On September 21st, there was a historic victory for indigenous people in Brazil, when the supreme court voted against a proposal for a time frame argument to limit indigenous land claims. Thereby, the court blocked agribusiness supported efforts to prevent indigenous communities claiming land they did not physically occupy in 1988.

For this new episode of 'Brazil, Reimagined?' I talked to the people involved in the protests against the time frame argument; to the people who have been fighting for their lands for years; and to the people who are working every day to reconstruct what was destroyed or erased. Forests, cultures, and knowledge.

I went further than I imagined I would go, deep into the forests of Acre, about 10 hours travelling by boat from Mancio Lima, the last town that can be reached over land.

There, I met the leaders of the Nawa, one of the last people in Acre whose claim for land is not yet recognised by the federal government. And I talked to the leader of the Nukini, who is working to recover ancestral knowledge and cultures to reunite his people, and work together to protect their land.

Presentation and editing:
Nadine Vermeulen

Interviews with:
• Lucila Nawa, leader of the Nawa
• Railson Nawa, general leader of the Nawa (cacique)
• Rukã Paulo Almeida Nukini, general leader of the Nukini (cacique).

Short interviews protests against time frame argument Rio Branco:
- Ruwi Manchineri, protest organiser and director MATPHA
- Angela Mendes, coordinator of the Comitê Chico Mendes
- Mukani Huni Kuin, coordinator Huni Kuin youth movement
- Yube Huni Kuin, vice-coordinator Huni Kuin youth movement

Dubbing:
Sophie Bergisch, Ani Deal, Parker Deal

Music included in this episode:
• Um sonho by Nação Zumbi
• Índio encantado by Rukã Paulo Almeida Nukini and Railson Nawa

Media extracts:
• Brazil Court Rules in Favor of Indigenous Rights (Reuters), 22-09-2023
• Txai Surui’s Full Speech at COP26.

~Interviews recorded between 07-06 and 28-06 in Acre, Brazil.