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Smoke Signal's report on mining is featured in more than 350 vehicles and generates debate and hearings in the House of Representatives and in the Senate

Public hearing in the House of Representatives debates the findings of the report “Pure Dynamite”

Credit: Reproduction

10 May 23

Smoke Signal’s report on mining is featured in more than 350 vehicles and generates debate and hearings in the House of Representatives and in the Senate

The report  Pure Dynamite: how Bolsonaro’s Government (2019-2022) Mineral Policy Set Up a Climate and Anti-Indigenous Bomb released on March 27 by the Mining Observatory and Smoke Signal, has been generating debate and resulted in public hearings in the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The document, which analyzed the Brazilian mineral policy during the Bolsonaro government, pointed out the existence of illegal favoring to the mining industry, and called into into question the system of self-licensing and mineral exploration in indigenous lands.

The report was featured in more than 350 media outlets, including Agência Brasil, TV Brasil and Miriam Leitão’s column in O Globo, generating reactions from both environmentalists and the mining industry.

On Thursday, April 27, the House of Representatives held a public hearing on the report’s findings, stocking the debate on the Brazilian mineral policies. Participating in the hearing were Daniel Pollack, Superintendent of Revenue at the National Mining Agency (ANM), Maurício Ângelo, Founder and Director of the Mining Observatory, and Rebeca Lerer, founder and coordinator of Smoke Signal.

“There has been a shock indoctrination, with fake news and disinformation, in addition to deregulation (of legislation), equipping of social control institutions, demobilization of control bodies, and criminalization of social movements. We saw a mix of tactics to advance a predatory land use agenda, whether for mining or agriculture, which resulted in increased violence and deforestation,” said Lerer.

The hearing participants contributed with questions about the situation of miners, the proper destination of CFEM (Financial Compensation for Mineral Exploration) resources in the municipalities, and the impossibility of pointing an example of “sustainable mining”. You can watch the public hearing on Youtube.

On Wednesday, May 10, the Federal Senate hosted a debate on the “Pure Dynamite” report and examined the 4 years of climate and anti-indigenous activities carried out by the government of Jair Bolsonaro. The event was attended by several experts, including Maurício Angelo of the Mining Observatory, André Elias Marques, Ombudsman of the National Mining Agency, and Suely Araújo, former president of Ibama and senior public policy specialist at the Climate Observatory, as well as the remote participation of Rebeca Lerer, coordinator of Smoke Signal, and Juliana de Paula Batista. representing the Socio-environmental Institute (SISA).

The main focus of the debate was “mineral denialism” and self-licensing in the mining sector on indigenous lands. In addition, it was discussed that mining represents only about 1% of Brazilian GDP, consumes 11% of electricity, and employs only 200,000 people, many of them in high-risk, outsourced activities. Environmental licensing was another highlight, with pressure from mining companies and industry to include mining in the Licensing Law (PL 3729). The influence that mining companies have on the licensing process was seen as a problem, as they have encouraged dams in an imminent state of disruption throughout the country. The full debate is available on the Senate website.

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Supreme Courts suspends 'presumption of good faith' in gold market to curb illegal trafficking

Areas of illegal gold mining in the Yanomami Indigenous Land seen in an overflight along the Mucajaí river, February 2023.

Credit: Fernando Frazão/Agência Brasil

3 May 23

Supreme Courts suspends ‘presumption of good faith’ in gold market to curb illegal trafficking

The Federal Supreme Court (STF) unanimously suspended the legal provision that established the “presumption of good faith” in the gold market. This instrument allowed gold to be traded in Brazil only based on the sellers’ information about the origin of the product. The court decided to follow the individual decision issued by justice Gilmar Mendes on April 4th.

The measure was considered by the Court as one of the main legal loopholes for laundering gold extracted from indigenous lands and environmental reserves. It is expected that the decision will make illegal gold trafficking more difficult and protect the environment and indigenous people.

 

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Supreeme Court justice suspends 'good faith' to certify origin of gold sold in Brazil

Federal Police operation fighting illegal gold mining

Credit: Federal Police/Handout

5 Apr 23

Supreeme Court justice suspends ‘good faith’ to certify origin of gold sold in Brazil

The justice of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), Gilmar Mendes, suspended a section of Law 12,844/2013 that provides for the presumed legality of gold sold in Brazil, as well as the “good faith” of buyers of the metal. The decision was made after a request made by the Green Party (PV) in a direct action of unconstitutionality, arguing that the rule makes private monitoring unfeasible by disempowering the buyer and encouraging the illegal market. In addition to suspending the section of the law that deals with the matter, the justice gave the federal government 90 days to adopt a new regulatory framework for monitoring the gold trade.

The decision by Gilmar Mendes took into account the manifestation of various supervisory agencies of the gold trade in Brazil, such as the National Mining Agency (ANM) and the Central Bank (BC). The magistrate granted the injunction after the Attorney General of the Republic, Augusto Aras, expressed himself for the overturning of the rule that provided for the presumed legality of gold and the good faith of buyers. The minister justified the urgency of the injunction in view of the environmental and humanitarian damage and the increase in generalized criminality caused by illegal mining. The decision will be submitted to the referendum of the STF plenary in virtual plenary as soon as possible.

Government requests withdrawal of bill that allows mining on indigenous lands

Indigenous activists protest against illegal gold digging

Credit: Mídia Ninja

31 Mar 23

Government requests withdrawal of bill that allows mining on indigenous lands

The government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sent a message to the National Congress requesting the withdrawal of a bill (PL) that would allow mining on indigenous lands. Bill No. 191/2020, presented by former president Jair Bolsonaro in February 2020, was intended to regulate mining, tourism, ranching, and exploitation of water resources, oil, and gas within indigenous lands. Although it had an urgency request approved in 2022, the text was not analyzed by the House of Representatives and has remained stalled. PL 191 was the focus of indigenous mobilizations in recent years and was baptized “Bill of Death”.

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In an attempt to curb illegal gold digging, gold trading will require electronic invoicing

The Federal Police destroys boats used in illegal mining inside Javari Valley (AM)

Credit: Federal Police

31 Mar 23

In an attempt to curb illegal gold digging, gold trading will require electronic invoicing

The Federal Revenue Service published a normative instruction that determines the issuance of an electronic invoice for gold trading. The measure represents an important step to combat illegal mining, because the previous instruction, from 2001, allowed manual issuing, which facilitated fraud in the market.

The new rule was the result of work by the Brazilian Mining Institute and the Instituto Escolhas, among other organizations. The next step is the approval of a draft in Congress that ends the principle of good faith, used for gold laundering, by requiring proof of the legal origin of the product.

 

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FUNAI asks for the suspension if mining concessions that threaten indigenous lands in the Amazon

The number of concession requests that overlap with indigenous lands exploded during the Bolsonaro government.

Crédito: OPI

29 Mar 23

FUNAI asks for the suspension if mining concessions that threaten indigenous lands in the Amazon

The National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (FUNAI) has requested the National Mining Agency (ANM) to suspend the 6th Round of Area Availability for mining in the Amazon. In the letter sent on March 20, Funai warned about the proximity of some concessions to indigenous lands and asked that the authorization for mining activity should not affect these territories.

The 6th Round, which offers 420 mining areas throughout Brazil, was launched in September 2022 by the Bolsonaro government and follows the schedule available on the agency’s website. The Observatory of Human Rights of Isolated and Newly-Contacted Indigenous Peoples (Opi) had warned about the possible impacts of the concessions, especially in the Yanomami Indigenous Lands in Roraima, Piripkura in Mato Grosso, and Uru Eu Wau Wau in Rondônia, where people live in voluntary isolation.

 

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Pure Dynamite: Report produced by Observatório da Mineração and Smoke Signal reviews the explosive legacy of the Bolsonaro government's mining policy
27 Mar 23

Pure Dynamite: Report produced by Observatório da Mineração and Smoke Signal reviews the explosive legacy of the Bolsonaro government’s mining policy

To create memory and help elaborate on the tragedy of mineral policy under the Bolsonaro government, The Mining Observatory [Observatório da Mineração] and Smoke Signal [Sinal de Fumaça] have launched the bilingual reportPure Dynamite: how Bolsonaro’s Government (2019-2022) Mineral Policy Set Up a Climate and Anti-Indigenous Bomb” an independent production that brings a timeline of the mineral sector and details the dismantling of regulatory bodies, rights violations, scandalous agreements and other measures adopted by the former government to satisfy the mineral market lobby in the country and the world.

In its thorough and investigative work, Observatório da Mineração closely followed the work that Bolsonaro’s government undertook at the national and international levels to dismantle public policies and sell mining and metal goods. Investigations have shown that his administration promoted legal and infralegal changes that benefited large mining companies, caused the criminal networks of illegal mining to soar, and made institutions such as the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the National Mining Agency totally subservient to vested financial interests. Smoke Signal Socio-Environmental Monitor, which has recorded facts and movements related to Brazilian socio-environmental policies over the last four years, joined Observatório da Mineração to produce this unprecedented report.

In addition to exposing the sophisticated articulations made between the mining market lobby, transnational companies and the federal government behind closed doors in the National Congress, the publication also brings a brief summary of the first measures adopted by Lula’s government and a list with 20 initial suggestions for the recovery of public governance and the reduction of negative effects of mining in the country. 

Click here to read our report in english. Also available in portuguese.

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Serra do Mar State Park in São Paulo state becomes a target of illegal mining

View of the Serra do Mar

Crédito: Denise Mayumi

21 Mar 23

Serra do Mar State Park in São Paulo state becomes a target of illegal mining

The Serra do Mar State Park in São Paulo state, the largest Atlantic rainforest reserve in Brazil, is being targeted for illegal mining, according to reports received by the Federal Public Prosecution (MPF). Indigenous people who live in the region found clandestine bridges, a house and trails used by miners, as well as a road that goes through the forest.

Images were recorded inside the Renascer Indigenous Land, in Ubatuba, on the northern coast of São Paulo, showing a truck being loaded with gravel inside a protected area. Attorney Walquíria Picoli stated that there is no authorization from the Union for the mining activity and no environmental license to mine, constituting two crimes: the crime of usurpation of Union property and the crime of illegal mining.

 

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New president of congress Environment Commission has already defended illegal miners

Federal Representative José Priante was nominated by the party MDB to be the new president of the House of Representatives Environment Committee,

Credit: Elaine Menke/Câmara dos Deputados

15 Mar 23

New president of congress Environment Commission has already defended illegal miners

Federal representative José Priante (MDB-PA) was elected on Wednesday (15) chairman of the Environment and Sustainable Development Commission of the House of Representatives. Priante is known to be a defender of illegal miners in Pará, his home state, and has already called for an end to the destruction of miners’ equipment in police actions during a meeting with the then-chief minister of the Civil House, Ciro Nogueira, in 2022.

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Yanomami Genocide: military refuses to fix 46 landing strips that would help indigenous rescues

De acordo com o relatório apresentado pela Funai, a vegetação alta nas cabeceiras de várias dessas pistas “compromete os procedimentos de pouso e decolagem”. Nas laterais, “dificulta os procedimentos de manobras durante a corrida da aeronave nas pistas.

Crédito: Reprodução

13 Mar 23

Yanomami Genocide: military refuses to fix 46 landing strips that would help indigenous rescues

A report prepared by FUNAI, Brazilian indigenous agency, pointed out that 46 landing strips on Yanomami lands in the Amazon region need maintenance to ensure transportation of the sick and emergency aid to those affected by illegal mining. However, military personnel responsible for the Army’s operation in the region refuse to carry out repairs.

According to the report published by Agência Pública, the military justifies their refusal by alleging that FUNAI did not correctly report the maintenance needs of the landing strips. Furthermore, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF) has been pressuring the responsible authorities to resolve the impasse.

Meanwhile, President Lula traveled to Roraima to participate in an assembly of indigenous people and discuss actions to defend the rights of native peoples.

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More than 19,000 illegal gold miners have been removed from the Yanomami indigenous territory.

Illegal gold miner searches for gold at Uraricouera River, inside Yanomami territory

Credit: Bruno Kelly/Amazônia Real

8 Mar 23

More than 19,000 illegal gold miners have been removed from the Yanomami indigenous territory.

The temporary commission of the Brazilian Federal Senate to monitor the humanitarian crisis in Yanomami Indigenous Land approved its work plan last Wednesday (8/3). According to the rapporteur of the commission, Senator Dr. Hiran (Progressistas-RR), more than 19,000 gold miners have left the area since the eviction operation began last February. The president of IBAMA, Brazil’s environmental agency, Rodrigo Agostinho, also supports this: “We have removed almost 80%, 90% of the gold miners.”

The Senate commission also requested information on the funds released by the Amazon Fund and invited indigenous and environmental organizations for public hearings. Meanwhile, federal forces continue anti-gold mining actions and have already applied penalties of over R$10 million.

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Marina Silva visits base attacked by gold miners in Yanomami Land and cites 'immense degradation' in the territory

Ibama helicopters in operation against miners in Yanomami Land

Credit: G1

4 Mar 23

Marina Silva visits base attacked by gold miners in Yanomami Land and cites ‘immense degradation’ in the territory

The Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva, visited Yanomami Land on Saturday (4) to see firsthand the actions implemented by IBAMA to curb illegal gold mining. She went to the inspection base in the Palimiú community, where armed gold miners fired at agents, and flew over regions invaded by the garimpeiros. She was astonished by what she saw in the territory: “The degradation is immeasurable,” she said.

Sources:

G1

Yanomami Genocide: Illegal gold scheme involves millionaire companies accused of environmental crime and money laundering in Pará state

Illegal gold miner searches for gold at Uraricouera River, inside Yanomami territory

Credit: Bruno Kelly/Amazônia Real

3 Mar 23

Yanomami Genocide: Illegal gold scheme involves millionaire companies accused of environmental crime and money laundering in Pará state

A joint investigation by the Federal Police and the Federal Public Prosecution revealed that financial institutions accused of environmental crimes in the Amazon and gold laundering in Pará state bought illegal Yanomami gold, according to a story in Reporter Brasil. Companies with million-dollar billings and headquarters in prime neighborhoods of the São Paulo capital are accused of participating in a scheme that may have legalized, in 2019 and 2020, more than 4 tons of illegal gold from several indigenous lands in the Amazon, according to the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office. Three of these intermediaries – Ourominas, FD’Gold and Carol – appear in the investigations into mining on Yanomami Indigenous Land.

As a result of these investigations, the Federal Police launched on Tuesday (February 28) “Operation Kukuanaland”, which aims to identify and dismantle a criminal organization dedicated to the illegal extraction of gold from indigenous reserves and federal conservation units, to its commercialization, export and money laundering.

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Supreme Court overturns Roraima state law that prohibited the destruction of environmental criminals machinery

Burning machinery from illegal gold miners is a common practice of environmental agencies

Credit: IBAMA

23 Feb 23

Supreme Court overturns Roraima state law that prohibited the destruction of environmental criminals machinery

The Federal Supreme Court (STF) unanimously declared unconstitutional a law of the state of Roraima that prevented the destruction of private property seized in environmental operations in the state. The decision was made in a virtual session and confirmed the injunction granted by Justice Luis Roberto Barroso in Direct Actions of Unconstitutionality (ADIs) 7.200 and 7.204, proposed by the Rede Sustentabilidade party and the Attorney General’s Office (PGR).

The thesis established by the Justices is that the state law violates the exclusive competence of the Union to legislate on Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, to issue general rules for environmental protection and as an affront to the right to an ecologically balanced environment.

 

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Yanomami Genocide: Pro-mining Senator caught with money in his underwear to preside special committee

Senator Chico Rodrigues (PSB-RR)

Credit: Roque de Sá/Agência Senado

16 Feb 23

Yanomami Genocide: Pro-mining Senator caught with money in his underwear to preside special committee

Senator Chico Rodrigues (PSB) was elected president of the Temporary Committee to monitor the situation of the Yanomami in the Senate on Wednesday (15). In October 2020, the senator gained national attention after being caught with R$ 33,000 hidden in his underwear during a police operation investigating an alleged criminal scheme of diverting public resources to combat Covid-19 in the state of Roraima. In the same operation, a stone that may be a gold nugget was found in the safe in the senator’s room.

Chico Rodrigues has previously declared his support for mining and has advocated for the legalization of the activity on indigenous lands, in addition to requesting the creation of a bill to regulate mining.

Sources:

G1

Yanomami Genocide: Federal Police conducts operation against illegal mining on indigenous land; suspects moved R$ 422 million in 5 years

Diamonds found at a suspect’s house

Credit: Federal Police

14 Feb 23

Yanomami Genocide: Federal Police conducts operation against illegal mining on indigenous land; suspects moved R$ 422 million in 5 years

On Tuesday (14), the Federal Police started an operation to fight illegal mining on the Yanomami Indigenous Land in Roraima. The suspects include businessmen, lawyers, and a municipal government employee from Boa Vista, capital of the state of Roraima, who allegedly moved about R$ 422 million in five years. The money was transported by land to Roraima, while the gold was taken by aircraft.

Sources:

G1

Supreme Court orders the investigation of Bolsonaro administration officials for genocide

Justice Rosa Weber presiding over a Supreme Court session

Credit: Carlos Moura/SCO/STF

30 Jan 23

Supreme Court orders the investigation of Bolsonaro administration officials for genocide

Justice Luís Roberto Barroso, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), ordered on Monday (30) the investigation of possible participation of Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government officials in the practice of crimes of genocide, disobedience and breach of judicial secrecy related to the security of indigenous communities.

The decision was made after the minister received information about the situation faced by the Yanomami community, which is suffering from a humanitarian crisis in Roraima and Amazon states.

Sources:

UOL

Yanomami Genocide: Indigenous Association says Denarium was "accomplice" of the tragedy

Davi Kopenawa Yanomami is lifted at the center of the Xihopi village

Credit: Christian Braga/ISA

30 Jan 23

Yanomami Genocide: Indigenous Association says Denarium was “accomplice” of the tragedy

The Hutukara Yanomami Association, an organization that represents the Yanomami people, published a note in which it repudiates the words of the governor of the state of Roraima, Antonio Denarium (PP), about the indigenous people needing to “acculturate”. For the entity, Denarium has been “accomplice of the tragedy” and maintains a colonizer view.

“While the Yanomami people live one of the biggest crises in their history, which has been denounced in recent years by the Hutukara Yanomami Association, the governor Denarium not only denies reality, but argues that indigenous people “have to become acculturated, can no longer stay in the middle of the forest, looking like animals,” says the association.

“Our ways of life are denied to us as if we were primitive, incapable, inhuman. Far from being limited to political discourse, this thinking has been reflected in policies of genocidal tendency that have been systematically implemented in recent years to make it impossible for the Yanomami to maintain their lives,” states the association.

 

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Yanomami Genocide: Using federal structure, illegal mining caused a 309% increase in deforestation on Indigenous Land

There’s an estimate of more than 20,000 illegal miners living and working inside the territory

Credit: Agência Pública

27 Jan 23

Yanomami Genocide: Using federal structure, illegal mining caused a 309% increase in deforestation on Indigenous Land

Between October 2018 and December 2022, deforestation resulting from illegal mining in the Yanomami Indigenous Land increased by 309%, according to a survey prepared by the Hutukara Yanomami Association. In December 2022, the last month of Jair Bolsonaro’s government, the deforested area was 5,053.82 hectares, compared to 1,236 hectares detected at the beginning of the monitoring.

Illegal miners also used a FUNAI (National Indigenous Foundation) base that was supposed to protect the Yanomami, according to an unpublished document obtained by Agência Pública. Document from 2021 cites clandestine helicopters, armed men and miners using government structure inside the territory.

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Yanomami Genocide: Lula adminstration exonerates indigenous health managers and FUNAI head officers

Illegal gold diggers took over the Yanomami territory

Credit: Associação Hukerari Yanomami

24 Jan 23

Yanomami Genocide: Lula adminstration exonerates indigenous health managers and FUNAI head officers

At least 54 officers working in organs and instances related to health and assistance to the indigenous peoples were dismissed after the dimensions of the humanitarian crisis in the Yanomami Indigenous Land (TI) were revealed.

The federal government informed through an extra edition of the Official Gazette of the Union on Monday (23/01) the removal of 43 occupants of command positions of the National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (FUNAI) and 11 regional coordinators of the Secretariat of Indigenous Health (SESAI) of the Ministry of Health. Among the dismissed employees are 13 military personnel, the coordinator of the East health district of Roraima – responsible for reinforcing the assistance to the Yanomami people in the state -, Aurisan Souza de Santana and the director of the Museum of the Indian, Giovani Souza Filho. Replacements for these positions will be announced in the coming days.

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