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BRAZIL-INDIGENOUS-ENVIRONMENT-FORESTS
‘Guardian of the forest’ killed in Amazon ambush
SAO PAULO, Nov 3, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – A Brazilian land defender was killed
and a second injured in an ambush by loggers in the Amazon rainforest,
regional authorities reported.
Indigenous leader Paulo Paulino Guajajara and his partner Laercio were
members of “Guardians of the forest”, a group who attempt to protect their
land from illegal logging.
The two men had left their village on Friday night to look for water when
the attack occurred, the Human Rights Secretariat of the Maranhao governorate
said on Twitter.
Paulo Paulino was shot in the neck and died in the jungle, according to the
International Survival organization, who said his partner was injured but
managed to escape.
A logger has also been reported missing.
Justice Minister Sergio Moro tweeted that the police will investigate the
murder, which took place in the Arariboia indigenous territory, roughly 500
kilometers from state capital Sao Luis.
“Paulino and Laercio are the most recent victims of a state that refuses to
comply with what the constitution determines,” Greenpeace said in a
statement.
Survival International researcher Sarah Shenker, who was in the region in
April, said the work of the Guajajara is important to protect other
indigenous people in the area.
“The Brazilian government has to accept that it is their responsibility to
protect those lands. That they do not, their absence there, is what pushes
the guardians to assume this defense, a very hard and dangerous job,” Shenker
told AFP.
Three other guardians have died in previous attacks.
“It is time to stop this institutionalized genocide. Stop authorizing the
bloodshed of our people!” Sonia Guajajara, coordinator of the Association of
Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, said on Twitter.
Since taking office in January, Bolsonaro has been accused of harming the
Amazon and indigenous tribes in order to benefit his supporters in the
logging, mining and farming industries.
BSS/AFP/ARS/1847 hrs