The state of Mato Grosso Do Sul, which translated into Italian would be ‘southern dense jungle’
located in the central western part of Brazil, in a region predominantly occupied by the inland swamps of the Pantanal, is one of the areas where real socio-environmental devastation is taking place. The cause is in anthropogenic activities, such asagribusiness and massive meat production, to the detriment of indigenous peoples and the entire ecosystem.
The Pantanal
The Pantanal is the largest wetland in the world. Considered the ecosystem with the most species of flora and fauna, it was declared a World Heritage Site in 2000 and a Biosphere Reserve.
According to the report‘Global Wetland Outlook: State of the World Wetlands and their services to people 2018,’ the Pantanal represents an invaluable environmental and cultural value, capable of providing multiple ecosystem services that are essential to the lives of all living species on our planet. (1)
Genocide of the Guarani-Kaiowá people
Agribusiness, monocultures, intensive livestock farms, and deforestation in the agricultural areas of Mato Grosso do Sul have stimulated the phenomenon of land grabbing, which amounts to outright land grabs, predatory exploitation of land and important natural resources, and brutal harassment of indigenous peoples, abetted by a strong coalition of landowners, conservative politicians, banks, industry, and transnational corporations. (2)
The Guarani-Kaiowá, an ethnic group native to the area, have been brutally displaced from their ancestral lands by police and private militias hired by landowners (known as pistoleiros, i.e., ‘riflemen’). They are confined to tiny reserves, where food is scarce and where they suffer severe social-ecological exploitation on a daily basis, ranging from underpaid labor to deforestation of their reserves for timber extraction.
A spiral of despair
This situation is exacerbated by the continuous rapes of women, the numerous attacks on those who try to fight back, and the impunity of those who do violence to them.
The population has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. According to CIMI, the Indigenist Missionary Council, last year the murder rate among the Guarani-Kaiowá tribe was 20 times higher than that recorded in São Paulo state, and at least 32 Guarani-Kaiowá committed suicide. Many Guarani say that suicides and violence are the result of landlessness and the loss of hope for a future.
Recent episodes
On June 24, Brazilian military police, without any court order, attacked the Guarani community of Guapo’y, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, after the indigenous people reoccupied a tiny portion of their ancestral land. In addition to ground means, police responded with a helicopter, which fired shots at people, who were intent on fleeing. One man, Vitor Guarani Kaiowá was killed in the attack and several others were injured, several seriously.
The injured also reported physical and psychological violence by police after the attack.
Vitor’s killing came less than three weeks after that of Dom Phillips, historical
contributor to the British newspaper The Guardian, who was doing research for a book on conservation efforts in the Amazon. Also killed with him was Bruno Pereira, an official from Funai, Brazil’s indigenous affairs department, who was accompanying him and was documenting illegal activities in the Indians’ territory.
In May, Alex Lopes, a 17-year-old boy, had been killed in the same region.
FIAN’s letter-complaint
In the face of these incidents, in an open letter to Brazilian authorities, FIAN International, FIAN Brasil and other members of the Global Network for the Right to Food and Nutrition denounced and condemned the recent violent attacks by military police against the indigenous community. (3) And they called on the Brazilian government to immediately stop the violence, investigate and address structural inequalities, which are giving rise to profound human rights violations and destroying a natural heritage of biodiversity that is critical to the health of the entire planet.
For responsible consumption
The ongoing ecocide-genocide is affecting all of humanity, which is why we will need to value the resistance of indigenous peoples, become aware of the scale of the ongoing disasters, and adopt responsible consumption choices. (4)
In Europe, affected companies will no longer be allowed to operate, according to the proposed directive on due diligence and ESG(Environment, Social, Governance), adopted on 23.2.22, and the proposed regulation preventing imports of foodstuffs that come from territories subject to deforestation and/or forest degradation.
Elena Bosani
Notes
(1) MedWet. Global Wetland Outlook: State of the world’s wetlands and their services to people 2018, https://medwet.org/publications/ramsar-global-wetland-outlook-2018/
(2) Dario Dongo. Land robbery and deforestation, palm oil and GMO soybeans. #Buycott! GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade), 4.8.19
(3) FIAN International. Brazil: FIAN condemns recent attacks on Guapoy indigenous community. https://fian.org/…/brazil-fian-condemns-recent-attacks…
(4) On socio-environmental devastation in Brazil, see also.
Dario Dongo, Giulia Torre. Indigenous blood at dinner? Buycott. Égalité, 10/24/19
Lawyer in Milan and Frankfurt am Main. An expert in family, juvenile and criminal law, she is now enrolled in a university master's programme in food law
