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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Brazil set for Indian land ruling | Brazil set for Indian land ruling |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Brazil's Supreme Court is preparing to deliver a landmark decision on the rights of indigenous people. | Brazil's Supreme Court is preparing to deliver a landmark decision on the rights of indigenous people. |
| The court has been asked to rule on whether an indigenous reservation known as Raposa Serra do Sol can remain a single unbroken territory. | The court has been asked to rule on whether an indigenous reservation known as Raposa Serra do Sol can remain a single unbroken territory. |
| Indian leaders believe the case will set a crucial precedent regarding the protection of their rights and land. | Indian leaders believe the case will set a crucial precedent regarding the protection of their rights and land. |
| Non-indigenous farmers living in the area say if they are forced to leave it will strangle economic development. | Non-indigenous farmers living in the area say if they are forced to leave it will strangle economic development. |
| Indigenous groups have arrived in the capital, Brasilia, to make their voice heard, staging a traditional protest just across the road from where the Supreme Court judges will reach their decision. | Indigenous groups have arrived in the capital, Brasilia, to make their voice heard, staging a traditional protest just across the road from where the Supreme Court judges will reach their decision. |
| Conflict | Conflict |
| The Indian reservation known as Raposa Serra do Sol is home to 19,000 people and was given official status in 2005. | The Indian reservation known as Raposa Serra do Sol is home to 19,000 people and was given official status in 2005. |
| Indian leader Julio Macuxi is optimistic about the Supreme Court decision | |
| Indian leaders want the court to confirm that the reservation, which stretches over 1.7m hectares (4.2m acres), should be preserved as a single unbroken territory. | Indian leaders want the court to confirm that the reservation, which stretches over 1.7m hectares (4.2m acres), should be preserved as a single unbroken territory. |
| They say if the court decides against them it will send a signal to land grabbers, prospectors and loggers that it would be acceptable to invade indigenous territory. | They say if the court decides against them it will send a signal to land grabbers, prospectors and loggers that it would be acceptable to invade indigenous territory. |
| However, about 200 non-indigenous farmers who live and work in the area say if the court upholds the reservation's status they will be forced to leave, harming Roraima's economy. | However, about 200 non-indigenous farmers who live and work in the area say if the court upholds the reservation's status they will be forced to leave, harming Roraima's economy. |
| The issue has been the subject of growing tension and conflict between the two sides. | The issue has been the subject of growing tension and conflict between the two sides. |
| Julio Macuxi, an Indian leader who has come to Brasilia for the decision, expressed optimism about the decision. | Julio Macuxi, an Indian leader who has come to Brasilia for the decision, expressed optimism about the decision. |
| "The communities are very hopeful - that is our expectation," he said. | "The communities are very hopeful - that is our expectation," he said. |
| "We are gathering not in a sense of celebrating but as a way of saying that from today we will be building our peace and we will have our dignity and our happiness which is what I believe the Supreme Court above all cares about - the peace and happiness of the community which they haven't had for a long time, because there are still invasions of our land." | "We are gathering not in a sense of celebrating but as a way of saying that from today we will be building our peace and we will have our dignity and our happiness which is what I believe the Supreme Court above all cares about - the peace and happiness of the community which they haven't had for a long time, because there are still invasions of our land." |
| There are more than 100 similar cases before the Supreme Court but it is thought this ruling will establish an important legal precedent. | There are more than 100 similar cases before the Supreme Court but it is thought this ruling will establish an important legal precedent. |
| There has also been concern among military leaders that a large Indian reservation on Brazil's border undermines the country's sovereignty - a claim strongly contested by indigenous communities who say it would remain Brazilian territory. | There has also been concern among military leaders that a large Indian reservation on Brazil's border undermines the country's sovereignty - a claim strongly contested by indigenous communities who say it would remain Brazilian territory. |
| There is only one issue on which all sides in this argument are agreed, and that is over the importance of this judgement and its longer-term implications. | There is only one issue on which all sides in this argument are agreed, and that is over the importance of this judgement and its longer-term implications. |