'We defended our right to the land': Brazil's Indigenous people hail supreme court victory

The Xokleng people of Santa Catarina state, after years of persecution, evictions and legal battles, have finally seen the rights to their ancestral lands endorsed by the state, with wide implications for other Indigenous groupIntroducing Southern Frontlines - news on the climate crisis from Latin America and the Caribbean"We are not defenders of nature; we are nature defending itself." These words from Yoko Kopac?, the 72-year-old leader of the Indigenous communities settling the Ibirama-Lakl?n? region in Santa Catarina, in southern Brazil, sum up the longstanding hope for justice in their struggle for land. For more than 100 years, the Xokleng people have waited for the Brazilian state to recognise their rights.On 21 September they prevailed - and their victory in the federal supreme court will reshape the way the state approaches Indigenous land rights in Brazil.Yoko Kopac?, one of the leading figures in the struggle of the Xokleng people to reclaim their land Continue reading...