A meeting of peoples from the Amazon and partners marked the launch this Wednesday (05/04), at GaleriAmazônica, in Manaus, of the publication Povos Indígenas no Brasil 2017-2022, by the Instituto Socioambiental (ISA), starting the April celebrations Indigenous.
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Representatives of the Baré, Baniwa, Wanano, Witoto, Tukano, Hup´däh, Desano, Kanamari, Tikuna, Waimiri Atroari, Galibi peoples, among others, were present at a dabacurii – the traditional exchange ceremony in the Upper Rio Negro region – of knowledge , history, experiences, resistance and future.
The master and chief Luiz Laureano, from the Baniwa people, conducted a presentation of Japurutu flutes.
Representatives of the indigenous movement, the black and LGBTQIA+ movements of Amazonas, organized civil society, the government, the judiciary, universities and collectives participated in the launch, indicating the wide network of support for the cause of indigenous peoples.
The publication’s arrival in the capital of Amazonas has special contours due to the central role of the Amazon and the region’s peoples in discussions on the organization and strengthening of indigenous politics and the climate emergency.
Concentrating around 90% of all Indigenous Lands in the country and approximately 55% of Brazilian traditional peoples, the Amazon is the forest-house, place of resistance, struggle, culture and experiences reinvented by the indigenous people.
The period portrayed by the publication is considered the greatest threat to these peoples since post-redemocratization, with the double threat of an anti-indigenous government and the health crisis caused by Covid-19. In Amazonas, the pandemic was accentuated by the oxygen crisis, which placed indigenous peoples in a particularly vulnerable situation.
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Indigenous leaders made up the discussion table, with the theme “Never again Brazil without us – The demarcation of politics by indigenous peoples”, with the presence of Cris Baré, Dadá Baniwa and Vanda Witoto.
The conversation conducted by the women showed the strength of women in the indigenous movement, which has been reflected in public life. “This book talks about the struggle of our peoples in the last five years, which have been marked by great resistance, especially in the face of our country’s anti-indigenous policy. This fight is not new”, pointed out Vanda Witoto.
She warned of the importance of the Amazon knowing its own indigenous history in order to think about the future of the original peoples. “The Amazon is extremely prejudiced against its indigenous history and has been electing people with hate speech against their own history”, she lamented.
“We prospect the indigenous future, but without looking to the past. To say that the future is indigenous, it is extremely important for us to think about the untold story about ourselves, what is our role in this history as an indigenous person, what is our identity, which was usurped from our narrative, our territory, historical time . We need to reframe the indigenous history of the Amazon, not just from the violence suffered, to think about the ancestral future, the indigenous future”, he said.
Vanda Witoto mentioned the importance of the publication for the reconstruction of this history and for the information to reach people who are unaware of the indigenous reality. “It is the first time that a Witoto woman is part of the book. My grandmother passed away at the age of 87 without being able to say that we were Witoto. This is the story of many women in the Amazon who were silenced by all the historical violence of colonization, the imposition of the Church”, she pointed out.
“Today, my generation and my little nieces are at this event, being able to assert themselves as Witoto, bringing the memory of our grandmothers”, he celebrated. Vanda Witoto, who was accompanied at the event by her mother, sister and nieces, is part of the publication and is one of the protagonists of the mini-documentary that accompanies this edition.
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During the conversation with the audience, various topics were addressed, from the current scenario of strengthening indigenous policy, passing through the struggles of indigenous women, challenges for youth, access to universities and territory.
Legal advisor to the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (Coiab), Cris Baré raised the alert of resistance of indigenous peoples in the National Congress, which has maintained an anti-indigenous agenda even after the change in the Executive Branch.
She spoke of the increase in the performance of indigenous lawyers and ADPF 709. In the book, the Arguição de Descumprimento de Preceito Fundamental (ADPF nº 709) is addressed in a text by Eloy Terena, former legal coordinator of the Articulação dos Povos Indígenas do Brasil (Apib) and current Executive Secretary of the new Ministry of Indigenous Peoples. In the article, he points out that the resistance of indigenous peoples was based on the understanding of “fighting with the pen, no longer just with the bow and arrow”.
For Cris Baré, the information in the book is of great importance in the struggle of indigenous peoples also in the Judiciary. “The book brings the reality of indigenous peoples and much of this information serves as subsidies in procedural documents in this legal space that we occupy on behalf of our indigenous organizations”, reflected the lawyer.
Indigenous leader, former coordinator of the Department of Indigenous Women of the Federation of Indigenous Organizations of Rio Negro (Dmirn-Foirn), Dadá Baniwa shared her story of struggle – inspired by her mother –, the expansion of women’s role in politics and the need to actions involving youth in indigenous territory.
“This publication is very important for indigenous peoples and all Brazilian people to know their history. As an indigenous woman, I can say that this is a story of resistance, our territory, our life as a woman. It is very important for our children and grandchildren to know this story, ”she reflected.
It comes from Rio Negro – a region where people of 23 ethnic groups live – another powerful female voice. Born in Assunção do Içana, in the Rio Negro Basin, anthropologist Francy Baniwa was not present at the launch, but she is in the book. The “Indigenous Words” section, with thoughts from eight indigenous leaders, begins with Francy’s words. It recalls the attacks and resistance in the years of the Bolsonaro Government and brings a strong report on the connection of indigenous peoples with their territories.
“For my Baniwa people, territory means a sacred place, because the Baniwa people originated from a sacred place called ripana, which is the navel of the world. It’s a waterfall and, according to our narratives, our methodologies, we are born from a vagina made of stone. So, our connection with the territory is sacred, because we were born from this Hipana, from this waterfall, currently called Uapuí, and we are connected to this place, ”he wrote.
The communicator Ray Baniwa, member of the Wayuri Network of Indigenous Communicators, which operates in the Upper Rio Negro, wrote an article about networks of indigenous communicators.
“The book talks about that period from 2017 to 2022, when networks of communicators were created and strengthened. The Wayuri Network was created during this period and today it is the inspiration for several networks that are still being created. Communicators began to appropriate digital media and use them to communicate as a strategy for rights and territories. This story is in the book”, said he, who was at the launch in Manaus.