Nearly three years after the execution of a quilombola leader, the court convicts two defendants. The mastermind died this Thursday, and others involved remain awaiting trial.
An important chapter in the fight against human rights violations in Brazil came to a close this Tuesday (April 14th) in a trial at the Ruy Barbosa Criminal Forum, in downtown Salvador (BA). Two of the five people involved in the murder of quilombola leader and yalorixá Maria Bernadete Pacífico, Mãe Bernadete, were convicted by the jury that analyzed the case over two days.
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Arielson da Conceição dos Santos will be tried for the crime of aggravated homicide, with a sentence of 40 years, 5 months and 22 days in prison under a closed regime. Marílio dos Santos, identified as the mastermind, was sentenced to 29 years and 9 months, also under a closed regime.
The jury framed the execution as aggravated homicide, motivated by despicable reasons, cruel means, use of a restricted weapon, and the victim's inability to defend herself. According to the investigation, the quilombo and religious leader was murdered for her opposition to criminal activities and illegal occupations in the Pitanga dos Palmares quilombo, in Simões Filho, in the Salvador Metropolitan Region.
The other three defendants in the case - Sérgio Ferreira de Jesus, Josevan Dionísio dos Santos and Ydney Carlos dos Santos de Jesus - will still be tried, with no date set.
Marílio dos Santos was on the run and died in the early hours of this Thursday (16), in Catu, also in the Metropolitan Region of Salvador, supposedly in a confrontation with police officers who were trying to arrest him. He was allegedly one of the leaders of drug trafficking in Simões Filho.
Mother Bernadete was executed on August 17, 2023, at the age of 72, with 25 shots inside her own home in Pitanga dos Palmares, which also served as the headquarters of the quilombo association. At the time of the crime, three of the victim's grandchildren—aged 12, 13, and 18—were with her.
In addition to her local political and religious leadership, she was a member of the National Coordination of Articulation of Rural Quilombola Black Communities (Conaq) and served as the Secretary of Policies for the Promotion of Racial Equality for the municipality.
Six years seeking justice for her son.
Until the day of the crime that silenced her, Mãe Bernadete was also seeking justice for the murder of her son Flávio Gabriel Pacífico dos Santos, known as Binho do Quilombo, who was also involved in land disputes in the region and fighting for his community's right to live in the quilombo territory. The crime against the leader, who was 36 years old at the time, occurred on the morning of September 19, 2017, also in Pitanga dos Palmares, six years before his mother's execution.
Since her son's murder, Mãe Bernadete had been receiving death threats and was enrolled in the Human Rights Defenders Protection Program (PPDDH). She and her family worked to defend the quilombo and demanded fundamental rights for their community.
Check out the video where Mother Bernadete talks about her struggle:
Violence against quilombola communities and human rights defenders
Jurandir Pacifico, son of Mãe Bernadete, said at the end of the trial that the family faced two difficult days, but the feeling is that justice is being done.
"It was painful, a crime so brutal that it shook not only Bahia, but Brazil and the world. The defense, as always, trying to defend the indefensible. But we have to have the discernment to listen and not absorb all of that. In the end, everything turned out alright. Justice was done," he said.
Em noteCONAQ states that the conviction of the perpetrator and the mastermind "represents an important step in confronting impunity for crimes against quilombola leaders and human rights defenders in Brazil."
While expressing solidarity with the victim's family, the organization believes that justice is still incomplete, as more people involved in the crime need to be held accountable.
"Others involved in the crime are still awaiting trial, which highlights the need for full accountability of the entire criminal network that attempted to take the life of Mãe Bernadete, a historical figure in the struggle for the territory, culture, and dignity of the Quilombola people," the statement emphasizes.
According to Conaq, the execution of Mãe Bernadete is part of a reality of violence and human rights violations against quilombola communities.
"The brutal execution of the Ialorixá was not an isolated case. It expresses a broader context of systematic violence against quilombola communities, marked by territorial conflicts, the presence of armed groups, and the absence of effective state protection, even in the face of previous complaints and threats," the text emphasizes.
For Amnesty International Brazil, the outcome of the trial represents a significant step forward in the fight against human rights violations in Brazil, contributes to the establishment of important precedents, and reinforces the need for institutional protection for those working on the front lines, under constant risk. However, the human rights organization points out, in noteThere are some gaps in the process.
“Despite the progress, gaps that remain unclear could weaken these results and expose the limitations of an already precarious protection system. It is essential to ensure that all those involved in the crime are held accountable, including those who have not yet been tried, so that the State's response is commensurate with the seriousness of the case,” he points out.
According to Amnesty International, "without identifying and punishing the entire chain of responsibility, the case will continue to be an expression of the State's inability to fully protect human rights defenders."
Territory recognized only after the assassination.
Mother Bernadete was a powerful and respected voice in the fight for the recognition of her territory and in defense of her people's ancestral way of life. She died denouncing the numerous attempts to appropriate the land and expel the community of Pitanga dos Palmares.
But it was only after his assassination that recognition from the State came. In December 2025, the National Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform (Incra) published the decree officially recognizing the territory of the Quilombola Community of Pitanga dos Palmares.
At the time, CONAQ stated that the action marked a historic chapter in the fight for the right to quilombola territory in Brazil. "The decision, published in the Official Gazette of the Union, legally consolidates an ancestral territory and reaffirms that the land is a place of life, memory, and resistance," it stated. note.
The recognition of quilombola territory through an official decree is a step prior to land titling, which has not yet occurred with the quilombo of Mãe Bernadete. In addition to the struggle for justice, memory, and truth, the community of Pitanga dos Palmares continues to demand definitive land title to guarantee a constitutional right, historical reparation, and the possibility of access to public policies.
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