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Tapajos

Amazon Fires: Indigenous Peoples Mobilize to Save Their Territories, and the World Steps Up in Solidarity

The crisis is not over, but we also need to prevent the next emergency now

The current crisis is not the beginning of the assault on the Amazon rainforest and its indigenous guardians, and unfortunately, it will not be the last. Long before Brazil's current far-right government took power, local and global industrial interests set the stage for these fires, and they will not change their behavior unless they are...

The Amazon Burns, and the World Responds

Bolsonaro’s hate-filled rhetoric aims to set the stage for a coordinated assault on indigenous land rights, as political representatives of Brazil’s powerful agribusiness sector work to open native lands to industrial activities. In this dire context, it is essential that Brazil’s vibrant resistance movement continue to gain strength and momentum.

With the Brazilian Amazon in Flames, We Must All Be the Resistance

Today we may be witnessing the tragedy of our lifetime: the Brazilian Amazon is in flames and in peril. Indeed, it's not only the Amazon, but our entire planet that is in crisis as the devastation of this life-giving biome poses a real, existential threat for all of humanity.

Indigenous Women Mobilize to Resist Bolsonaro

Yesterday, nearly 3,000 indigenous women leaders from across Brazil staged a mobilization in the nation’s capital as part of the country’s first Indigenous Women's March. Entitled "Territory: our body, our spirit,” this historic gathering was in response to escalating violations of indigenous rights under the Bolsonaro government, as native...

As the Brazilian Amazon Burns, Indigenous Peoples Take a Stand

Last month Amazon Watch visited the Munduruku people in the Amazonian state of Pará, whose nation stretches the vast Tapajós River basin. Our stay in the contested Sawré Muybu territory was illustrative of the spiraling threats faced by indigenous peoples in Bolsonaro’s Brazil.

Amazon Watch is building on more than 25 years of radical and effective solidarity with Indigenous peoples across the Amazon Basin.

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Government Crackdown on Illegal Amazon Gold Mining Could Backfire for Brazil’s Munduruku

The rights and safety of Indigenous communities must be protected from these threats as well as their territory

"Once again, the [police] operation did not do its work." Given the grave socio-environmental impacts of organized crime in the Amazon, the Brazilian government must reign in local mafias, be they miners, loggers, or land grabbers. However, it cannot do this with isolated actions, nor by allowing its informants – in this case imperiled indigenous...

Growing Movement Builds Unity to Defend Indigenous Brazil

Last week's mobilization was a shining example that spirited resistance is alive and well even in the dark days of the presidency of Michel Temer. This resistance provides a critical counterweight to growing repression and environmental devastation and deserves ample support, from local to global levels, to send a firm message to the Brazilian...

NGOs Denounce Tapajós Basin Intimidation, Violence, Brazil Inaction

The 38 NGOs include Amazon Watch, Instituto Socioambiental, and WWF Brasil

Mongabay | Thirty-eight national and international NGOs issued a strongly worded statement demanding the Brazilian government uphold environmental laws, act on indigenous rights violations, and end escalating intimidation by the builders of hydroelectric dams on the Teles Pires River. Also condemned was the Temer administration's failure to prosecute illegal...

World Water Day: Deadly Plight of Brazil’s River Defenders Goes Unheard

At a high-level talking shop for the global water industry in Brazil, river defenders and community activists – who are often murdered or criminalized for trying to protect their resources – have set up an alternative forum to share their stories

The Guardian | Alessandria Munduruku described how women have moved to the forefront of the community's campaign to protect territory. "The government doesn't care for us, only for agribusiness so our struggle is very difficult. We are up against illegal mines, loggers, ports, roads, agribusiness and investors from China and Canada," she said. "The men are weak...

Native Brazilians Try to Close Major Illegal Mining Site Polluting River in Pará

Folha de S.Paulo | Tired of waiting for the government to take action against the major illegal mining sites located in the Munduruku Indigenous Territory and in the Crepor National Forest, Munduruku warriors and leaders organized an expedition to drive non-indigenous prospectors out of the area.

Mega-Dams May Be History in the Brazilian Amazon!

Last week's announcement should be celebrated as a tentative victory, albeit a fragile one that demands vigilance as Brazil continues to weather political and financial instability. This victory will only become a reality when we insist it be upheld. We owe this to our on-the-ground partners for all they do on our behalf to defend this life-giving...

Brazil Announces End to Amazon Mega-dam Building Policy

The government's hydroelectric dams policy change announced this week will surely be greeted as a hopeful sign by environmentalists and indigenous groups. But experts warn that a much bigger strategic policy shift is needed regarding infrastructure planning and agribusiness before the Amazon can be deemed safe from major deforestation.

Climate Justice Now! Keep It in the Ground!

"My message here at COP 23 for the people, for allies of the world, is that we need to fight together, unite forces, because the states that are here speaking in our name are at a negotiating table where supposedly they are looking for solutions, but these solutions are for them, not for Indigenous peoples."

Xingu River Defender Antônia Melo Honored for Her Lifelong Struggle

"I am but drop of water in the ocean, but together with many others we can shape the force of its waters and make change. This is what motivates my commitment to continue fighting, so that human rights, social-environmental justice, and that life be affirmed for present and future generations!"

Brazilian Firm Wants To Build New Dams in Amazon’s Aripuanã Basin

With the bancada ruralista mining / agribusiness lobby in control of the Temer government and Congress, a Brazilian company, Intertechne Consultores, sees it as an opportune time to revive a shelved plan to build dams in the Amazon’s Aripuanã basin.

We Are Made of the Sacred!

A mobilization of the Munduruku people, which began two months ago by women concerned with defending sacred places and indigenous rights and led to an occupation of the construction site of the São Manoel hydroelectric dam project, ended on Friday. The Munduruku, however, have made it clear that their struggle continues.

Toxic Mega-Mine Looms Over Belo Monte’s Affected Communities

On the banks of Brazil's lower Xingu River, a toxic controversy looms large, threatening to heap insult upon the grievous injuries of the nearby Belo Monte hydroelectric dam. Belo Sun would become Brazil's largest open-pit gold mine, straddling the territories of three indigenous peoples and other traditional communities that are already reeling...

"It Opens the Floodgate"

"You cannot deny land to indigenous people that are ancestrally attached to it and expect them to continue to exist as a culture," said Christian Poirier, program director at Amazon Watch.

Is Chinese Development Finance Enabling Rainforest Destruction in Brazil?

Brazil's current economic and political shifts and its effort to attract Chinese investment are part of a concerted effort by the Brazilian government to industrialize vast sections of the Amazon, with grave ramifications for the forests, rivers, and peoples who help sustain this irreplaceable biome for the benefit of humanity.

Watch Belo Monte Documentary Today!

Today is International Day of Action for Rivers, and what better way to commemorate it than watching the award-winning documentary film, Belo Monte: After the Flood!

Samba Parade Spotlights Threats To Rivers, Forests and Indigenous Rights at Rio’s Carnival

In a colorful and highly energized samba parade at Rio de Janeiro's world-famous Carnival on Monday morning, Imperatriz Leopoldinense, one of Brazil's most traditional and respected samba schools, paid a special tribute to indigenous peoples of the Amazon's Xingu River, highlighting threats to their territories, livelihoods and rights.

Brazil: Hate Speech Threatens the Xingu

Imperatriz Leopoldinense probably had no idea where it would lead them when they chose to speak out about the Xingu, but they chose the right path. Because today, to defend the Brazilian Indian is to defend the future of our country.

Counterintuitive: Global Hydropower Boom Will Add To Climate Change

"The new study confirms that reservoirs are major emitters of methane, a particularly aggressive greenhouse gas," said Kate Horner, Executive Director of International Rivers, adding that hydropower dams "can no longer be considered a clean and green source of electricity."

Indigenous Rights and Territories Under Attack in Brazil

Make no mistake about it, indigenous rights and territories are under attack in Brazil. We recently reported on attempts by the administration of President Michel Temer to roll back indigenous rights and environmental protections, moves that fundamentally undermine land demarcation norms while portending dire consequences for the Amazon and its...

Siemens, the Pope and the Law of the Jungle

At Belo Monte, the writing is on the wall because, all over the Amazon, new dams are planned or being built. A key role in the protection of the forests, rivers and animals will now be played by the indigenous person.