Latest news with #Kayapó
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Bolsonaro wanted to exterminate us, claims Indigenous leader Raoni Metuktire
Brazil's most revered Indigenous leader, Raoni Metuktire, has said he believes that one of the former president Jair Bolsonaro's goals while in office was to 'exterminate' the country's Indigenous peoples. According to the Kayapó chief, the far-right populist 'encouraged invasions, mining and deforestation' in order to hand Indigenous lands over to the kubẽ (non-Indigenous people). 'He really wanted to exterminate us,' Metuktire says in his new book, Memórias do Cacique (The Chief's Memoirs), recently released in Portuguese, its cover featuring Metuktire with his trademark lip plate and bright yellow feather headdress. 'But Indigenous peoples across Brazil united to resist his government,' he says, adding that 'from now on, every president elected in Brazil must respect Indigenous peoples'. Metuktire, 88, has gained international recognition since the 1980s for his efforts to combat environmental destruction and protect Indigenous lands, and he became a frequent target of Bolsonaro, whose administration coincided with a sharp rise in deforestation in the Amazon. In the book, the Indigenous leader says Bolsonaro began appearing in his dreams towards the end of the president's term. 'I told him [in the dream]: 'Just wait, you'll be out of the presidency. I'll remove you,'' he says. The Guardian contacted Bolsonaro for comment but did not receive a response. In January 2023, Metuktire stood alongside Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as the leftist took office for a third term, having defeated Bolsonaro in the 2022 election. In the book, the chief recalls telling Lula that he could not 'repeat the mistakes of the past'. He says Indigenous communities were 'deceived' during Lula's previous administration, particularly with the construction of the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam on the Xingu River. Despite his criticism over the dam's construction, the overall tone towards Lula is one of trust and cautious hope. The book, not yet scheduled for English translation, is the result of more than 80 hours of interviews given to Metuktire's 'grandchildren', a term that includes biological descendants and younger members of the community who are not blood-related. The interviews were conducted and transcribed in the Indigenous language Mẽbêngôkre and translated into Portuguese with support from Fernando Niemeyer, an anthropologist who led the research for the book. Through this work, Niemeyer was able to determine Metuktire's year of birth – until now only an estimate, as there were no official records – as 1937. The exact date, however, remains uncertain. The chief recalls moments including his tour across 13 countries in the late 1980s alongside the rock star Sting to denounce the destruction of Brazil's forests and raise funds for the demarcation of Indigenous lands. Metuktire remembers being at Sting's home when they saw on the news that the environmentalist Chico Mendes had been murdered by ranchers illegally occupying protected land. 'After lunch, Sting came over to me and said: 'Let's talk. Raoni, I'm worried about you. They've just killed Chico Mendes because he was fighting for the forest. Find people you trust to manage this money, and take care of yourself in this struggle,'' the chief says. The narrative does not follow a linear chronology. Instead, the book weaves together personal accounts, myths, dreams and songs – a deliberate choice, Niemeyer explains, to preserve the way Metuktire sees and relates to the world. 'For centuries, our colonial tradition worked to erase Indigenous memory,' the anthropologist said, noting that there were still very few autobiographies by Brazilian Indigenous leaders. 'Until quite recently, the ones writing about Indigenous people were white – and there were practically no Indigenous voices writing about whites.' The memoir is also a call to arms and unity for the younger generations, with frequent scoldings for, in Metuktire's view, drifting away from tradition. 'I still feel strong enough to keep fighting,' Metuktire says, 'but my grandchildren must carry this struggle forward.' He is expected to name his successor as chief next month.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Toxic gold: The true cost of illegal mining in the Amazon forest
From above, the Amazon rainforest appears as a dense, emerald-green paradise, but as the plane descends, the damaged landscape becomes visible with its gaping wounds carved by illegal gold mining. Patches of bare soil, muddy pits and pools of rust-coloured water holes replace the once-thriving canopy now reduced to a barren wasteland which is often laced with toxic pollutants. The impact is severe, harming the environment, wildlife and the Indigenous communities who depend on the forest to survive. "I am very worried. If they carry on like this and mine in our area, they will destroy nature - with effects that will be felt by the whole world," chief of the Kayapó people, Raoni Metuktire, tells dpa. He has become an internationally recognized symbolic figure thanks to his decades-long commitment to preserving the Amazon rainforest and indigenous cultures. A recent report by the environmental organization Greenpeace shows that despite the measures taken by the current government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to curb illegal gold mining on indigenous land, mining activities have not decreased. They have merely shifted from one indigenous area to another. Greenpeace has been documenting gold mining activities in four important indigenous territories in northern Brazil for years with the help of satellite data and overland flights, which also enable journalistic research. While illegal mining declined between 2023 and 2024 in the Yanomami region (down 7%), the Munduruku region (down 57%) and the Kayapó region (down 31%), it increased sharply in the Sararé region by 93%. In the last two years, 4,219 hectares of rainforest have been destroyed by gold prospectors in these areas alone - an area equivalent to around half the size of the Manhattan borough of New York City in the United States. Massive environmental damage caused by mercury Illegal gold prospectors, known as garimpeiros in Portuguese, enter protected areas, set up their camps and try to find gold. They often cut down large areas of trees and dig deep holes. Machines and equipment such as excavators and pumps can be seen flying overhead. Approaching the prospectors could be dangerous. "They are aware of the illegality of their activities and could be armed," explains Jorge Eduardo Dantas, Greenpeace spokesman in Brazil. If the gold miners make a find, large quantities of highly toxic chemicals such as mercury are used to extract the gold from the rock. They pollute the water and often kill fish. The indigenous inhabitants can suffer irreversible damage to their nervous systems. "Visual impairment, learning and developmental disorders in children can be the result," explains Harald Gross, Greenpeace forest protection expert. A study published last year by the national research institute Oswaldo Cruz Institute shows that 84% of the population in nine Yanomami villages were exposed to high mercury levels. It is not uncommon for the gold mining areas to be operated by criminal networks linked to drug cartels. According to Greenpeace, this also leads to acts of violence and deadly attacks against the indigenous people. Gold miners victims of human trafficking Yet the garimpeiros themselves are not always the villains - they are often victims, too. Driven by poverty, many are drawn to gold mining as one of the few ways to earn a living. But the job comes with risks. According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Brazil, as many as 40% of Amazon gold miners may be victims of human trafficking and forced labour. Rising demand for gold fuels illegal mining "The price of gold is currently at a historic high, the business is mega lucrative," says Gross. The rising global demand for gold is fuelling illegal mining in the Amazon region, he adds. According to the Greenpeace report, the gold is smuggled via opaque trade chains, often mixed with gold from legal mines and sold via middlemen before it enters international trade. "The gold passes through so many hands and is remelted again and again, making it difficult to provide real proof of origin," says Gross. A study by the Escolhas Institute last year shows that 94% of the Brazilian gold imported by the European Union comes from the states of Pará and Amazonas - regions with a high probability of illegal gold mining. In 2023, Germany, Italy and the Czech Republic imported a total of 1.5 tons of gold from these regions. Lula plans to take countermeasures In contrast to his predecessor, former president Jair Bolsonaro, who was in favour of exploiting the Amazon region and was in favour of gold mining in indigenous areas, Lula had promised to strengthen environmental and climate protection. The environmental authority Ibama repeatedly carries out raids in which gold miners' equipment is destroyed. However, according to Greenpeace, continuous and ongoing monitoring and checks are needed to ensure that the miners do not return once the raids are over. The Escolhas study emphasises that more transparency is needed in the supply chain. This year in particular, Brazil is in the public eye: the UN Climate Change Conference COP30 will take place in the Brazilian Amazon city of Belém in November.
The Guardian
09-04-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Solar panels and pristine forest: how one Amazon village is adapting to protect itself
By the Xingu River, a tributary of the Amazon, Metuktire stands as a beacon of resistance against deforestation. Only 0.15% of the Capoto-Jarina territory was deforested between 2008 and 2024 Metuktire is a village of 400 people in the Capoto-Jarina's near-pristine forest. The village has been protected largely thanks to its chief, Raoni Metutkire, an environmentalist who has gained international recognition. Thought to be in his 90s, Raoni lived here for a long time but now, for health reasons, lives in Peixoto de Azevedo, where he continues to advocate for his people with politicians A villager and her children at their home in Metuktire. Resistance against intruders requires everyone in the local community to monitor and report illegal activities The village enjoys a traditional way of life. One of the key food staples is cassava, also known as yuca or manioc, which is harvested by the women The women return from the cassava fields near the village While cassava is prepared in the tradiional way to make an unleavened bread or porridge, some aspects of modern life have been embraces by the villa as can be seen from the solar energy panel propped against the wall Indigenous men prepare to perform a traditional dance in Metuktire. Their strategy to protect the territory involves regular patrols and educating the younger members of the community in how to resist environmental crimes Kubenpari, one of the community chiefs, prepares himself at the warriors' house before participating in a traditional dance Beptok Metuktire, with other caciques or chiefs , speaks after performing the dance. 'We have had goldminers and outsiders who wanted to occupy our lands,' he says. 'We show them that this is our territory' Pekan Metuktire is a 69-year-old cacique , or chief. The Kayapó use body paint to commemorate their ancestors and as part of their spiritual belief in animism, which honours insects among other animals A kaleidoscope of sulphur butterflies flutter along the banks of the Xingu River near the village. The insects are drawn to the minerals in the riverside mud The villagers have growing concerns about the impact of the climate crisis on their future. Cacique Pekan Metuktire, right, speaks to Kubenpari at his home. 'Last year, there was a massive fire that we could not control,' he says. 'When I was young, the climate was normal in this village. Now, the sun scorches, the earth dries up and the rivers overflow. If this continues, it will be the end of our world' Beptuket, another cacique , prepares for the dance at Metuktire Like many of the villagers, Beptuket has also embraced modern ways – he is pictured checking his mobile phone while resting with one of his children at home Blue-and-yellow macaws ( Ara ararauna ) flying over Metuktire. The birds, which mate for life, are threatened by deforestation, poaching for food and feathers, as well as for the pet trade
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Help name the Beardsley Zoo's giant anteater baby
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (WTNH) — The Connecticut Beardsley Zoo wants your help naming its baby giant anteater! Zoo officials announced a naming contest on Monday. The female giant anteater was born on Aug. 27, 2024- making her the fourth one born at the zoo. Bird flu confirmed at the Beardsley Zoo Zoo officials say the baby girl was born fully furred and is 'thriving' under her mother Pana's care. Now, they want the public to use an online poll to vote on what to name her. The options are: Kayapó – Named after the Indigenous people of Brazil Ramo – Portuguese for 'branch/stick' (she loves to climb!) Merida – Inspired by her brave spirit Voting is open now until Thursday, Feb. 13, at 11:59 p.m. Cast your vote on this online form. Beardsley Zoo mourns loss of red panda, Berry The winning name will be announced on the zoo's Facebook and Instagram pages at 10 a.m. on Feb. 14. Giant anteaters can grow up to 7-feet long and weigh up to 100 pounds. Zoo officials said habitat loss and other environmental factors currently threaten their population. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
