Brasilia Aug 18 (BUS): Attacks on indigenous peoples in Brazil and the invasion of their lands by illegal miners and logging workers, especially in the Amazon region, dramatically increased in 2021, escalating the already “terrifying” situation, the Population Missionary Council Indigenous Catholic Church (Cimi) on Wednesday.
SIMI, in its annual report on violence against indigenous peoples, detailed a dramatic escalation of violations in 3 years, which led to the dismantling of the inspection and protection bodies for indigenous peoples.
Simi said that with more than 20,000 illegal gold miners in the Yanomami Reserve on the border with Venezuela, the invaders began armed attacks against indigenous communities, causing a climate of terror and deaths, including children.
In Pará state, where increasingly wild gold mining has destroyed forests and polluted rivers, invaders attacked Munduruku community organizations and tried to prevent their leaders from traveling to demonstrations in the country’s capital, Brasilia, she said.
There were 305 invasions of indigenous lands in 2021, compared to 263 cases the previous year, nearly three times the cases reported by Cimi in 2018.
And there were 176 Aboriginal homicides, six fewer than in 2020, which had the highest number of recorded homicides.
The number of Indigenous suicides rose to 148 last year, the highest rate ever recorded.
Simi also reported killings carried out with extreme cruelty and brutality.
Funai, which was founded in 1967 to protect 300 tribes in Brazil, half of whom live in the Amazon rainforest, said in a statement that it is working with environmental protection and law enforcement agencies to combat illegal activities on indigenous lands.
To run Funai, Bolsonaro appointed a police force known for helping farmers in land disputes with indigenous people.
MI