Funai is still receiving contestation suits against indigenous
areas all over the country, even after the deadline for their filing,
April 8. What happens is that so as not to miss the deadline, several
suits were sent to Funai's regional administration offices and only
now are getting to Brasilia. As of last Wednesday, April 10, a total
of 1,145 contestations against 55 territories had been received. Among
those, 51 were annulled for illegality, showing that the invaders'
nerve has no limits. Of those 51,32 are against the Yanomami area,
already registered and, therefore, free from contestation, and 19 are
by the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural
Resources (IBAMA), which is a federal agency and, therefore, may not
claim indigenous areas. By the number of contestations presented so
far, over 35% of the areas already demarcated or in the process of
demarcation have been affected, the ones claimed the most being Sao
Marcos, of the Macuxi Indians, in the state of Roraima, with 573
contestations, and the Xucuru area, in the state of Pernambuco, with
271.
Funai has created a group of anthropologists and lawyers, some of
them from indigenous institutions, to produce the opinions necessary
to the contestations during the next two months. Cimi, after being
insistently asked to, refused to participate in that group,
maintaining its opposition to the decree, whose objective is clearly
to reduce the existing indigenous areas. In a note sent to several
institutions and to the press, Cimi reiterates that no matter how
good the opinions the technicians give, they will be subject to the
logic of Decree 1775/96, which disregards the original rights of
indigenous peoples to the land.
Cimi also affirms that participating in that process is
compactuating with the Brazilian Government's anti-indigenous policy
and warns that the contestations will not stop on April 8, since 213
indigenous areas which are still waiting for identification or a
demarcation Administrative rule run the risk of never being
demarcated, for they are also subject to this disastrous decree.
The institution will inspect and denounce the abuse against indigenous
rights and demands the revocation of Decree 1775/96.
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE IN RONDONIA DENOUNCE REDUCTION OF AREA
The Rondonia, Mato Grosso do Norte, and South Amazonas
Coordination for the Nation Union and Indigenous Peoples (Cunpir)
denounced this week to the World Bank that the Governor of the state
of Rondonia, Valdir Raupp, based on Decree 1775/96, wants to reduce
indigenous areas financed by the Bank. According to Cunpir, during 20
days several Indians in the region noticed a state government's
helicopter flew over five indigenous areas and landed on one of them.
Aboard the helicopter were public agency technicians who surveyed the
limits of these areas, which are already being contested by the state
government and where the World Bank finances preservation projects
such as Planafloro. Cunpir asked for strict verification of that
information and denounced that the Bank runs the risk of financing a
country which ``uses misleading propaganda of environmental and
indigenous peoples protection and, at the same time, promotes the
reduction of indigenous areas of the peoples who live on them.''
Brasilia, April 11, 1996.
Indianist Missionary Council - Cimi