Indigenous protesters block BR-101 highway in Alagoas

Indigenous communities, including the Wassu Cocal, have blocked a section of the BR-101 highway in Joaquim Gomes, Alagoas. The protest is part of a national mobilization against the ‘marco temporal’ legal thesis and in support of land demarcation.

Participants are demanding changes to how discussions regarding land rights are conducted, advocating for in-person meetings rather than virtual sessions. The mobilization coincides with ongoing proceedings in the Supreme Federal Court regarding the ‘marco temporal’ thesis, which limits land rights to territories occupied by indigenous peoples on October 5, 1988.

In addition to the BR-101 blockade, indigenous groups also blocked a section of the BR-423 in Água Branca. The Federal Highway Police reported that there was no immediate timeline for reopening the blocked highway segments.