At the request of the National Campaign in Defense of the Cerrado, which brings together 50 indigenous movements and traditional communities, the Tribunal ruled on the serious situation of human rights violations and repression in the Cerrado region of Brazil, particularly in the states of Bahia, Goiás, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Piauí, and Tocantins. The three thematic hearings examined the main issues affecting the region, such as water resources, food sovereignty, social biodiversity, and land protection. The Cerrado, considered by the peoples who inhabit it to be “the cradle of waters,” is a tropical savanna characterized by numerous river basins. The Tribunal recognized that the territory has been exploited and expropriated by the Brazilian state and by national and transnational companies, with consequences that, according to the panel of judges’ judgement, amount to ecocide. In addition, the Tribunal ruled on ecological and economic crimes recognized as systemic crimes, the genocide of traditional populations caused by the appropriation and exploitation of their lands, the intensive use of harmful pesticides, and the violence perpetrated by law enforcement and private militias.
Requesting organisations: See the link
1. Opening session, 10 September 2021
A. Indictment (Spanish – Portuguese)
B. Case file (Portuguese)
2. Thematic hearing on water, 30 November and 1 December 2021
A. Statement of the panel of judges (English – Italian – Spanish – Portuguese)
B. Prosecutorial Materials: General Recommendations, Urgent and Necessary Measures for the Protection of the Cerrado Waters (Portuguese)
3. Thematic Hearing on Food Sovereignty and Socio-Biodiversity, 15-16 March 2022
Panel of Judges Statement (Portuguese)
4. Hearing on Land and Territory and Conclusion of the Session, 8-11 July 2022
A. Final Indictment:
Part 1 – Explanatory context for the charge of ecocide-cultural genocide in the Cerrado (Portuguese)
Part 2 – Systematic Violations of Cerrado Peoples’ Rights in the Context of Cases Representing the Process of ecocide-cultural genocide in the Cerrado (Portuguese)
Part 3 – Rights Violated, Responsibilities and Recommendations (Portuguese)
B. The Judgment
Summary(Portuguese)
Full text (Portuguese and Spanish)