The Catholic Church in Brazil, particularly the segment
working with indigenous populations, received good news
yesterday. The Holy See appointed the president of the Indianist
Missionary Council (CIMI), dom Apparecido Jose Dias, to be the
bishop of Roraima, replacing dom Aldo Mongiano, who was in charge
of that Diocese in the last 20 years.
The state of Roraima, located in Amazonia, is internationally
known for constant acts of violence against the Yanomami, Makuxi,
Taurepang, Wapixana and Ingarico indigenous peoples, who
population exceeds 30,000. Most conflicts have been caused by
land disputes. Economic and political groups of that state,
supported by the local government and its police, do not accept
the demarcation of indigenous lands, and much less the presence
of Indians there. They argue that "the existence of too many
indigenous areas" hinders progress. What they truly want is to
keep large unproductive land areas in their own hands.
In this political context, the designation of dom Apparecido
is important. He is in his second term as president of CIMI, a
post he will be holding until 1999. he is 64 years old and became
the bishop of Registro, in the state of Sao Paulo, in 1975. His
action has been marked by the relentless defense of the rights of
indigenous peoples, rural workers, the blacks, and other low
income groups which have been marginalized from Brazilian society
through important pastoral activities and organizations of the
National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB).
According to dom Aldo, "the fact that the Holy See appointed
dom Apparecido is an evidence of the commitment of the Church to
assist the peoples of Roraima, whose Diocese is facing serious
indigenous problems." There is no doubt that dom Aldo marked the
history of the indigenous resistance in Roraima. He recalled that
when he assumed the Diocese the Indians has lost all their hope
as a result of the exploitation and pressure they were suffering.
Thanks to his intense work to redeem the citizenship rights of
these peoples, today they are fighting for their rights and land.
The Diocese of Roraima provides health care to indigenous
groups through a hospital and two large health centers it has
maintained there for over 30 years, and also through 80 small
health stations located in different villages. It also carries
out educational, legal and self-sustenance activities through
various projects. The greatest difficulty it has been facing
along the years is the prejudice of society against Indians.
Therefore, according to dom Aldo, the Church is concerned with
making the population more aware of indigenous rights. The bishop
also stressed the pressure from farmers and politicians against
the work of the Church in favor of indigenous peoples. He himself
has received many death threats.
Brasilia, 27 June 1996
Indianist Missionary Council - CIMI