Indigenous people from across Brazil began arriving in Brasília this Sunday (Apr. 5) to participate in the 22nd edition of the Free Land Camp (ATL 2026).

Organized by the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB ), the event runs through Saturday (11) and is considered the country’s largest and most important mobilization of the indigenous movement. According to the organizers, between 7,000 and 8,000 people, both indigenous and non-indigenous, are expected to participate this year.

Notícias relacionadas:

• Brazilian biomes are better preserved in indigenous territories.
• COP30: Indigenous peoples demand stronger forest protection.

The ATL typically brings together representatives of most of Brazil’s 391 Indigenous peoples, as well as delegates from other countries, to discuss the defense of territories and denounce violations of indigenous rights. In recent years, the agenda has expanded, and the event has also come to include discussions on indigenous political and electoral participation, the climate crisis, and the defense of democracy. However, the central focus of the discussions remains the need for the Brazilian state to recognize indigenous peoples’ right to land.

“As we do every year, we are waiting for the Brazilian government to announce the creation of new indigenous lands,” APIB  Executive Coordinator Dinamam Tuxá told Agência Brasil.

According to him, after a four-year period (2019–2022) during which no new indigenous lands were established, the Brazilian government approved 20 new territories between January 2023 and November 2025. According to the national indigenous authority Funai), this amounts to approximately 2.5 million hectares of protected land across 11 Brazilian states.

“But we continue this struggle, this fight for territorial guarantees,” Tuxá added, noting that about 110 claimed indigenous land areas are currently under review.

“We face a very large backlog of demarcations and a situation of widespread violence and vulnerability on indigenous lands that no government has been able to overcome. This has been a motivating factor for indigenous peoples to come to Brasília and present our demands,” emphasized the APIB  coordinator.

Mobilization

The ATL also marks the beginning of what is known as Indigenous April, a month of nationwide mobilization during which the movement seeks to draw attention to other issues, such as the need for greater investment in indigenous health and education. This year’s theme is “Our future is not for sale: we are the answer.”

“We are promoting a broad debate on various topics, such as education, health, and international relations with indigenous peoples from other countries - in short, a range of public policies,” Tuxá noted, confirming that the traditional marches along the Ministries Esplanade will take place.

The first march is scheduled for next Tuesday (7) in protest against proposed legislation that, according to APIB, runs counter to the interests of indigenous peoples, such as authorizing mining on indigenous lands or establishing the so-called “temporal framework” - a legal doctrine under which indigenous peoples are entitled only to the territories they occupied in October 1988, when the Federal Constitution was enacted.

Elections

The 2026 elections will also be a focus of some of the main debates at the Free Land Camp, including the one scheduled for Thursday (9), “Indigenous Campaign: We Are the Answer to Transforming Politics” - the title of the manifesto that APIB published last year, reaffirming its commitment to continuing the initiative to strengthen indigenous political participation, launched a few years ago.

“We will launch the Indigenous Campaign, an initiative aimed at guiding the candidacies put forward by a coalition of parties allied with the indigenous movement. We will advise interested indigenous people to join these parties that have defended our rights. And, throughout the year, we will promote actions to strengthen these indigenous candidacies in order to ensure greater [indigenous] representation in Congress,” Tuxá said.