Germany for Brazil's Land Demarcation
*********************************************************************
OVERVIEW & SOURCE by EE
Following is an update on Brazilian rainforest conservation issues posted
by the Indianist Missionary Council - Cimi, in econet's rainfor.general
conference. It reports on the planned meeting between indigenous leaders
and German parliamentarians. The German government recently approved a
resolution which asks "the Brazilian Government to speed up the demarcation
of indigenous lands in Brazil" and that failure to do so may mean freezing
"the financial support being provided by the German government for that
purpose." Governments which accept multinational aid for the purpose of
indigenous peoples, conservation and sustainable development must be held
accountable for enacting their pledges.
GERMAN MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT WILL COME TO BRASILIA TO MEET
INDIGENOUS LEADERS
Indigenous leaders are looking forward to meeting deputy Angelika Koster-
Lossak, from the German Green Party, next week, when she will be arriving
in Brasilia. The deputy is a member of the International Cooperation
Committee of the German Parliament, which on the 26th approved the
resolution "Demarcation of Indigenous Territories in Brazil," through which
the Parliament decided to ask the Brazilian Government to speed up the
demarcation of indigenous lands in Brazil and, if nothing happens, it might
freeze the financial support being provided by the German government for
that purpose.
The decision of the International Cooperation Committee was determined by a
trip of Brazilian Indians to Europe in May of this year. In the approved
resolution, the Committee supports all the arguments presented by the
Indians (who represented indigenous organizations of Brazil), according to
which Decree 1775/96 "clearly jeopardized the legal grounds which ensure
the rights of indigenous peoples to their lands and the protection of
their territories from invaders." The German deputy is expected to assume a
position with regard to the decision of the Brazilian government to review
the demarcation of eight indigenous areas: Evare 1 and Suruini-Mariene, in
the state of Amazonas, Raposa/Serra do Sol, in the state of Roraima, Bau
and Apyterewa, in the state of Para', Sete Cerros, in the state of Mato
Grosso do Sul, Kampa do Rio Envira, in the state of Acre, and Krikati,
in the state of Maranhao.
KIRIRI INDIANS EXPEL SQUATTERS FROM INDIGENOUS AREA
This week, a group of 200 Kiriri Indians took the initiative of expelling
about 40 squatters from an indigenous area located in the municipality of
Banzae, in the state of Bahia, where 2,000 Indians live. The Kiriri are not
pleased with the slow pace of the negotiations being carried out by Funai
to expropriate areas occupied by squatters and invaders inside their
territory. It is the second time in two years that the Kiriri act on their
own to ensure the integrity of their 12,320-hectare territory, which has
been demarcated already. The squatters who were expelled by the Indians are
lodged near the site of the conflict and will remain there until it is
settled.
PREJUDICE KILLS INDIAN IN THE STATE OF ACRE
A trivial discussion involving three Indians of the Shanenawa ethnic group
and military policemen on Sunday, July 14, in Feijo, a city located in the
state of Acre, ended in tragedy. It all happened because Indians Raimundo
Silvino, Jose Augustinho Brandao and Nicolau Brandao hugged a nine-year-old
boy, the son of CIMI missionary who was accompanying the policemen.
Although they were not on duty, the policemen were carrying their guns
and, because they were drunk, they thought that the Indians wanted to beat
the boy. Refusing to hear any explanations, they shot Indian Augustinho
Brandao in the head in cold blood, killing him, and wounded Silvino and
Nicolau as they rushed to the forest. The policemen were arrested and taken
into custody to the headquarters of the Military Police in city of Feijo'.
Policemen in large numbers have now occupied the city, causing tension in
the region. CIMI fears for the security of the boy and of the Shanenawa
Indians, since the cold-blooded nature of the crime shows that in Brazil
Indians are still victims of prejudice, which marginalizes and kills many
of them. The entity launched a solidarity campaign in favor of that
indigenous people requesting that letters and telegrams be sent to Judge
Quirino Lucas de Morais demanding justice and the end of impunity for
killers of Indians. The address is: Comarca de Feijo' - Travessia Floriano
Peixoto, 206 -Centro - Feijo' - Estado do Acre.
Brasilia, 18 July 1996
Indianist Missionary Council - Cimi
This document is a PHOTOCOPY and all recipients should seek permission from
the source for reprinting. You are encouraged to utilize this information
for personal campaign use; including writing letters, organizing campaigns
and forwarding. All efforts are made to provide accurate, timely pieces;
though ultimate responsibility for verifying all information rests with the
reader. Check out our Gaia Forest Conservation Archives at URL=
http://forests.lic.wisc.edu/forests/gaia.html">
Networked by:
Ecological Enterprises
Email (best way to contact)-> grbarry@students.wisc.edu
*******************************************************************
Brazil Justice Minister Delays Macuxi Land Demarcation
Over 1,500,000 Hectares Could Be Opened for Development in the Amazon
*******************************************************************
Forest Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
7/25/96
OVERVIEW & SOURCE by EE
The Brazilian government's attempts to renege on pledges to demarcate
indigenous lands continue. In recent developments, the Environmental
Defense Fund reports that the Brazilian Justice Minister has decided to
allow 8 contestations of indigeneous land claims to move forward. The
Macuxi lands--in particular the Raposa Serra do Sol area--are the largest
and most controversial of the 8 contested areas. Raposa Serra do Sol
covers 1,678,800 hectares (6,482 square miles, an area half again
as big as Connecticut), and is inhabited by 11,000 Macuxi, Ingariko,
Wapixana, Taurepang and Patamona Indians. International pressure has been
a major force in forestalling indigenous land demarcation changes.
However, if such a large area which was marked for indigenous demarcation
is allowed to revert to undemarcated land, a dangerous precedence will be
set which ultimately could lead to the demise of the Amazonian ecosystem.
Please respond to this EDF Action Alert, and attached sample letter, which
was posted in econet's rainfor.general conference.
ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND
1875 Connecticut Ave., NW, 10th Fl.
Washington, D.C. 20009
Tel.: 202 387-3500;
Fax: 202 234-6049;
steves@edf.org
From: Steve Schwartzman Date: July 24, 1996
URGENT ACTION - BRAZIL JUSTICE MINISTER DELAYS MACUXI
DEMARCATION
Government rejects claims against 34 indigenous areas, but effects of
Decree 1775 may still be felt
International environmental and indigenous rights organizations have over
the last year played an important role in the defense of indigenous land
rights in Brazil, by maintaining consistent pressure on the government of
Brazil to honor its constitutional obligation to demarcate and defend
indigenous territory. Indigenous and indigenous rights organizations in
Brazil were deeply concerned that new regulations for Indian land
demarcation, issued in Decree 1775 of January 8, 1996, would result in
major reductions of Indian land, even in already demarcated areas. Under
Decree 1775, more than 150 areas in process of demarcation were opened to
challenge by state governments, counties and private claimants. Activists
feared that the government would trade away Indian land to regional
interests in exchange for Congressional support for liberal economic policy
reforms. International protest and ongoing scrutiny of the process, in
conjunction with local and national mobilization in Brazil, have helped
counterbalance pressures for the reduction of Indian land.
Some 536 challenges were lodged against 42 areas. Brazil's Indian agency,
FUNAI, recommended rejection of all of these. On July 10, Minister of
Justice Nelson Jobim, the final arbiter of the question, issued the
government's decision. Jobim definitively rejected the challenges to 34
areas. In 8 cases, however, he called for FUNAI to carry our further
studies, which must be done in 90 days. Continued international attention
to these cases, and to the effects of the decree, are now critical for
several reasons.
Although Minister Jobim has energetically defended the decree, in
Washington and Brussels as well as Brasilia, as needed to forestall legal
challenges to the constitutionality of reserves created under the previous
regulations, revising the rules has not affected the legal battle. The key
case, Satin Agropecuaria ,s Supreme Court challenge of the Sete Cerros
Guarani area remains pending. Further, states and private claimants whose
challenges under Decree 1775 were rejected may now go to court. In this
context even a few concessions to regional special interests could open a
judicial Pandora's Box, with prejudicial effects for indigenous land rights
and other types of protected areas. In addition, Jobim has argued that the
government intends to move on the dozens of pending demarcations once
having dealt with the challenges. While a number of demarcation decrees
have been signed in recent months, the process has been slow and uneven.
There are now 114 areas that were open to challenge under Decree 1775, but
were not challenged, in addition to the 34 areas for which the challenges
were rejected. There is no legal or technical reason for the demarcation
process not to proceed at once in these cases. The danger is that, as
municipal elections approach (in the fall), and as the government
continues to struggle to assemble Congressional support for the economic
reform plan, recognition of indigenous land rights will once again fall
victim to short-term political expediency and the demarcation process stop.
The Macuxi lands--in particular the Raposa Serra do Sol area--are a crucial
test in this process. The largest and most controversial of the 8
contested areas on which decisions are still pending, Raposa Serra do Sol
covers 1,678,800 hectares (6,482 square miles, an area half again
as big as Connecticut), and is inhabited by some 11,000 Macuxi, Ingariko,
Wapixana, Taurepang and Patamona Indians. The area was identified by FUNAI
(the first step in the official recognition, or "demarcation" process) in
1992 and sent to the Justice Ministry for authorization of the official
demarcation in 1993, where it has remained, blocked by regional interests,
since. Local politicians have argued tendentiously that the demarcation of
the area would impede the economic development of the state. In fact the
state, a federal territory until 1988, has never had an independent
economic base beyond wildcat mining (garimpo) and has subsisted on federal
subventions since its creation. The gold boom of the 1980's nonetheless
brought massive migration to the state, whose population increased fivefold
from 1970 to 1991.
The Macuxi and related groups have been in contact with colonists and
national societies in Brazil and neighboring Guyana and Venezuela for the
last four hundred years. Outside of Raposa Serra do Sol and the Sao Marcos
reserve, they have largely been pushed onto small, disconnected
islands of land by ranchers and colonists who occupied most of their
traditional land. Nonetheless, some 42% of land of the state is occupied
by about 35,000 Indians, who currently comprise 16% of the state
population, the highest proportion of any Brazilian state.
The situation of the Macuxi, already marginal, deteriorated in the 1980s
with the advent of the gold rush. When, under international pressure, the
federal government moved to remove illegal gold miners from the Yanomami
lands, many invaded or were redirected by the state government into the
Raposa Serra do Sol area. Unlike the Yanaomami area, the Macuxi lands were
not demarcated, effectively legitimating the invasions. Gold and diamond
miners have brought epidemics of malaria and leshmaniasis, as well as
alcohol, prostitution and venereal disease to the region. Major
water courses in the ecologically unique upland savannah have been degraded
and polluted by mining and fish and game depleted. Violent conflicts were
also aggravated by the gold rush. In the last eight years, a dozen Macuxi
have been killed by non-Indians in the Raposa Serra do Sol area, in
addition to many more cases of beatings, threats, intimidation, destruction
of goods and property, and illegal imprisonment, frequently involving the
civil and military police. Impunity for the perpetrators is the rule.
According to the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR), in the last three
years 53 federal police investigations involving Indians were opened and 12
concluded, four without indictments. Ten of the ongoing investigations are
of crimes committed by civil and military police. The general picture, as
characterized by Macuxi leader Euclides Pereira, CIR coordinator, is one of
institutionalized violence against the Macuxi.
By failing to honor its constitutional obligation to demarcate and defend
the Raposa Serra do Sol area, the Brazilian government is contributing to
ongoing environmental degradation and chronic conflicts in the area.
Further delaying a decision risks seriously worsening an already explosive
situation. Taking the wrong decision (i.e., failure to demarcate the
continuous Raposa Serra do Sol area) would ensure mayhem, and seriously
prejudice the future of indigenous lands all over Brazil that await
demarcation.
INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC OPINION CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE NOW.
Minister of Justice Jobim has privately stated his awareness of and concern
with international scrutiny of the Raposa/ Serra do Sol area. The
Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR) has asked for support, emphasizing: 1)
that the demarcation proceed without delay; 2) that the Minister go to
Roraima to meet with CIR leaders in the immediate future, as he has
stated that he intends to visit the state before reaching a decision.
PLEASE FAX, EMAIL, OR WRITE President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, with copy
to Minister Jobim, calling for the Minister to come to a decision on this
area without further delay, and for the demarcation of the continuous
Raposa Serra do Sol area.
Exmo. Sr. Fernando Henrique Cardoso Emxo. Sr. Nelson
Jobim Presidente da Republica Ministro da Justica
Palacio do Planalto Esplanada dos Ministerios- Bl.T
Brasilia - DF- 70150-900 Brasilia - DF - 70064-900
Brazil Brazil
fax - 55-61-226-7566 fax - 55-61-224-2448
email - gppr@cr_df.rnp.br email - njobim@ax.apc.org
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: EDF has prepared a background paper on the Macuxi,
available on request to wild@edf.org
A model letter follows:
Dear Mr. President:
Your government's revision of regulations concerning the demarcation of
indigenous lands in Decree no. 1775/96 has, as you know, caused serious
concern among indigenous, indigenous rights and environmental organizations
in Brazil and among their partners and supporters internationally.
Minister of Justice Jobim's decision on the 42 indigenous areas contested
under Decree 1775, as published in the Diario Oficial of July 10 was
consequently carefully observed around the world. We understand that,
while the Minister has definitively rejected the challenges to 34
areas, he has called for FUNAI to carry out further studies on 8 areas,
which according to Decree 1775 should be done within 90 days.
We are concerned that, although the Minister has consistently emphasized
that Decree 1775 was intended to rationalize and streamline the demarcation
process, no steps have to date been taken to complete the process in the 32
areas contested where the challenges were rejected, nor in the 114 other
indigenous areas that were open to challenge under the decree but were not
contested.
We are further concerned that in the 8 areas on which FUNAI was ordered to
carry out further studies, timely decisions be taken that guarantee the
integrity of the indigenous lands in question.
Among these 8 areas, the Raposa Serra do Sol area of the Macuxi and
Ingariko Indians of Roraima state is of particular importance. This area
was identified by FUNAI in 1993 and has awaited ministerial approval for
its demarcation to proceed ever since. The area has been the scene of
repeated and flagrant human rights violations (as amply documented, for
xample, in the Human Rights Watch/Americas report "Brazil: Violence Against
the Macuxi and Wapixana Indians in Raposa Serra do Sol and Northern Roraima
from 1988 to 1994.") Regional interests have opposed the demarcation of a
continuous area for the Macuxi and Ingariko with the tendentious argument
that the demarcation would obstruct the economic development of the state.
The apparent success of the regional elite in blocking the demarcation to
date has created conditions for large scale invasion of the area by gold
miners as well as ongoing human rights violations, including intimidation,
threats, destruction of property, and homicides. The Indigenous Council of
Roraima has aptly characterized the situation as one of institutionalized
violence against the Macuxi. Consequently, further delays in the
demarcation are likely to aggravate an already tense and potentially
explosive situation, in addition to delaying measures for the conservation
of the unique natural resources of the area, already threatened with
serious degradation.
We respectfully urge you to proceed without further delay to demarcate the
continuous Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous area. We understand that
Minister Jobim has announced his intention to visit the area and hope that
he does so as soon as possible, so that the risk of seriously increased
violence be averted. Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
You are encouraged to utilize this information for personal campaign use;
including writing letters, organizing campaigns and forwarding. All
efforts are made to provide accurate, timely pieces; though ultimate
responsibility for verifying all information rests with the reader. Check
out our Gaia Forest Conservation Archives at URL=
http://forests.org/gaia.html
Networked by:
Ecological Enterprises
Email (best way to contact)-> grbarry@students.wisc.edu
******************************************************************
Forest Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
7/25/96
OVERVIEW & SOURCE by EE
A new report provides the "first comprehensive assessment of salvage
logging" in the United States. Salvage logging is the controversial
practice of logging dead and dying trees on public lands, essentially with
waivers which exempt such logging from usual environmental laws. Written by
The Wilderness Society and National Audubon Society and entitled "Salvage
Logging in the National Forests: an Ecological, Economic, and Legal
Assessment," the report found that salvage logging "is doing great,
possibly irreparable, damage to America's treasured natural resources, at
great expense to taxpayers." The salvage logging plan was pushed by the
timber industry as a measure to reduce fire hazard. "But the timber
industry is playing off the public's fear of fire in order to cut healthy,
live trees in remote areas where homes and property are not at risk." It
is critical that Congress and the US President put their own forestry
policy in order, prior to condemning poor developing countries efforts to
utilize forests for basic human needs.
REPORT FINDS FOREST SERVICE IGNORING
ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS PROTECTING AMERICA'S FORESTS
- Report issued on eve of first anniversary of "salvage" rider -
Washington, DC--Even as the Senate prepares to vote on a bill that would
substantially weaken protections for America's national forests, a new
study concludes that the U. S. Forest Service is already betraying the
public trust by ignoring existing environmental laws that safeguard public
forests.
Produced jointly by The Wilderness Society and National Audubon Society,
Salvage Logging in the National Forests: an Ecological, Economic, and
Legal As sessment concludes that salvage logging (the removal of dead and
dying trees) as currently practiced "is doing great, possibly irreparable,
damage to America's treasured natural resources, at great expense to
taxpayers." The report, the first comprehensive assessment of salvage
logging, lays much of the blame at the feet of the clearcut rider.
Enacted into law July 27 of last year, the rider suspends environmental
laws through the end of this year and prohibits citizens from contesting
illegal salvage sales in national forests. The Senate is considering a
forest bill (S. 391), sponsored by Senator Larry Craig (R-ID), that would
make permanent some of the rider's most objectionable provisions.
"Old-growth forests, wildlife habitat, and forest streams throughout
America are threatened by irresponsible salvage logging," said Julie Gorte,
vice president of The Wilderness Society's Ecology and Economics Research
Department. "At a time when demand for hunting, fishing, and other outdoor
recreation is sky rocketing, the Forest Service has decided to target some
of the nation's most popular recreation areas."
Contrary to the claims made by proponents, the report finds that salvage
logging will not necessarily reduce the risk of fire in national forests.
"Because it is a commercial operation, [salvage] logging tends to remove
large trees and leave behind [debris] that can exacerbate fire danger."
"There are management tools that can be used to reduce fire hazard, such
as prescribed burning," explained Greg Aplet, forest ecologist for The
Society. "But the timber industry is playing off the public's fear of fire
in order to cut healthy, live trees in remote areas where homes and
property are not at risk."
The report documents abuses by the Forest Service across the country,
including reclassifying healthy, live trees as dead timber and logging in
remote, roadless forests containing critical wildlife habitat. In an
apparent response to mounting evidence of such abuse, Secretary of
Agriculture Dan Glickman recently issued a directive ordering the agency to
salvage log only in true emergency areas and to stay out of pristine
forests.
Despite this directive, Americans have no way to stop abuses that continue.
Federal courts rejected all five cases challenging logging under the rider
because of the measure's blanket exemption from such laws as the Clean
Water Act, National Forest Management Act, and the Endangered Species Act.
"You don't have to be a lawyer to understand that Americans have been
stripped of the tools we use to safeguard our forests from irresponsible
logging," said Michael Anderson, senior resource analyst with The
Wilderness Society.
Salvage proponents claim that laws had to be suspended to stem a flood of
frivolous appeals and lawsuits. Yet, the report finds no evidence to
support this claim.
"Only 20 percent of all timber sales (salvage and green) throughout the
entire national forest system were appealed in 1995," explained Anderson.
"If appeals are such a problem, why has salvage logging increased by 39
percent nationwide over the last 10 years."
According to the report, taxpayers could get hit with a $234 million tab
for all the logging. "Demand for salvage timber has been weak. In some
cases, salvage sale offerings have received no bids, forcing the Forest
Service to reduce its asking prices," the report states. Meanwhile, the
agency has failed to transfer money from the Salvage Sale Fund to the
Treasury as required by law. Instead, the off-budget fund -- used to pay
for building roads and other salvage sale costs -- has ballooned to $210
million over the last 17 years.
The report also found that the rider poses an economic threat to
communities dependent upon a robust and growing recreation industry.
"National forest recreation contributes 30 times as much as logging to the
nation's economy, and the demand for recreation opportunities shows no sign
of slowing down," the report states.
In addition, the report debunks the misconception that more logging leads
to more jobs. While timber harvest increased nationwide by 64 percent from
1951 to 1994, the number of jobs in wood and paper industries rose a scant
two percent.
Among the report's recommendations:
Congress should immediately repeal the salvage rider and reject S. 391, the
so-called forest health bill.
Abolish the Salvage Sale Fund and end the incentives in current laws that
encourage the Forest Service to conduct destructive salvage sales.
The definition of salvage sale should be tightened to limit its application
strictly to removal of dead and dying trees.
Forest plans should protect roadless areas.
Salvage logging should not be promoted as a tool for restoring forest
ecosystem health or reducing risk of wildfires. Restoration efforts should
instead focus on other management activities, such as prescribed burning
and biomass removal.
Salvage sales should not be conducted unless they are economically viable.
For a full copy of the report, either by e-mail or regular mail, contact
Jerry Greenberg at 202-429-2608 or jerry_greenberg@tws.org.
You are encouraged to utilize this information for personal campaign use;
including writing letters, organizing campaigns and forwarding. All
efforts are made to provide accurate, timely pieces; though ultimate
responsibility for verifying all information rests with the reader. Check
out our Gaia Forest Conservation Archives at URL=
http://forests.org/gaia.html
Networked by:
Ecological Enterprises
Email (best way to contact)-> grbarry@students.wisc.edu
BACK TO
*********************************************************************