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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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Indigenous people were the main victims of conflicts in the rural region in 2022

Relatório da Comissão Pastoral da Terra mostra que o ano de 2022 foi marcado pelo elevado crescimento nos dados sobre violência contra a pessoa em decorrência de conflitos no campo.

Crédito: Fernando Frazão/Agência Brasil

17 Apr 23

Indigenous people were the main victims of conflicts in the rural region in 2022

Almost 40% of people killed in rural conflicts in 2022 were indigenous, according to the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT) in a report released on Monday (17). The year was marked by a significant increase in violence against individuals resulting from conflicts in rural areas. In all, 553 incidents were recorded, resulting in the deaths of 1,065 people, 50% more than in 2021 (368 incidents with 819 victims). Traditional peoples are the main victims in this scenario, which includes murders, assassination attempts, threats, assaults, torture and imprisonment.

In 2022, 38% of the 47 people killed in rural areas were indigenous people, totaling 18 cases. Next came landless workers (9), environmentalists (3), settlers (3), and wage workers (3). In addition, the deaths of indigenous rights activist Bruno Pereira and journalist Dom Phillips in Vale do Javari, Amazonas state, were added to the critical scenario of victims of rural conflicts in 2022. The number of murders resulting from rural conflicts last year represented an increase of 30.55% compared to 2021 (36 deaths) and 123% compared to the data recorded in 2020 (21 deaths).

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Parliamentary inquiry about NGOs worries civil society with fears of persecution

A Brazilian Senate in session

Credit: Marcos Oliveira/Agência Senado

10 Apr 23

Parliamentary inquiry about NGOs worries civil society with fears of persecution

Opposition senators celebrated the reading of the request for the establishment of the CPI [Parliamentary Inquire Comissions] of NGOs in the Federal Senate this week. The collegiate will be responsible for investigating the actions of non-governmental organizations operating in the Amazon, with investigative powers similar to those of judicial authorities. The expectation is that the CPI will be used to persecute and criminalize the actions of civil society, as was done in an institutional manner by the Bolsonaro government.

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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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Rodrigo Agostinho (PSB-SP) is appointed as chief of Ibama, Brazil's environmental agency

O deputado federal Rodrigo Agostinho, novo presidente do Ibama, com Marina Silva, durante a COP27 no Egito

Twitter/@rodrigoagost

14 Jan 23

Rodrigo Agostinho (PSB-SP) is appointed as chief of Ibama, Brazil’s environmental agency

On Saturday (14), minister Marina Silva appointed the new president for Ibama, the Brazilian Environmental Agency: the lawyer and former federal representative Rodrigo Agostinho (PSB-SP). A member of the Environmental Caucus at National Congress, he’s been part of the transition cabinet and previously led the Sustainable Development and Environmental Commission at the House of Representatives (2019-2020). 

Agostinho was elected mayor of the city of Bauru, in the State of São Paulo for two consecutive terms (2009-2016); in 2018, he was elected for the federal House of Representatives for the mandate ending this month. He is a bachelor in both Law and Biology, and has a masters in Science and Technology with a focus on Biology and Conservation by USC. He was part of the National Environmental Council (CONAMA) for over 10 years, and also worked as executive manager for Arapyau Institute, as well as founding Vidágua Institute.

The new Ibama president said he was honored by the opportunity and promised a dedicated “technical stewardship of the Agency, supporting the work of agents and public servants’ ‘.

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Isolated Indigenous Lands among the most endangered areas in the Amazon, says Ipam new study

Indígenas isolados em aldeia localizada no estado brasileiro do Acre.

Gleilson Miranda / Governo do Acre

11 Jan 23

Isolated Indigenous Lands among the most endangered areas in the Amazon, says Ipam new study

The Indigenous Lands with presence of isolated groups (with little or no contact with outsiders) are the most threatened in the Amazon biome. The conclusion comes from a new study produced by Ipam (Amazon Environmental Research Institute) and Coiab (Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon).

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Yanomami indigenous people suffer from malnutrition as a result of illegal mining and demand an end to exploitation on their lands

This is the Yanomami people that takes care of the forest

Credits: Júnior Hekurari Yanomami/Reproduction

17 Dec 22

Yanomami indigenous people suffer from malnutrition as a result of illegal mining and demand an end to exploitation on their lands

New images of Yanomami in a dramatic situation reverberated this Friday (12/09/2022). They reveal residents of the Kataroa community affected by severe acute malnutrition. Kataroa is located in the Surucucu region, in the municipality of Alto Alegre, north of Roraima, Brazil.

The health crisis results from the fatal combination of the prospector invasion, the federal government’s neglect and cases of corruption, with the diversion of resources from indigenous health. The mining invasion causes contamination of rivers and degradation of the forest, which reflects on the health of the Yanomami, especially children, who face malnutrition due to the scarcity of food.

In November, the Federal Police and the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF) carried out an operation against fraud in the purchase of medicines destined for the Yanomami Special Indigenous Health District (Dsei-Y). Among the targets of the Yoasi operation are businessmen and employees of the Yanomami Indigenous Health District (Dsei-Y), a Ministry of Health agency responsible for Yanomami indigenous health. According to investigations, the criminal scheme left at least 10,000 indigenous children without medication.

Under Bolsonaro, the Yanomami suffer the highest rate of deaths from child malnutrition in the country. With only 0.013% of the Brazilian population, the Yanomami had 7% of deaths due to child malnutrition between 2019 and 2020 – 24 children died. According to Agência Pública, more than 50% of Yanomami children are underweight, and many Yanomami health posts have gone more than a year without food.

On Tuesday (06), another fact raised the alert for the territory. The Homoxi Indigenous Basic Health Unit (UBSI), in the Homoxi region, was set on fire.

In the midst of this serious situation, PSOL and the Urihi Associação Yanomami accuse the Security Secretary of Roraima of leaking an operation against miners in the Yanomami Indigenous Land. Secretary of State Edison Prola gave details of the operation that aims to remove prospectors from the largest indigenous reserve in Brazil. Organizations filed a criminal complaint asking him to be investigated for disclosing confidential information.

Yanomami women ask Lula to put an end to mining in the indigenous reserve: ‘We don’t want to cry because people are dying’. Letter signed by 49 women reveals concern if the federal government does not act to curb the action of miners in the largest indigenous land in the country. The document was delivered on Monday (12), the day Lula (PT) received a diploma from the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

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At the end of his term, Bolsonaro facilitates logging on indigenous lands

Bolsonaro’s administration is hurrying to issue decrees that weaken environmental protection

Credit: Isac Nóbrega/PR

17 Dec 22

At the end of his term, Bolsonaro facilitates logging on indigenous lands

Two weeks before the end of its mandate, Jair Bolsonaro (PL) decided to authorize “forest management” within indigenous lands. In practice, this means allowing the exploitation of lumber in protected areas.

At the beginning of the month, Bolsonaro had already published a decree that allowed for hydraulic fracturing (fracking) as a method to extract oil and gas. Civil society organizations are asking the Environment workgroup of Lula’s transition team to revoke these and other decrees.

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Belo Monte proposes a meager R$ 20,000 in reparations to fishermen in the Xingu

Belo Monte under construction in 2004

Credit: Reproduction

23 Nov 22

Belo Monte proposes a meager R$ 20,000 in reparations to fishermen in the Xingu

Norte Energia, the company responsible for operating the Belo Monte Hydroelectric Plant, in the state of Pará, proposed to pay R$ 20 thousand for each fisherman who can no longer work due to lack of fish in the Xingu River since the beginning of operation of the plant, in 2016.

Hundreds of fishermen gathered on Tuesday (22) in the city of Altamira, Pará, to express dissatisfaction with the proposal. They disagree with the number of people contemplated by the reparation, because, according to them, there are at least 4,000 workers affected by the plant, more than double the almost 2,000 fishermen that Norte Energia proposed to attend.

Belo Monte is a project conceived during the military dictatorship (1964-1985) that was on the agenda of several governments until it was made possible by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff. The first turbines began operating in 2016. The construction resulted in serious environmental and social impacts in the Amazon.

 

Environment and Indigenous Peoples technical teams for government transition are announced

The government accepted demands from an indigenous people’s organization

Credit: Reproduction

17 Nov 22

Environment and Indigenous Peoples technical teams for government transition are announced

Vice President-elect Geraldo Alckmin (PSB), who is coordinating the government transition, has announced new names for the technical teams, including the Environment and Indigenous Peoples working groups.

In the Environment group is former Minister Marina Silva (Rede), Environment Minister during Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s (PT) government between 2003 and 2008 and was elected for Congress in São Paulo this year. Besides Marina, other former environment ministers were announced to compose the thematic group: Carlos Minc, minister in Lula’s government between 2008 and 2010; and Izabella Teixeira, minister between 2010 and 2016, between Lula’s and Dilma Rousseff’s (PT) governments.

In the group of the Indigenous Peoples, 10 participants were nominated, but, in the following day, APIB, Indigenous People of Brazil Network, demanded the inclusion of five more names, which was promptly accepted. The nominees include Joênia Wapichana, the first indigenous woman to be elected as a congresswoman, and the elected representatives Célia Xakriabá and Sônia Guajajara.

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Brazil elects Lula as its president for the third time ousting Bolsonaro

Lula promissed to end illegal mining in indigenous lands

Credit: Reproduction via O Eco

30 Oct 22

Brazil elects Lula as its president for the third time ousting Bolsonaro

President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) lost the election to Luís Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) by 50.9% to 49.1% of the valid votes. It is the first time that a Brazilian president has failed to win reelection since the end of the military dictatorship.

The former Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva (REDE), who was one of the responsibles for the drop of more than 70% in deforestation in the Amazon during Lula’s administration, is one of the favorites to run the Ministry starting January, 1st.

During the campaign, Lula committed himself to the environmental agenda, to fighting illegal mining on indigenous lands, and to the creation of a Ministry of Indigenous Peoples. Politica por Inteiro listed 401 acts of the Federal Executive Branch between 2019 and 2022 to be repealed or revised in order to reconstitute the Brazilian climate and environmental policies.

 

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Federal Prosecution Office appeals after release of suspected killer of Bruno and Dom; organizations protest

There is strong concern that the suspect could flee

Credit: Reproduction

27 Oct 22

Federal Prosecution Office appeals after release of suspected killer of Bruno and Dom; organizations protest

The Federal Public Prosecution Office (MPF) appealed on Wednesday (26) against the decision that released Ruben Dario da Silva Villar, aka Colombia, suspected of ordering the murder of indigenous expert and activist Bruno Pereira and English journalist Dom Phillips. The MPF had already expressed its opposition to the request for the defendant’s release made by his defense.

The MPF is asking for Colombia to be kept in preventive custody until all doubts about his identity have been resolved, since he has Colombian, Brazilian, and Peruvian documents. The prosecution argues that “the applicant, once released, does not need much to evade and escape the application of Brazilian criminal law”. The prosecutor also claims that the Brazilian document he presented to the Federal Police “is false and, therefore, Rubens (or Ruben), in fact, committed the crime of use of a false document”.

The Dom Paulo Evaristo Arns Human Rights Defense Commission asked the authorities to reinforce their efforts to solve the case. In a statement released on Wednesday, the commission states that “it is important to ensure the due legal process without, however, opening opportunities for interference in the investigation of the facts or aggravating the situation of threatened groups”.

The Observatory for the Human Rights of Isolated and Newly-Contacted Indigenous Peoples (OPI) considers that the release of Colombia is a threat to the safety of indigenous people and public servants in Vale do Javari and also to the families of Bruno Pereira and Dom Phillips. 

The Federal Police is continuing investigations against Colombia for the crime of armed criminal association and command of an illegal fishing gang in Vale do Javari, Amazonas, used to launder drug trafficking money. There are also suspected links to local politicians who benefit from the scheme.

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Bolsonaro's Decree curbs FUNAI'S capacities and "practically ends the institution"

Public policies for indigenous peoples will be affected

Credit: Mídia Ninja

10 Oct 22

Bolsonaro’s Decree curbs FUNAI’S capacities and “practically ends the institution”

Decree 11.226, signed by Jair Bolsonaro (PL), excluded FUNAI’S (Brazilian Indigenous peoples agency) the Regional Committees and their instances such as the Ethnoenvironmental Protection Fronts and Local Technical Coordinations, provided for in the 2017 Statute.

Civil society organizations and indigenous rights advocates showed concern and warned that “the new statute and changes in the staff of the National Indian Foundation should make the demarcation of indigenous lands unviable and reduce the agency’s autonomy in the construction and application of public policies.”

“Bolsonaro promised to give Funai a whack, remember? First he cut the members, and now, with this decree, he cuts off the head of the institution. It practically ends with the institution,” said Antonio Eduardo Cerqueira de Oliveira, executive secretary of the Indigenous Missionary Council (Cimi), to InfoAmazônia.

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2022 Elections: Brazil's Congress keeps a large majority of ruralists, but resistance increases in the Lower House

Indigenous Caucus grew in 2022

Credit: Roque de Sá/Agência Senado

3 Oct 22

2022 Elections: Brazil’s Congress keeps a large majority of ruralists, but resistance increases in the Lower House

Brazil held general elections for the federal and state legislatures, and the first round for the presidency and state governments. The results raised concerns for Human Rights defenders and environmentalists.
We emphasize:
– In the 100 Brazilian municipalities with the highest Gross Agricultural Production Value (GVP), the president and candidate for re-election, Jair Bolsonaro (PL), ended the 1st round of the presidential elections ahead in 75.
– 9 indigenous candidates were elected, 5 identifying with leftist parties, such as Sônia Guajajara (PSOL-SP), Juliana Cardoso (PT-SP) and Celia Xakriabá (PSOL-MG). “The “indigenous bench will drive cattle, mining and loggers out of the territories,” APIB said. Joênia Wapichania (Rede-RR) was not reelected, despite having increased her vote.
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Smoke Signal launches the guide “Legal Amazon and the Future of Brazil”

Publication points out what is at stake in the region a month before Brazil’s elections

Credit: Smoke Signal

30 Aug 22

Smoke Signal launches the guide “Legal Amazon and the Future of Brazil”

With a little over a month to the 2022 presidential elections in Brazil, the monitoring initiative Smoke Signal launches “The Amazon and the Future of Brazil: a guide – An examination of the region’s nine states between 2018 and 2022”, an independent production started from a survey of the main events of the socioenvironmental agenda in the four years of Bolsonaro’s administration in all states that make up the region known as “Legal Amazon” in Brazil.

The material was written based on an active listening process carried out between May and July 2022 with the collection of 19 testimonials from people working in the territories covered by the guide. Communicators, researchers, indigenous and community leaders, and activists were heard. The interviews directed the research and, combined with the best available data, resulted in a qualified and thorough report on the region that occupies almost 60% of the national territory. 

The Guide presents an overview of what the Brazilian Legal Amazon is, contextualizing the reader with geographic and socioenvironmental information and the main political and economic drivers of forest destruction and violence. It brings a selection of data produced by relevant scientific institutes and civil society organizations from the region, and a survey of emblematic cases, violent deaths and indicators of the growing threats faced by native peoples in these areas.

The publication also details the movements of the National Congress in this scenario of dispute over land and environmental resources, highlighting four bills in progress in the federal houses and the behavior of state governments and their parliamentary caucuses regarding the so-called Destruction Package, a series of legislative proposals that profoundly change the use and management of land in the country. Moreover, the guide organizes timelines with the main events monitored by Smoke Signal over the past four years, mapping the main fake news and disinformation campaigns related to weakening environmental protections promoted in each of the states. Finally, it highlights critical areas and high-impact projects for the populations and biodiversity that will likely continue to be the subject of political bargaining after the elections. 

Indigenous leaders petition the Federal Justice to stop the expansion of mining in the Negro river (AM)

More than 77 active mining requests affect the Amazonian river

Credit
Credit: Ana Amélia Hamdan/ISA

22 Aug 22

Indigenous leaders petition the Federal Justice to stop the expansion of mining in the Negro river (AM)

Brazil’s National Mining Agency (ANM) has taken advantage of a legal loop hole that left the Negro river outside of the protection area of Indigenous Territories to allow mining requests in the region. The situation provoked Indigenous leaders to petition the Federal Justice to annul existing mining requests in July. They claim that they have not heard back from the court. 

The petition states that the mining requests stimulate the action of illegal miners in the territories and puts people from 21 ethnicities at risk. Among the threatened people are the Baré, Tukano, Baniwa, Piratapuya, Yanomami, Desano, Wanano, Hupda and Dâw.

“We filed the petition because the most affected will be ourselves, Indigenous peoples. It won’t be the government, it won’t be the corporations, it won’t be the urban populations: it will be us, who are inside the territory”, stated Marivelton Baré, from the Federation of Indigenous Organizations from Negro River (Foirn).

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Indigenous movements and public employees hold national strike and protests across the country

Protests demand justice for Bruno Pereira and Dom Phillips

Credit: Gabriela Moncau/via Brasil de Fato

23 Jun 22

Indigenous movements and public employees hold national strike and protests across the country

After the Federal Police confirmed the murder of indigenous activist Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips, protests by employees of the National Indian Foundation (FUNAI) took the country by storm. Of the 52 units of the agency, 42 hosted demonstrations during the national strike of the category. The group demands the resignation of the president of FUNAI, Marcelo Xavier, the deepening of the investigation into the death of Bruno and Dom, and more security in the Javari Valley (AM), where the crime occurred.

On the same day and in alliance with the movement of public employees, the indigenous movement occupied the streets of São Paulo and Brasília in protest against the postponement by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) of the vote of the “Marco Temporal” [Temporal Landmark], a trial that could define the future of indigenous lands demarcation. The trial was scheduled to resume on the 2nd, but Minister Luiz Fux, president of the STF, announced its postponement indefinitely.

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Bodies of English journalist and indigenous expert found by search teams

Activists criticized Bolsonaro’s government lackluster response to the disappearance

Credit: Polícia Federal

17 Jun 22

Bodies of English journalist and indigenous expert found by search teams

With the active participation of indigenous people in the search, the Federal Police (PF) confirmed that the mortal remains found on June 15th are those of the activist and indigenous expert Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips, who have been missing since June 5th in the region of Vale do Javari in the Amazon.

So far, three suspects have been arrested: Amarildo da Costa Pereira, known as Pelado, Jefferson da Silva Lima, and Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, known as Dos Santos. Pelado was the only one to confess to the crime. In a note, the PF a indicated that there may be more suspects involved in the crime and ruled out the possibility of an organization behind the crime. “The investigations also point out that the executors acted alone, and there was no criminal organization behind the crime,” the text says.

The Union of Indigenous Peoples of Vale do Javari (Unijava), responsible for initiating the searches, repudiated the statement and said it had already presented to the PF evidence of the actions of a criminal organization in the region.  “With this statement, the PF disregards the qualified information, offered by UNIVAJA in numerous letters, since the second half of 2021, the period of implementation of the EVU. Such documents point to the existence of an organized criminal group acting in the constant invasions of the Vale do Javari Indigenous Land, of which Pelado and Do Santo are part,” says the note.

The case has generated strong mobilization from civil society and the international press, which have demanded clarifications and justice. After the remains were found, Brasília, Belém and São Paulo hosted demonstrations in solidarity with Bruno and Dom and against Bolsonaro’s management of the Amazon region.

 

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British journalist and indigenous expert have disappeared in the Javari Valley, in the Amazon

The region has many drug dealers and illegal hunters encampments

Credit: TV Globo/Reproduction

6 Jun 22

British journalist and indigenous expert have disappeared in the Javari Valley, in the Amazon

Bruno Araújo Pereira, an indigenista [an indigenous expert], who’s a member with the National Indian Foundation (FUNAI), and a British journalist, Dom Phillips, disappeared last weekend on the way from the riverside community of São Rafael to Atalaia do Norte, in the Javari Valley in the Amazon, on the border with Peru. According to information from the Union of Indigenous Peoples of the Javari Valley (Univaja), which was in contact with the missing, Bruno is under constant threats from loggers, illegal gold diggers, and fishermen in the region.

According to Amazônia Real, Bruno and Dom were the victims of an ambush. An indigenous source interviewed by the portal reports that “around 4 a.m. on Sunday (5), the expert and the journalist warned that they were going to talk with “Churrasco”, president of the São Rafael community association. Days before, they had already crossed paths with another group in a 60 HP boat, a motor considered unusual for navigating narrower waterways (boreholes and streams). This group that crossed paths with them made a point of showing that it they were armed and intimidated them”, says the report.

The news mobilized various indigenous and environmental organizations, which drew attention to the vulnerable context of the region and called for a speedy search. Reports from the region indicate that the government was slow to take action and sent insufficient teams, denying even the support of a helicopter. The Army, in a note, said it had the means to help but was “awaiting an order from the higher echelon”. The search has been carried out largely by indigenous people and Univaja.

 

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Mining project threatens Serra do Curral, landmark of Belo Horizonte (MG)

Region that would be affected harbors large swats of the Atlantic Rainforest

Credit: André Jean Deberdt

23 May 22

Mining project threatens Serra do Curral, landmark of Belo Horizonte (MG)

The state government of Minas Gerais has granted an environmental license to the mining company Taquaril Mineração S.A. (Tamisa) to build a mining complex in the Serra do Curral, a mountainous region located between the municipalities of Belo Horizonte, Nova Lima and Sabará. The project will occupy an area of 101.24 hectares, equivalent to 121 soccer fields.

The municipality of Belo Horizonte and the Public Ministry of Minas Gerais have filed actions in court to reverse the decision. Activists, social movements and civil society organizations launched the campaign “Tira o pé da minha Serra” [Hands off my Serra], which calls for the installation of a parliamentary investigation commission to investigate the bidding process.

Specialists say that a mining can increase deforestation in the region and compromise the water supply for the city of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais’s capital.

 

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