In preparation for the Indigenous Peoples’ Day, celebrated on April 19th, the Judiciary, in partnership with the Inspector General Internal Affairs of Justice of the State of Tocantins and through the Superior School of the Judges of the State of Tocantins (ESMAT), held on the afternoon of Tuesday (April 18th), the third edition of the Webinar on "Citizenship and Justice from the Indigenous of the State of Tocantins Point of View - A Necessary Dialogue and Law". The event aimed to raise awareness among Judges, civil servers and the community about the human rights of the indigenous peoples.
During the opening of the event, Justice Etelvina Maria Sampaio Felipe, president of the Court of Justice of the State of Tocantins (TJTO), highlighted the importance of discussing the issue and building a respectful dialogue with the indigenous communities. She pointed out that the 2022 census indicates that Brazil has more than one million and six hundred thousand indigenous people distributed in about 300 ethnic groups, and that in the State of Tocantins there are nine ethnic groups and more than 14,000 indigenous people.
“These numbers give us the dimension of the importance of the debate about the theme and especially the need to build a mature dialogue and respect for cultural identities and indigenous citizens who, like all citizens, need to have their rights ensured", she said.
The Justice emphasized that it is fundamental to ensure the rights of these citizens and to promote a friendly and respectful coexistence among different cultures. To this end, the Judiciary of the State of Tocantins has maintained a dialogue channel with the indigenous communities. "Dialog qualifies the human capacity to address the other in the differences, in the rational parameters of oppositions, and only through dialog will the many segments of society build the fabric of a culture that supports principles and legality," she added.
Justice Maysa Vendramini Rosal, Chief Justice of the State of Tocantins, highlighted the importance of the intercultural dialogue promoted by Esmat in relation to the rights of the indigenous peoples. In her words: "This is a very important theme for the Judiciary, the issues that will be addressed are extremely important for us to grow as a society, and the Judiciary has to be part of this evolution". She emphasized the relevance of understanding the perspective of the indigenous people in relation to issues that affect them, and how this can contribute to a more effective provision of services to these peoples.
Justice Marco Villas Boas, General Director of Esmat and President of Copedem, highlighted the importance of the dialogue with the indigenous people of the state of Tocantins. He affirmed that the dialogue is fundamental to identify the differences and promote social inclusion, friendly coexistence, and the development of the different dimensions of the indigenous and western society. According to the Justice, with the realization of this Webinar, an opportunity to discuss precious themes for the indigenous peoples opens up, especially at this moment in which a differentiated look is sought for the Amazon region, where the most diverse peoples and almost all the Brazilian indigenous peoples are located.
Debates
In the first block of the Event, entitled "Indigenous Dialogues: Knowledge, Learnings, and Rights", themes related to social inclusion and the role of the indigenous women in society were discussed. Among the speakers were Doctor Arthur Luiz Pádua Marques and Narúbia Silva Werreria, Secretary of the State of Original and Traditional Peoples of the State of Tocantins (SEPOT). Narúbia thanked for the invitation and highlighted the importance of the debate for the advancement of public policies aimed at the indigenous population. With an emotional speech, she talked about the difficulties faced by indigenous women throughout the history in Brazil, highlighting their strength and resilience in the face of existing problems. Narubia also talked about the political representation of indigenous women in positions of power, highlighting the challenge of showing their capacity and competence.
"It is very important that we have these debates, and it is initiatives like these that help us advance public policies for the indigenous population. We need a lot of this, access to justice, to train law professionals and operators, all those who are in the justice system, and for us indigenous people, who fight so hard for justice, secularly, for our lands, these are debates that really have value so that together we can resist, exist, and have the dignity of all human life," she explained.
In the second block, the topic on the agenda was "Democracy and Representation of the Indigenous Peoples", with the presence of Master Renato Yahé Krahô, a councilman in the municipality of Itacajá, in the State of Tocantins, and Doctor Gustavo Hamilton de Sousa Menezes. Renato shared his trajectory and experience as a councilman, as well as the difficulties faced by indigenous people in their search for representation in governmental bodies. He also spoke about the lack of infrastructure in the villages and the absence of effective indigenous representation during his childhood.
Renato highlighted the importance of voting and the need to make indigenous people aware of their inclusion in the political process. In addition, he mentioned the project of socio-political inclusion of the indigenous people, idealized by Justice Marco Villas Boas, which provided more knowledge about the importance of voting and the functioning of the Brazilian political system. In line with this idea, Judge Wellington Magalhães emphasized the need for awareness and dissemination of the importance of voting among the indigenous communities.
In the third and last block, the theme on "Law of the Indigenous Peoples and environmental protection" was debated, with the participation of Dr. Álvaro Lotufo Manzano, Public Prosecutor in the State of Tocantins, and Dr. José Ribamar Mendes Júnior, Judge at the Court of Justice of the State of Tocantins and Assistant Director of Esmat.
Judge José Ribamar made important presentations about the importance of preserving and including the culture of the indigenous people. With a speech marked by historical facts and grounded in the law, the Judge spoke about the consequences and challenges that mark the indigenous cause. "The more one studies, the more one comes to the conclusion that our indigenous brothers and sisters have been sacrificed over the years, and this is demonstrated in many ways," he explained.
Acting as mediator in the three blocks, Judge Wellington Magalhães added that "democracy is not only majoritarian, you cannot understand democracy only numerically, if we don't make it possible for the indigenous people and quilombolas to effectively have an enlightened participation in the decision-making processes, we will not be guaranteeing democracy in our country.
"It is important to include the indigenous people, but we must preserve their culture," added Judge José Ribamar.
