By the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil – Apib
APOINME | ARPIN SUDESTE | ARPINSUL | COIAB | Guarani Yvyrupa Commission | Terena People's Council | ATY GUASU
We have reached the 18th edition of the Free Land Camp (ATL), after two years of virtual events due to the Covid-19 pandemic, during which we lost many of our own. However, we continue with the strength of our ancestors, rising again to return to in-person actions with the theme: "Reclaiming Brazil: Demarcating Territories and Establishing Politics in the Village". This year, we will occupy the federal capital from April 4th to 14th.
We are in an election year, and to begin our journey of struggle, we declare this the last year of the genocidal government. Our "Indigenous April" will be marked by symbolic actions that will demonstrate our capacity in the fight for the demarcation and establishment of indigenous villages within Brazilian politics.
We start from the struggle in virtual and local territories of political and social action, based on our ancestral wisdom, on care for the people and the Brazilian territory, to say: "politics will indeed be indigenous territory!". Our aim is to promote well-being, reforest minds, and bring the culture of politics into the village. A joint and democratic way of deciding and guiding the future.
We are facing urgent issues that threaten our lives and traditions. The demarcation of our territories remains our main priority, so defending life against this agenda of destruction is our main focus.
There is a relentless attempt to implement deadly projects against our territories and lives. One of the central proposals of the current federal government is the opening of Indigenous Lands to large-scale mining, hydroelectric dams, and major infrastructure projects. Bill 191/2020 is one of the main instruments of this destructive policy, which has been presented as a legislative priority of the federal government since its inception. Although it is still in the legislative process for eventual regulation, it is already possible to feel the damaging impacts of mining on Indigenous territories. We observe the contamination of our rivers and the devastation of our forests and entire communities that, when not destroyed or swept away by the toxic mud from leaking mining tailings dams, have been left without access to water.
The government's anti-indigenous agenda is constantly in action, as exemplified by bill 490/2007, which insists on ending demarcations, reviewing indigenous lands, and, moreover, seeks to legalize crimes in our territories. In addition to the bills on the priority agenda of the National Congress, such as: PL 6.299/2002 – Pesticides, PL 2.633/2020 and PL 510/2021 – Land Grabbing, and PL 3.729/2004 – Environmental Licensing.
We also want to draw your attention to the Supreme Federal Court's (STF) judgment on the time frame, which will resume in the first half of 2022. This is one of the most important judgments in history, and it will define the course of the demarcation of Indigenous Lands.
Indigenous April is the month of major popular mobilizations by the Indigenous movement! Therefore, we will occupy the capital of Brazil to demand our rights guaranteed in the 1988 Constitution.
Our struggle is for the land, for life, for our natural resources, and for the sovereignty of the Brazilian people!