REFLECTIONS ABOUT THE FORMAL LAW AND THE LOCAL RULES: THE REPRODUCTION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE THROUGH THE SOCIAL RELATIONS BETWEEN GENERATIONS IN MAROON COMMUNITIES

Abstract

This article is about the reproduction and renewal of traditional knowledge associated to biodiversity in maroon communities, in a context of increasing State interventions on social relations between generations. Examining the narratives of a female leader of the Camaputiua Island Maroon Com­munity, we discuss these interventions in relation to the laws for protec­tion of traditional knowledge associated to biodiversity as proposed by the State. In spite the apparent advances in the legislation, due to the partial incorporation of article 8j of the Biological Diversity Conven­tion in the national legislation, the alleged protection was not effective, because the local forms of knowledge reproduction, as lived by the very own traditional peoples and communities, were ignored. In the juridical field, to assure concrete protection, it is necessary to implement the 169 International Labor Organization’s Convention. We conclude that, cur­rently, the renewal of traditional knowledge is carried out in situations of resistance in traditional communities, in which intergenerational rela­tions persist in daily practices. Keywords: traditional knowledge, maroon communities, generation, Amazon.