Indigenous rights in the Constitution in Nheengatu – 07/20/2023 – Frederico Vasconcelos

“Constitution in Nheengatu is for indigenous people to know their rights.” This was the headline on the website Amazonas Atual, from Manaus, when announcing the launch, this Wednesday (19), of the first Brazilian Constitution translated into the indigenous language of traditional peoples from the Upper Rio Negro, in Amazonas.

The launch took place in the maloca [habitação indígena coletiva] of the Federation of Indigenous Organizations of Rio Negro (FOIRN), in the municipality of São Gabriel da Cachoeira (AM). The city has the largest indigenous population in the country.

The ceremony was chaired by Rosa Weber (baptized as raminah Kanamari by the indigenous Kanamaris).

Minister Cármen Lúcia accompanied the president of the STF and CNJ on the trip. Present at the act were Minister Sônia Guajajara, licensed federal deputy, the first indigenous minister of State in Brazil, and Joênia Wapichana, president of FUNAI, the first indigenous woman elected Federal Deputy.

Below are some manifestations of leaders and members of indigenous communities who participated in the meeting:

Inory Kanamarithe first indigenous person of her ethnic group to work as a lawyer: “We are in a country with immense diversity and I don’t hear our languages ​​in spaces. We need to be part of it. Before being indigenous, we are people with the right to respect.”

Sonia GuajajaraMinister of Indigenous Peoples: “The writing of the Constitution in an indigenous language means an important advance, a recognition of our culture, our peoples, our language and is a gesture of respect for our traditions”.

Lucas Marubo, from the Marubo people, said that the translation sets a precedent for other peoples to also have their rights translated. “Historic Moment for Indigenous Peoples”.

the indigenous Edison Bahrain said that the STF and the Judiciary heard the cries of indigenous peoples. “You’ve come to prove it: the Rio Negro is here, we’re alive, today we don’t fight with arrows, but we fight with dignity for our territory”.

Dada Baniwa, leader of the Baniwa people and the indigenous people of São Gabriel da Cachoeira, spoke on behalf of the group of translators: “It was a challenging job, but also one of great joy. The Federal Constitution, after 35 years, had due attention by the Judiciary.

The project was carried out in partnership with the Court of Justice of Amazonas (TJ-AM) and the Superior School of Magistracy of the State of Amazonas, with the support of the National Library Foundation and the Nheengatu Language Academy.

In all, 15 bilingual indigenous translators from the Upper Rio Negro and Middle Tapajós regions worked on translating the text into the Nheengatu language, considered modern Tupi.

Rosa Weber said that the Nheengatu language “historically allowed communication between communities of different peoples scattered throughout the Amazon region, up to the borders with Peru, Colombia and Venezuela, and, according to historians, became prevalent in Brazil, until it was persecuted and banned.

She opened her speech by greeting the indigenous people in Nheengatu: “Indigenous peoples of Rio Negro! purãga ara [bom dia]. At the end, she thanked him in the same language: Kuekatu retain (Thank you very much)!

For Weber, the translation “is the symbol that marks the overcoming of the violating past of the military dictatorship, and that seeks to re-establish democratic values, justice, plurality, solidarity and full respect for the human rights of all social and ethnic groups that make up our rich and plural nation.”

“I hope that the Constitution is taught in each of the languages, that it doesn’t stay on a shelf. You don’t claim rights that you don’t know. Our goal is to be a free, fair, solidary society. The Constitution belongs to all Brazilians”, said Cármen Lúcia.

The president of the Court of Justice of Amazonas (TJ-AM), Nélia Caminha, said that the translation is a significant step in promoting inclusion and equality, “so that no social group is left out”.

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