Brazil: Mining Company Could Not Prevent Burial of Chief Merong

March 6, 2024 Hour: 2:08 pm

Geneviève Grossi Ors, a federal judge from Belo Horizonte, granted Vale company a court authorization to prevent the burial of Merong Kamakã, a leader of the Kamakã indigenous community that is part of the Pataxó Hã-hã-hãe people.

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At the request of this mining company, Judge Grossi Ors also authorized the use of force by the military and federal police to prevent his burial in Brumadinho, an Indigenous territory over which the mining company claims ownership.

Despite threats of violence, Brazilian Indigenous people carried out Merong’s burial on his ancestral territory during the early hours of Wednesday.

Celia Xakriaba, a national legislator from the Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL), contacted the Federal Public Ministry (MPF), which challenged the judicial decision and requested that local authorities recognize the right to carry out a burial according to Indigenous traditions.

“NOVOS FRUTOs NASCERÃO”
Na madruga, o momento em que o cacique Merong Kamakã foi plantado pela comunidade do povo Kamakã Mongoió:

“Você está sendo plantado nesse território, e que todos venham respeitar sua decisão e a decisão dessa comunidade”.
Descanse em paz, Cacique! pic.twitter.com/lmLBioHsUS

— FINCØ (@finc0)
March 6, 2024

The text reads, “New fruits will be born. In the early morning, the Kamakã Mongoió village plants the chief Merong Kamakã. ‘You are being planted in this territory. May everyone come to respect his decision and this community’s decision.’ Rest in peace, Chief!”

“Denying the funeral ceremony constitutes not only an attack on our human rights but also an attack on Indigenous rights guaranteed by the Brazilian Constitution and international agreements. It’s absurd to try to suppress the mourning of the Merong family!,” Xakriaba said.

In a plenary session of the Brazilian Lower House, Duda Salabert, a legislator from the Democratic Labour Party (PDT), also questioned the infringement on Indigenous peoples’ rights and recalled that the collapse of Vale’s dam in Brumadinho left dozens dead.

On Monday, Merong Kamakã was found dead in his home in Brumadinho, Mato Grosso state. While the Military Police’s report states that he committed suicide, social leaders maintain that Kamakã was murdered because of his steadfast fight for collective rights.

“He told me he would never commit suicide since he was guided by the great Tupã spirit to save humanity, which necessarily implies stopping mining, agribusiness, and overcoming capitalism,” said friar Gilvander Moreira, advisor to the Pastoral Land Commission.

#FromTheSouth News Bits | Mexico: In a unanimous vote, the Senate approved the modification of Article 2 of the Constitution to prohibit child marriages in indigenous communities. pic.twitter.com/fcXabQbI90

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
February 16, 2024