Deforestation of an indigenous reserve in the Brazilian
state of Rondonia has intensified after false documents were allegedly drawn up
to illegally sell off pockets of land for agriculture.
According to the Jupaú indigenous people, who inhabit the
Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau reservation, grileiros – people who falsify documents
to sell estates illegally – have demarcated 100-hectare plots within the
reservation to sell them to loggers, farmers and cattle ranchers.
The Jupaú accuse “invaders” of logging brazil nut trees and
itaúba, both valuable protected species, and then clearing the remaining
vegetation to make way for corn and soy plantations or cattle ranching. The
Jupaú also claim to have observed trucks transporting timber through 100km of
roads illegally opened within the reservation.
In a letter sent to the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office
in Porto Velho, Rondonia’s capital, the Jupaú call on the authorities to
investigate the illegalities. The organisation Associação de Defesa
Etnoambiental Kanindé, which supports the community, accuses the federal
government of inaction despite clear evidence of illegal activities within
Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau.
The reservation amounts to 1.87 million hectares and is home
to Jupaú, Amondawa and Oro Win indigenous villages, as well as uncontacted
communities. The organisation says that invasions started in 2014 but
intensified last year.
Deforestation data published on Global Forest Watch suggests that the reserve has acted as a highly effective buffer to deforestation. The area surrounding it for hundreds of kilometres has been subject to high levels of deforestation, which abruptly ends at the borders of the reserve:
See the original article in Amazônia Real to read more.
