2023-09-18 18:35:00
Biome women march in Brasília to end gender violence and threats to their traditional territories | Webert da Cruz/ISA
It was with the call for an end to violence against indigenous women and for more candidacies from indigenous women that, last week, between the 11th and 13th of September, around 8 thousand indigenous women, from Brazil and around the world, took to the streets of Brasília in the III March of Indigenous Women.
Organized by the National Articulation of Indigenous Women Warriors of Ancestry (Anmiga), the mobilization has been taking place since 2019 with the aim of connecting, strengthening, debating and proposing forms of action, in addition to promoting gender equality, the defense of rights and the preservation of indigenous cultures.
This year, the National Arts Foundation (Funarte) was the place chosen to receive indigenous women who traveled to the Brazilian capital.
The mobilization came to an end with an act at the Esplanada dos Ministérios, followed by the signing of a commitment between the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples (MPI) and the Ministry of Women to implement public policies focused on indigenous women, aiming for their protection and strengthening, within and outside their territories.
Present were the Minister of Indigenous Peoples, Sônia Guajajara; of Women, Cida Gonçalves; of Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva; of Racial Equality, Anielle Franco, and of Science, Technology and Innovation, Luciana Santos, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Culture.
Among the agreements signed during the final table is the Guardians of the Territory program, which aims to train female leaders and help combat violence against women in indigenous territories. According to Minister Sonia Guajajara, to guarantee its effectiveness, the program must be put into practice in partnership with state bodies for the protection of women.
The second action announced takes place at Dourados Indigenous Reservein Mato Grosso do Sul. According to data from the 2022 Census, the area reserved for the Guarani and Terena peoples has a demographic density of 393.46 inhabitants per square kilometer, exceeding by more than three times that of Campo Grande, the state capital in which is located.
The measure establishes the implementation of the first Brazilian Women’s House in the city where the reserve is located. According to the announcement by Cida Gonçalves, from the Ministry of Women, “there will be indigenous women and, preferably, indigenous health professionals, serving women, as already agreed with the city hall and the state government”. The minister also committed to taking the proposal to the six Brazilian biomes.
“That alone is not enough. It is necessary to have the Indigenous Women’s House in the biomes, in the territories where women are. To do this, we will hold six meetings to discuss with you, there in the biomes, what the Indigenous Women’s House will be; what type of service needs to be provided. At the same time, we will discuss, here, with the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples and the National Congress, the bill that places indigenous women in the Maria da Penha Law. Let’s build this, so we have a policy to combat violence against indigenous women”
The march to the National Congress Indigenous women say ‘no’ to Marco Temporal during the Anmiga mobilization in Brasília | Webert da Cruz/ISA
It was with the singing of indigenous women from the six Brazilian biomes and the world that around 8 thousand people marched towards the National Congress asking for an end to proposals that put the existence of indigenous peoples at risk.
One of them, Bill 2903/2023, already approved in the Chamber of Deputies and which must be voted on by the Senate, in addition to embracing the time frame thesis, also puts at risk the exclusive enjoyment of indigenous peoples over their territory, by establishing that it should not override the interest of national defense and sovereignty policy, among other various anti-indigenous proposals.
The time frame thesis that will be judged in the Federal Supreme Court (STF) next Wednesday (20), in turn, was also on the agenda during the March, mainly for the Laklãnõ Xokleng indigenous people, from Ibirama-The Clan Indigenous Lands which is at the center of the trial.
For Txulunh Gakran, a member of the Xoklenga Youth, the fight against the time frame is not restricted to the Xokleng people nor just to indigenous peoples. She points out that indigenous peoples are essential for keeping forests standing, rivers alive and life on the planet functioning. “It is necessary for everyone to understand that our fight is the same fight as everyone else”, she concludes.
Regarding the time frame, she highlights that the thesis puts at risk mainly those people who do not yet have their territory demarcated and are in the process of reclaiming it.
“And this is exactly what we are experiencing, we have a limit of demarcated territory, but we are seeking to expand it and we experience this constant conflict due to non-demarcation. And that’s exactly what happens, the longer the process takes, the more our lives are threatened, but we only experience violations and the fewer rights we have access to.”
This, for example, is the case of Votouro/Kandóia Indigenous Land, where Cleci Pinto, from the Kaingang people lives. The IT is located in the municipalities of Faxinalzinho and Benjamim Constant do Sul, in Rio Grande do Sul and has been waiting for 14 years for its demarcation process. While this does not happen, the Kaingang people continue to face a series of conflicts and violence from local farmers.
For Cleci Pinto, the time frame thesis greatly affects the demands of the Kaingang people. “She destroys us”, he says. “This thesis passing is another point for these farmers”, he assesses.
Delegation of indigenous women of the world
To add to the struggle of Brazilian indigenous women, indigenous people from 18 peoples representing the indigenous movement from Malaysia, Africa, Uganda, the United States, Peru, Kenya, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Russia, Indonesia, Guatemala and Finland, also attended the III March .
Rosalee Gonzalez, of the Xicana-Kickapoo people and northern region coordinator of the Continental Network of Indigenous Women (ECMIA), a continental organization made up of 23 national indigenous women’s organizations in 19 countries, was one of the indigenous women members of the international delegation.
“We are here because we also share the struggles.”, he pointed out. “We know that attention to one community is not attention to all communities. And so we understand the diversity of indigenous peoples in a country. So we are here to stand in solidarity with the indigenous women who are organizing here today, to support all those who have no voice. We are here to support all those who have become invisible,” she said.
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