Abstract
As a result of the consolidation of a doctoral thesis and a personal experience as a lawyer with indigenous movements, the question we seek to answer in this article is whether it is possible to consider the interests of minorities in the processes of elaboration, interpretation and application of official law. Overcoming the traditional method that is still reproduced today, based on the idea of assimilationism and homogeneity, one would walk towards the consolidation of another notion of law that affirms and promotes differences as fundamental human rights. In the course of our work, we sought to verify the hypothesis that non-violent intercultural dialogue is a possible process and that prior consultation is a right that demonstrates this possibility, provided that some essential assumptions, such as horizontality between the State and indigenous peoples and also the right to say “no”, are respected.
Key-words: Prior consultation; Participatory democracy; Indigenous people