Our organizations (Conselho Indígena Munduruku Pusuru Kat Alto Tapajós –
Cimpukat, Da’uk, Ipereg Ayu, Kerepo, Pahyhyp, Pusuru e Wixaxima) also should
participate, but they cannot be the only ones consulted. The Munduruku council
members also do not answer for our people. The decisions of the Munduruku people
are collective.
Today we inhabit around 130 villages, in the high, medium and low Tapajós.
Nevertheless, we remember that, because of the social organization of our people,
new villages can arise.
How should the consultation process be?
The government cannot consult us after the decision [to build dams] has already been
taken. Consultation should come before everything else. All the meetings should
happen in our territory – in the village we choose – and not in the city, not even in
Jacareacanga or Itaituba. The meetings cannot take place on dates that coincide with
the community activities (for example, during the growing season, during the clearing
and planting; during the nut harvest; during the flowering season; during our
festivities; during the Indigenous Peoples Day).
When the federal government conducts the consultation in our village, they should not
arrive at the landing strip, spend a day and return. They must come and have patience
with us. They must live with us, eat the same food that we eat. They must listen to our
conversation. The government does not need to be afraid of us. If it wants to propose
something, which is going to affect our lives, it should come to our house. We will
not accept to dialogue with advisors, we want to be consulted by those with decisionmaking power.
The meetings should be in the Munduruku language and we will choose who will be
the translators. In these meetings, our knowledge should be taken into consideration,
at the same level of the pariwat (non-Indian) knowledge. This is because we are the
ones who know about the rivers, the forest, the fish and the land. We will be the ones
coordinating the meetings and not the government. In the meetings, the partners of
our people should participate: the Federal Public Ministry, the organizations chosen
by us and our special guests, including trusted specialists, who will be appointed by
us. The government should pay the costs of our partners’ and our presence in all the
meetings.
In order for the consultation to be completely free, we will not accept armed pariwat
in the meetings (the Military Police, Federal police, the Federal Highway Police, the
army, the National Public Security Force, the Brazilian Intelligence Agency or any
other security force, public or private). We use the bow and arrow because it is part of
our identity and not with the intention to wage war.
For our own safety, our people should record the meetings. Partners and
governmental agents are allowed to film and take photographs as long as they deliver
integral copies (unedited) following the end of the meeting. Our sacred places cannot
be filmed and photographed. We will not accept the unauthorized divulgation and use
of our image.
The meetings mentioned up until now are divided as follows: