Indigenous people in northern Brazil lost around 200 hectares of forest to illegal gold mining in the first quarter of 2021. This emerges from a report by the indigenous association “Hutukara Associação Yanomami”.
If the development continues at this pace, the Yanomami fear a new high in 2021. In 2020, 500 hectares of Amazon forest were destroyed in their protected area.
The destruction from gold mining on the Yanomami area, which is criss-crossed by deep craters and gold rush camps, was 2,130 hectares, according to the report. A judge at the Supreme Court in Brasília had ruled that the Brazilian government must do everything possible to guarantee the safety of the Yanomami and Munduruku indigenous areas.
In the fight for land, illegal gold diggers recently attacked indigenous peoples and the police. At least five people – four illegal gold diggers and one indigenous man – were shot injured. The Yanomami territory is one of the largest protected areas for indigenous communities in Brazil, covering nearly 10 million hectares in the states of Roraima and Amazonas. Around 27,000 Yanomami, who are also at home in neighboring Venezuela, live there.
The Yanomami became known for their struggle against invaders and the Transamazônica road construction project. According to estimates by the Yanomami, there are 20,000 illegal gold diggers in their area.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210526-99-741621 / 3
–
