of almost 1000 hectares of land, was macabrely burned to death by five middle class youths on 21 April, as he slept in a bus shelter. The youths poured alcohol on him and set him alight because he was "nothing but a beggar"! The plain truth is that the "indios" are living at the mercy of unscrupulous people who wish to cruelly exploit them. Indeed, the plight of the Brazilian "indios" highlights the hypocrisy and pathology of the crass greed inherent in state, federal and international economics.

Of the 554 territories of the "indios" officially recognised in Brazil, 275 have been clearly defined. This means the other 279 have not been clearly defined and their legal status and full recognition remain ambiguous and in some cases very uncertain. According to the Brazilian Constitution of 1988, Article 231, the "indios" have exclusive rights to the land demarcated as their territory. Such land rights are vital for their self-determination and cultural identity. On January 8th, 1996, Fernando Henrique Cardoso edited the Decree 1775 whereby the extension of all the lands of the "indios" could be questioned by all interested parties like politicians, landowners, logger or mining companies or any local municipality. The Decree 1775, if carried out, could lead to the reduction of some 200 territories of the "indios" which have already been demarcated but not registered, and some other 140 others presently in the process of demarcation. Therefore the Decree does not guarantee the indigenous peace or land.

On a positive note, the "indios" are strongly resisting. They have their own indigenous organization according to their cultures, over 100 and more. Each group of "indios" has their own respective way of organizing themselves. What is novel is the fact the organization is on a regional and national level with the intention to overcome their "common enemies" in order to guarantee their basic human rights against the fierce threats to their physical and cultural lives.

There is no doubt that these "indios" of Brazil and "indios" elsewhere are the "maestros" of ecology. Nature is deeply imbedded in their cultural roots. Nature speaks, they listen attentively to her voice. As they respect and are in solidarity with Mother Nature, they likewise seek respect and the solidarity of her many children on the face of this earth.

It is evident that the rights of the "indios" are eroding fast. They are being abandoned. International communities and organizations like LASC and the Irish Brazilian Solidarity Group need to exert public pressure by encouraging the Brazilian Government to carry out fully its National Human Rights Programme. Indeed, at the end of the day, it befalls all of us to express our solidarity and uphold the original rights of the "indios", whose first and last worry is to have, defend and keep their own lands.