Brazilian Cattle Ranchers to Destroy Tribe’s Forest Lands

According to Survival International, a Brazilian cattle ranching company wants permission from the Paraguayan government to destroy the forest where the Ayoreo-Totobiegosode Indians live, one of the last ‘uncontacted’ tribes in the world.

“We urge Paraguay’s government not to allow Yaguarete to work on the Totobiegosode’s land. To do so would violate their rights under international law and the UN’s Declaration on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights, and may well destroy them as a people.” – Stephen Corry, director of Survival

The cattle company, Yaguarete Pora S.A., already own the land, but their license to work the area was rescinded by the government after satellite photos showing the destruction of the forest were published last year. The company also kept an investigative team from Paraguay’s Environment Ministry out of the area, adding to the questions many local organizations have about the impact of Yaguarete’s business on the forest.

A local support group for the tribe, GAT, said, “The Environment Ministry must not grant a new licence to Yaguarete. If it does, the last of the uncontacted Totobiegosode could be wiped out.”

Some of the tribe have been contacted and are claiming legal title to their homeland, but a huge area is already being deforested for cattle ranching, and the legal battle could be pointless if the license is renewed.

Survival International have called Yaguarete’s intention to maintain a small ‘eco-reserve’ in the forest “greenwashing of the most outrageous knd.”

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Image: ground.zero at Flickr under CC License

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3. Disneynature “Earth” Movie Plants a Tree in Brazilian Rainforest for Each Ticket