Traditional territory as condition of justice for quilombola communities: na analysis based on the socio-environmental conflicts of the RMS - Bahia
Traditional Territory. Environmental Justice. Quilombolas Communities. Metropolitan Region of Salvador.
The present study is about the demands for Justice regarding to the traditional territories of quilombola communities of the Metropolitan Region of Salvador (RMS). It consists of a critical analysis of environmental injustice experienced by these groups, as well as the actions and measures adopted to implement Justice in the face of these violations. It establishes an interface between History and Law in order to reflect the traditional territory as a fundamental right, and its guarantee as a condition of Justice for quilombolas. It presents the main theories of justice, highlighting the environmental justice as the meaning that most approaches the reality experienced by the quilombos of the RMS. It approaches racism as a present element in the Brazilian social and political structure through civil inquiries and lawsuits regarding environment damages in these quilombos. It discusses quilombolas territories as relevant from the historical and environmental perspective, being true spaces of memory and biodiversity, so that the decisions that affect them need to consider the principles of the Environmental Justice. This study is justified by the fact that quilombolas were excluded from the legal acquisition of property in Brazil for more than three centuries, suffering violence resulting from this informality and, even with the constitutional recognition of their territories, they still have to fight to ensure the enforcement of this right. It argues that the Public Ministry of Bahia needs to include the study of the traditional territories and the environmental racism in its programs and training, especially due to the current context, when the preservation of these areas is questioned by politicians and entrepreneurs, through legal and administrative initiatives that constitute serious social and environmental setbacks, which requires a more conscious and combative action by the Agency responsible for these issues.