Justice orders reintegration in Kalunga quilombo, in Goiás – 05/18/2023 – Daily life

The Federal Court determined the repossession of the Kalunga Quilombo, for the benefit of the members of the community, located in the interior of the state of Goiás.

In the decision, Judge Thadeu José Piragibe Afonso ordered the removal of anyone who does not have a Property Registration Certificate and who does not belong to the Kalunga community, that is, who is not registered or recognized by the quilombola association.

Located in Chapada dos Veadeiros, the quilombo is considered one of the largest in Brazil. It is also known for tourist attractions such as waterfalls and other areas of the cerrado. The community has been in the region for 250 years.

The public civil action was filed by the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office and accepted on May 15. In the decision, the magistrate gives a period of ten days for people who are irregularly staying in quilombola territory to leave the place voluntarily.

According to the text, if this does not happen, the fulfillment of the repossession should occur with the participation of the Union, the state of Goiás, Incra (National Institute of Colonization and Agrarian Reform) and the Palmares Cultural Foundation.

“Through concerted and coordinated actions, within a period of up to 30 days, under penalty of a fine of BRL 10,000 per day of non-compliance. From now on, I authorize the use of police force, with the Federal Police and the Police Military of the state of Goiás”, says the judge.

In a note, the Public Security Secretariat of Goiás reported that it will comply with the decision.

The report sought out Incra, the Palmares Foundation and the Lula government through the ministries of Racial Equality, the Agrarian Development and Family Farming portfolio and the Social Communication Secretariat. None of the agencies responded until the publication of the text.

The judge also determined that the aforementioned entities draw up a joint inspection plan in order to curb new acts of invasion of quilombola territory, in addition to georeferencing expertise for identification and mapping of invasions.

“The presidents of Incra and the Palmares Cultural Foundation should be summoned personally”, says the magistrate.

About 8,400 people live in the Kalunga Quilombo. It is formed by 39 communities in a territory of 262 thousand hectares. However, only 34 thousand hectares were definitively titled. The quilombo area has already been delimited by the Palmares Cultural Foundation.

The community is recognized as a historic site and cultural heritage and certified as a remnant of quilombo. In 2009, the social interest was declared, for purposes of expropriation, of the properties covered by the territory and located in the municipalities of Cavalcante, Teresina de Goiás and Monte Alegre de Goiás.

One of the community’s complaints is that the region is affected by land grabbers.

“We have been suffering for a long time, especially in these last years of management, with the issue of threats from landowners and land grabbers”, says Carlos Pereira, president of the Kalunga Quilombo.

“We see it with good eyes, a glow of joy, with this possibility of getting rid of these threats. There are areas that, for example, are attractive [turístico], but it is in the hands of land grabbers, there are areas that families use for fishing and it is in the hands of land grabbers. This decision is one of the biggest victories we’ve had,” he says.

Republic attorney Daniel Azeredo, author of the action, claims that it is very common to observe in Kalunga the presence of people who are not from the community, carrying out prohibited activities in the territory.

“The importance [da decisão] It is huge. It is an important environmental ecosystem and the Kalunga quilombola community has lived there for years, conserving this environment, and it is their right, constitutionally protected”.

After the reintegration, the people considered as invaders of the place will be able to appeal to Justice.

The Quilombos do Brasil project is a partnership with the Ford Foundation