America

Brazil begins offensive to evict illegal miners from Yanomami territory

Brazil begins offensive to evict illegal miners from Yanomami territory

First modification: Last modification:

One of the first measures taken by Brazilian President Lula da Silva after his return to power has been to launch an operation to evict the illegal miners or “garimpeiros” who occupy and threaten the Yanomami Indians on their reservation, on the border with Venezuela. . The organizations that defend this ethnic group applaud.

The environmental and indigenous agencies in Brazil, together with the security forces, carry out operations in the Amazon to expel thousands of illegal gold miners, accused of causing serious damage to the environment and generating a humanitarian crisis for the Yanomami ethnic group.

The Yanomami reject illegal mining


Fulfilling the promises of the candidate Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva, current president, Brazil is fully involved in the defense of the Amazon rainforest, protecting green areas as part of the fight against climate change.

The federal government has declared a public health emergency for the Yanomami, who suffer from malnutrition, malaria and other diseases due to illegal mining.

The situation worsened under Bolsonaro

The situation of the indigenous people, although it is not new, worsened significantly under the administration of Jair Bolsonaro. “Since former President Jair Bolsonaro came to power, illegal occupations have skyrocketed alarmingly because the president himself encouraged them, he was the one who encouraged the ‘garimpeiros’ to go to those regions,” Laura da Silva told RFI in Spanish. , spokesperson for survival.

“All these years we have been denouncing that the situation was disastrous, that mafia gangs sowed terror among the Yanomami communities, that there were murders, rapes of women, girls, and the consequences of Bolsonaro’s anti-indigenous policy have been well documented. Little did we report that some 570 Yanomami children, under the age of five, have died from preventable diseases since Bolsonaro came to power,” he adds.

Source link