Indigenous territories and the protection of forests in the Brazilian Amazon

Fernando Mathiasfernando@socioambiental.org.br

presented in

Rights, Forests and Climate Change

October 15/17, Oslo, Norge

INDIGENOUS RIGHTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON

20 YEARS OF BRAZILIAN CONSTITUTION ♦ chapter on collective indigenous rights ♦ land rights – based on traditional occupation criteria ♦ criteria include lands:

- permanently inhabited; - used for productive activities; - necessary to the preservation of natural resources

needed to their well being;- necessary to their physical and cultural reproduction,

according to customary law. ♦ demarcation possible even if there is no tenure, in case of past involuntary removal – conflicts on land use with farmers, loggers, cattleranchers

1988 - 2008

Constitutional indigenous territorial rights

- State has nude property- Indigenous peoples have exclusive tenure rights and rights to use of natural resouces of soils, rivers and lakes- Lands inalienable and the rights over them imprescritible- Any third party act that refers to (i) ocupation, property or tenure of indigenous lands and (ii) exploitation of natural resources therein are null- Exceptions: mining and hidroeletric potentials, provided there is (i) consultation and (ii) congressual approval

1988 2008

Brazilian Amazon

Brazilian Amazon: Indigenous Lands and Protected Areas

Class quantity area (ha)

% in relation to the extension of the brazilian Amazon

FEDERAL Protected Areas 131 62.972.766 12,58

Proteção Integral (no human use allowed 48 30.666.928 6,13

Uso Sustentável (sustainable use allowed) 83 32.305.838 6,45

STATE Protected Areas 164 54.548.062 10,90

Proteção Integral 60 12.649.099 2,53

Uso Sustentável 104 41.898.963 8,37

INDIGENOUS LANDS 405 108.203.282 21,61

September 2008

Deducting the overlapping among protected areas and between those and indigenous lands, the total amount of effectively protected area is 21,24 % of the Amazon.

Challenges and threats to Indigenous Territorial Rights

- State and federal colonization policies (land title conflicts, deforestation, high-input agriculture, cattle ranching)- Military occupation (human rights violations)- Infrastructure projects (energy/dams, mining)- Legislative proposals to reduce rights- Supreme court ruling on Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land

Xingu river basin:Indigenous lands, protected areasand deforestation

Xingu headwaters

Challenges and threats to Indigenous Territorial Rights

- State and federal colonization policies- Military occupation (human rights violations)- Infrastructure projects (energy/dams, mining)- Legislative proposals to reduce rights- Supreme court ruling on Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land

Challenges and threats to Indigenous Territorial Rights

- State and federal colonization policies- Military occupation (human rights violations)- Infrastructure projects (energy/dams, mining)- Legislative proposals to reduce rights- Supreme court ruling on Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land

Legislative proposals to reduce indigenous rights

Total: 70 bills of law – focus on demarcation process (1/3), mining & hydroeletric exploitation– 05 Constitution amendment proposals– 09 legislative decree proposals to anull Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land

Raposa Serra do Sol• major reference case • Federative conflict:

State of Roraima vs. Federal government

• Supreme court ruling shall define future rationale for demarcation

• 1 x 0 indigenous peoples so far

• more to come...

Socioenvironmental balance: think twice before moving.

Takk!fernando@socioambiental.org.br