Brazilian Supreme Court Set To Hand Down Landmark Ruling On Indigenous Land Rights.

On 25 th August 2021, thousands of indigenous people adorned in colourful paint, beads
and feathers gathered in front of the building of the Brazilian Supreme Court in Brasilia to
protest for the recognition of their right in relation to the lands occupied prior to the
democratic constitution of 1988. Before 1988, indigenous lands used to be abusively taken by
companies and farmers. For this reason, the top Brazilian Court is about to decide whether
indigenous people have the right to possess these lands occupied by them before 1988.
According to indigenous leaders, setting off a legal cut-off date is a strategy of the Brazilian
government to limit Indigenous claims and erase indigenous claims across Brazil dating back to
the 1950s when they were pushed from their lands by tobacco farms, miners and logging
operations. This Supreme Court’s case originates from a claim by the Xokleng people of
southern Brazil against the Santa Catarina state government which has recognized indigenous
rights to the occupied land only since 1988, an overly narrow interpretation of Indigenous
rights according to the Xokleng people. A favourable ruling of the Supreme Court regarding
indigenous rights might reopen other 800 claims and lead to the return of lands to indigenous
people in Brazil, and set a landmark jurisprudential precedent for these following cases. For
more information, please visit: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/8/25/brazils-supreme-
court-to-rule-soon-on-indigenous-land-rights