Association of Indigenous Communities of Putyra Kapuamo – ACIPK

The project looks to spread awareness about human rights and public policies related to indigenous peoples. The main focus is on combating violence against women and show that the prudent application of outside laws can strengthen “good” traditions and overcome “bad” ones.

The initiative will involve families from different ethnicities—Baniwa, Tukano, Tariano, Dessana, Corripaco, Tuyuca, Ciriano, Miriti-Tapuia, Baré, Mundurucu, Pirá-tapuia, Carapanam and Wanano. There are seventeen communities in the micro-region Putyra Kapuamu, located in the upper Rio Negro region of the northwestern Amazon, made up of 1,118 individuals in 159 families.

– Workshops on human rights, with a focus on defending women’s rights, in indigenous communities;

– Production and distribution of educational material, written in indigenous language, about the Maria da Penha Law (Brazilian legislation against domestic violence);

– Dissemination of the information in schools so that indigenous students know their rights as well;

– Networking of indigenous leaders and representatives of local governmental institutions both executive and judiciary, aside from the Catholic Church, already active in the region;

– Seminar with representatives of indigenous communities to evaluate and reinforce the project’s accomplishments.

For the ACIPK, due to the incomplete enforcement of the law and lack of access to information, indigenous women become more vulnerable and suffer violence, principally domestic, on the part of their husbands and grown sons—often under the influence of outside addictions such as drugs and alcohol. Another issue is early pregnancies that occur when indigenous girls get involved with non-indigenous soldiers stationed in the region.

The mission of the Association of Indigenous Communities of Putyra Kapuamo is to garner new rights and recuperate those already existent, learning to better deal with the world of public and private institutions and national and international society, while also addressing territorial demands (property demarcation and control of natural resources), needs for assistance (health care, education, transportation, communications) and sustainable economic alternatives (bringing products to market).

In recent years, the ACIPK has researched the productive potential of the region and the challenges faced by the community in several areas, in the hopes of putting forth solutions with the help of the National Environmental Fund (FNMA in Portuguese). Its work in this area won it the Ângelo Cretã Indigenous Culture Award.

The ACIPK is affiliated with the Rio Negro Federation of Indigenous Organizations (Foirn) and the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (Coiab).