Amazon gold miners invade indigenous village in Brazil after its leader is killed

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Amazon gold miners invade indigenous village in Brazil after its leader is killed

Brazil’s police have been urged to investigate a ‘very tense situation’ in Amapá state

Dom Phillips in Rio de Janeiro
Sun 28 Jul 2019 06.00 BST Last modified on Sun 28 Jul 2019 06.22 BST

Dozens of gold miners have invaded a remote indigenous reserve in the Brazilian Amazon where a local leader was stabbed to death and have taken over a village after the community fled in fear, local politicians and indigenous leaders said. The authorities said police were on their way to investigate.

Illegal gold mining is at epidemic proportions in the Amazon and the heavily polluting activities of garimpeiros – as miners are called – devastate forests and poison rivers with mercury. About 50 garimpeiros were reported to have invaded the 600,000-hectare Waiãpi indigenous reserve in the state of Amapá on Saturday.

The men were spotted days after the murder of Emyra Waiãpi, a community leader, whose body was found near the village of Mariry early on Wednesday.

Indigenous people evacuated Mariry and fled to the bigger village of Aramirã – where shots were fired on Saturday. Indigenous leaders and local politicians have called for urgent police help, fearing a bloodbath.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/28/amazon-gold-miners-invade-indigenous-village-brazil-leader-killed

[Judi Lynn]

1. Men Invaded Indigenous Village and Assassinated Waipi Leader

10 to 15 men carried large guns
Jul.29.2019 1:21PM



Fabiano Maisonnave
Rubens Valente

MANAUS and BRASÍLIA
Up to 15 men armed with high-caliber weapons have invaded the Waiãpi Indigenous Land in western Amapá in an attempt to intimate indigenous people living in a remote region of the state, according to FUNAI, Brazil’s indigenous agency.

Based on reports from the Waiãpis, FUNAI says the group assasinated leader Emyra Waiãpi last week (there were no witnesses, and the body was only found the next day).



Waiãpi Indigenous - Crédito: Fiona Watson/Survival International
The indigenous agency has not yet arrived at the scene of the crime, accessible only through a journey by car, boat, and on foot.

The invasion comes amid repeated statements by President Jair Bolsonaro (PSL) that he intends to legalize mining in indigenous lands, a campaign promise. The change in legislation, however, needs congressional approval.

The FUNAI document states that the invaders are sleeping in Aramirã village, forcing the Waiãpis to move to a neighboring community that is a 40-minute walk away.

https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/brazil/2019/07/men-invaded-indigenous-village-and-assassinated-waiapi-leader.shtml