Document is the result of a workshop that discussed health, violence and culture with 24 Yanomami, Sanoma, Ninam and Ye'Kwana women, in Boa Vista
Twenty-four Yanomami (Yanomam, Yanomami, Sanöma and Ninam) and Ye'kwana women created a Human Rights booklet for the women of the largest indigenous land in Brazil, the Yanomami Indigenous Land. The publication is the result of a workshop on Human Rights, held in the last week of November, in Boa Vista.
Those responsible for the booklet represented the 10 indigenous associations in the territory, which in an unprecedented move nominated only women for their respective representations. Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG)And Socioenvironmental Institute (ISA) provided the training with the support of Ministries of Human Rights and Citizenship (MDHC)
The document reflects the lessons learned in combating violence against women, explaining the Maria da Penha and Feminicide laws, in addition to addressing cultural aspects of Yanomami coexistence, such as the right to marriage, rights to son-in-law services and forest resources. During the workshop, the women raised several concerns about health and violations of the right to differentiated care, reflections that were also conveyed in the final material.
“We indigenous people want to live in peace in our community, without having any conflict with our elders and children. We want white people to understand that we also need to live happily, just like they do,” says one of the few excerpts in Portuguese from the material written predominantly in Yanomami and illustrated with indigenous art painted during the workshop.
The workshop began by reflecting on the rules, rights and duties of coexistence between different communities. The indigenous people were then introduced to the concepts and history of Human Rights and Indigenous Rights. From the third day onwards, the training went into greater depth on women's rights and women's right to health.
Ana Lucia Paixão Vilela, representative of Kumirayoma Women's Association (AMYK), helped with the translation for the indigenous people who do not speak Portuguese and felt excited to share what she learned with the women of Maturacá. What surprised her most during the training was how women began to be included in Human Rights.
“Before, there was nothing specific for women’s rights because it was men who created rights, they were the only ones who spoke and we were not fully included, but we evolved and the creation of rights for women was considered,” she said.
According to Manuela Otero Sturlini, advisor to the Socioenvironmental Institute (ISA), the participation of women in political training and training on Human Rights was a request from the Yanomami during the mining invasion and sequence of attacks by the government of Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022). At the same time, Yanomami women asked, during the Meeting of Yanomami Women, through the structuring of a line of care and the restructuring of the Women's Health Program.
“In 2023, we presented the Women's Health Program and it was very profound how they stated that there was a need for responses. So, last year we consolidated a network of actors involving universities, associations, public bodies and non-governmental organizations to respond to this need,” explained Manuela.
How Ye'kwana chants preserve health, crops and Human Rights
For Jucélia Magalhães Rocha, a young Ye'kwana who participated in the workshop and works as an Indigenous Health Agent (AIS) in the Auaris region, the health-focused part of the workshop will give her the opportunity to improve the care she provides to psychologists in the region.
“I am an AIS in my community, I accompany the psychologists and we hold meetings with women. So, in these meetings I can talk about women’s rights in health and safety,” said the young Ye’kwana.
Jucélia was accompanied by Elisa Ye'kwana, who plays a strong role among the Ye'kwana communities, being knowledgeable about songs that keep the farms strong and the indigenous people well nourished.
Anthropologist Karenina Vieira Andrade, who participated in the workshop and is a faculty member at UFMG, works with the Ye'kwana and summarized part of Elisa's story. She explained that the elder lived in Fuduuwaaduinha, where the 5th Yanomami and Ye'kwana Leadership Forum, but in 2008 he moved to Kuratanha.
According to Karenina, the communities are very close and relatives visit each other constantly, which helps to preserve and pass on to the younger generation knowledge that the elders, like Elisa, know deeply.
“She knows a set of songs associated with the fields for when they open the fields because the Ye'kwana women are the owners of the fields, they are like children, and they need to take constant care of them because the field is alive,” explains the anthropologist.
Since the farm is considered a living being by the Ye'kwana, the songs associated with care rituals keep the being pleased to produce good food. Each stage of the farm - planting, cultivation, care and harvest - is associated with a set of different songs and care, which Elisa performs masterfully.
“This is the guarantee of people’s health. If this knowledge is lost, the entire community runs the risk of not having good food. Ensuring that this knowledge of women is passed down from generation to generation is to endorse what is in the constitutional provisions that indigenous peoples have the right to live according to their customs and traditions,” said Karenina.
This body of knowledge keeps Elisa as a strong and highly respected figure among the Ye'kwana. Furthermore, there is a strong interest on her part in young girls learning the rituals to keep Ye'kwana communities strong.
XV Women's Meeting
The Human Rights Workshop for Women of the Yanomami Indigenous Land was also a follow-up activity to the 15th Yanomami Women's Meeting, which took place in the second week of October. This was the largest edition of the event, discussing topics such as pregnancy, childbirth, reproductive planning, cervical cancer screening, food sovereignty and care at the Indigenous Health Center (Casai) and maternity hospital.
For Érica Dumont, assistant professor at the UFMG School of Nursing, who taught part of the workshop and attended the 19th Yanomami Women's Meeting, the events consolidated the indigenous people's desire to restructure what was lost during the Covid-XNUMX pandemic and to rescue the relationships that were strained during Jair Bolsonaro's government.
“We heard both in this workshop and at the Women's Meeting reports of violations over the years in access to maternity and Casai in terms of respect for customs, habits and food, as well as places of rest and receiving communication about the type of treatment they receive with an interpreter,” she pointed out.
Erica also explained that violations occur even in areas with poor care and a lack of tests. “But it is important to highlight that there has been an improvement in this management, they are happy and confident with the performance of the DSEI”, she highlighted.
According to the specialist, differentiated care is a right guaranteed in the National Policy for Healthcare for Indigenous Peoples, which means that indigenous people have the right to receive care in a way that takes into account their ways of life, customs, and health perspectives, such as respect for shamans and midwives.
“These violations are often linked to disrespect for customs, but there are cases that go beyond this and are acts of disrespect that would be offensive to any human being,” he said.
Special attention includes, in addition to aspects of the way of life, the logistical issue. In the context of the Yanomami Indigenous Land, Érica explains that to serve a Yanomami woman, a flight schedule is required and there is a different dynamic to access the places, as each community has its own specificities.
“Specialized care can also include special technologies. According to the current prenatal protocol, many Yanomami women would be classified as high-risk due to their low weight, age and relationship with malaria. All of this would mean that they would have to be removed from the forest to the city. However, we know that this is not feasible and, in fact, we do not want this to happen. High-risk care needs to be incorporated into the forest,” she says.
The Human Rights workshop is part of an extension project at UFMG and is funded by MDHC. ISA is a partner in this initiative. The goal is to train Yanomami indigenous groups in Human Rights. In addition to the women's group, young directors from the 10 associations of the Yanomami Indigenous Land have already gone through the Human Rights training process.
Workshops for association directors
The 10st Human Rights Training Workshop for Young Yanomami and Ye'Kwana Directors lasted six days and was attended by all XNUMX associations representing the Yanomami Indigenous Land. The leaders met in Boa Vista during the first fortnight of July.
This workshop presented basic concepts of Human Rights while relating them to the history of the largest indigenous land in the country, with the Territorial and Environmental Management Plan (PGTA) and the Consultation Protocol.
“Clean water is part of Human Rights. If you get sick, you need access to medicines that are also Human Rights. Everything that defends our lives, such as clean water and preserved forests, are Human Rights. While everything that attacks life, such as mining, war, and aggression against children and women, are violations of Human Rights,” explained Marcelo Moura, an anthropologist and consultant for the Ministry of Human Rights, to the indigenous people during the workshop.
The Hutukara Yanomami Association (HAY), an association with two decades of experience, sent new leaders to participate and learn about the topic, but more experienced leaders, such as Dário Kopenawa, spoke during the workshop. The vice president of HAY presented the PGTA and the Yanomami Indigenous Land Consultation Protocol to the directors of the other nine associations.
“This is a commitment from us, from the Yanomami and Ye'kwana peoples. It is our responsibility and it has everything here about what we think about health, language, education and income generation,” he said during the explanation.
For Edmilson Estevão Damião, first secretary of the Wanasseduume Ye'kwana Association, listening to leaders like Dário Kopenawa and Maurício Ye'Kwana inspired him to maintain closeness between all the associations of the Yanomami Indigenous Land.
“I thought it was very important to see the presentation of the directors who have been fighting for us for the longest time. It was great to hear Maurício and Dário, they were a great inspiration to the new leaders. I also thought it was good to see the unity and rapprochement between all the associations of the Yanomami Indigenous Land,” he told ISA.
According to Lídia Montanha Castro, coordinator of the ISA Rio Negro Program, the idea of bringing together experienced leaders with new leaders is precisely so that there is an exchange of information and that the new directors can be better qualified. Montanha and Manuela Otero were consultants representing ISA.
“The objective of this work is to reach the associations of the Yanomami Indigenous Land, which is why representatives of the 10 associations that currently exist are participating. In addition to being directed at the 10 associations, there is another more specific characteristic, which is to train new directors,” said Montanha.
In addition to sharing problems, the leaders were able to assimilate how knowledge about Human Rights can function as a tool for defending the territory and intend to make the knowledge echo in their respective communities, as Francilene dos Santos Pereira, resident of Maturacá and coordinator of the Kumirayoma Yanomami Women's Association (AMYK), points out.
“I really enjoyed discovering more tools so that we can defend the territory. I think it is an important topic to work with women and youth, and that is what I will take from here to my community,” she said.
One of the recurring issues raised by the indigenous people was the violation of the rights of Yanomami children and women. The reports corroborate information that women are abused by miners, while children die or are illegally removed from the territory by invaders.
“It is important that we are all connected, together and united to face the problems, especially the abuses against our women and the deaths of our children caused by miners, as well as to prevent governments from violating our rights,” declared the second treasurer of the Kurikama Yanomami Association, Roni Raitateri Yanomami.
Daniel Jabra, Lídia Montanha Castro and Marcelo Moura explained the concepts of colonization and slavery to the Yanomami, contextualizing them with current cases and relating situations in which miners force indigenous people to work after receiving items such as blankets, alcoholic beverages and food.
“This is colonization, they eat away at the territory, the culture and everything else until there is nothing left,” said Jabra when explaining how colonization occurs through the church, the miners and even the government.
This first workshop was the first initiative of the UFMG and ISA partnership, with support from MHDC, with the objective of training the 10 associations of the Yanomami Indigenous Land through two audiences: young directors and women.
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