A morning of intense dialogue in favor of indigenous causes. This is how the General Internal Affairs of Justice of the State of Tocantins, through the Citizenship Coordination, with the support of the Superior School of the Judges of the State of Tocantins (Esmat), celebrated the Indian Day, this Monday (April, 19th), with the realization of the webinar "Citizenship and Justice from the perspective of the Indigenous of the State of Tocantins - A Necessary Dialogue and the Law". The virtual event, broadcasted by the Esmat Channel on YouTube, was opened by the Chief of Justice, Judge Etelvina Maria Sampaio Felipe, and included the speech of important scholars and indigenous advocates.
“Today's date should be a time for reflection and dialogue about the importance of preserving indigenous peoples, maintaining their lands and respecting their cultural manifestations. Our objective is to awaken and strengthen the awareness of magistrates, public servers, as well as the community in general, about the human rights of indigenous peoples. These rights are guaranteed in Article 231 of our Federal Constitution, which recognizes the social organization, customs, languages, beliefs and traditions of Indigenous", said the judge when she opened the proceedings.
About the reality of Tocantins, Etelvina Felipe emphasized the state's privilege of being home to different indigenous ethnic groups with outstanding national expression, even with international recognition. She cited the Karajá, Xambioá, Javaé, Xerente, Krahô, Krahô-Kanela, Apinajé, Avá-Canoeiro, and Kanela of Tocantins peoples, which enhance the culture and history of the State of Tocantins. "Given this, it is fundamental in all segments of public administration to develop an indigenous culture and action, which ensures intercultural, respectful dialogue that values and strengthens the autonomy and forms of organization of indigenous peoples," concluded the Chief of Justice.
Lectures
The judge responsible for the Citizenship Coordination, Aline Bailão Iglesias, took the opportunity to talk about the work of the coordination, which seeks to bring the Judiciary closer to society, as in the case of indigenous causes, "promoting a more adequate Justice to this reality that is so close to all of us in Tocantins.
The Webinar was conducted and conceived by Judge Wellington Magalhães, Esmat's Deputy Director. The magistrate has already acted several times in indigenous lawsuits, as the head of the District of Cristalândia, which covers the municipality of Lagoa da Confusão, region of the Bananal Island. As coordinator of the debate table, the Judge brought the reflection, "If we deny our origins, what paths are we taking?" The questioning was analyzed from lectures and exhibitions presented throughout the morning. "Democratic Multiculturalism: political representativeness of indigenous people and human rights in the state of Tocantins" was given by Laudyone dos Santos Arruda, a server at the Regional Electoral Court (TRE-TO) and Master's student at Esmat.
The anthropologist and researcher in Legal Anthropology, Gustavo Hamilton de Sousa Menezes, gave the lecture "Some reflections on indigenous peoples and justice(s)". For Menezes, to know and understand indigenous peoples is to know our history. "For all of us Brazilians, to study indigenous peoples, to study the past and the present is completely linked to our understanding of ourselves and our identity."
Representing the indigenous peoples of the State of Tocantins, Narúbia Silva Werreria, a law student and important indigenous leader of the Iny (Karajá) ethnic group, gave a lecture on "Land People - Brazilian Indigenous Law".
The indigenous leader spoke about the risk of a setback in the rights of indigenous peoples. "The indigenous movement fought hard to have our rights guaranteed in the Constitution, to have differentiated health care, education, the right to preserve our culture, all this came with a lot of struggle. Today we fearfully see projects that for us are a step backwards", she evaluated.
The Webinar ended at the end of the morning with the lecture "Coloniality of Power and Original Peoples in Brazil", given by the professor of the Federal University of Tocantins (UFT), Master and Doctor Heber Rogério Gracio. The professor made a presentation going through the historical context, explaining about the power of the colonizer over the colonized, what he called the codification of the difference, which is the act of diminishing, treating as inferior the colonized.
The lectures lasted all morning and the Webinar was closed with the speakers answering questions from the audience.
