HUNGER AND DEATH THREATS AGAINST INDIGENOUS PEOPLES INCREASE
The Indianist Missionary Council - Cimi, launched on Wednesday,
November 6, the report on Violence against Indigenous Peoples in Brazil:
1994-1995. This publication is the seventh one produced by Cimi in the
eight years it has been monitoring violence against indigenous peoples in
Brazil. This year, in addition to listing cases related to offences under
the penal law, the report also lists cases of aggression resulting from
neglect on the part of the public power: diseases, deaths caused by
diseases, hunger, suicides, and attempts to commit suicide. The figures
show that there was a dramatic increase in hunger, invasion and death
threat rates.
In the 1994-95 period, over 123,716 cases of violence were registered
which victimized individuals or communities as a whole belonging to more
than 113 (52.5%) of the 215 indigenous peoples of the country. There were
more than 180 cases of aggression against the indigenous heritage in 70 of
the 554 indigenous areas in the country. An outstanding aspect, however,
is the high incidence of individual aggressions. Under this item, which
includes murders, murder attempts, homicides, suicides, abuse of
authority, violation of domiciles, and diseases, 123,536 cases of violence
were registered. The public power was directly or indirectly responsible
for about 123,244 (99.6%) of these cases.
MURDERS
Seventy-five murders were registered in the 1994-95 period. There
were 276 murder attempts, as compared to 85 in 1993. Although problems
were faced to collect data in various regions, the figures for death
threats reached alarming proportions. Over 1,584 cases were registered in
1994 and 360 in 1996.
The report shows that 46 indigenous areas were invaded for the first
time (8.4% of the total), either by people trying to settle in them or for
the purpose of illegally exploiting their natural riches. Added to the
invasions registered in 13 other areas in the past, over 118 invasions
were registered altogether. Most of these invasions and illegal
exploitation activities took place in Amazonia, where 86.4% of the areas
suffered such acts.
DISEASES AND HUNGER
The report registers 15,733 cases of diseases in 44 peoples which
reported them. At least 446 Indians died because of them. There was an
increase in hunger and malnutrition cases among the peoples. In the last
report published by Cimi, in 1993, 17,098 cases were registered. In 1995,
this figure grew to 106,764 cases, although deaths dropped from 20 in 1993
to 14 in the 1994-95 period.
The diseases which affected indigenous peoples most were influenza,
with reinfection in certain cases, such as among the Myky people in the
state of Mato Grosso; tuberculosis, anemia and malaria. The situation of
the Deni Indians in the Xerua~ River in Amazonas, highly affected by
malaria, is worrying. The recurrence of the disease has caused
Splenomegaly, or enlargement of the spleen, affecting 181 of the 241 Deni
Indians of the Xerua~ River (75.1%) in 1995 alone. This people is
threatened by extinction and has suffered a 20% population decrease in
recent years.
DECREE 1,775/96
The year of 1995 was marked by tensions as a result of the
announcement of amendments in Decree 22/91, replaced in January 1996 with
Decree n. 1,775/96, which provides for the administrative procedure for
the demarcation of indigenous lands. In this period, indianist entities,
indigenous organizations, and even some of Funai's offices denounced
invasions as a result of that announcement.
Cimi's report reaches the conclusion that "this may be the source of
the increase registered in the rate of invasion in indigenous areas in the
1994-95 period, as well as the cause of other acts of violence against
Indians by invaders strengthened by the idea that they could benefit from
the announcement made by the government."
Once more, the report confirms that political violence continues to be
the principal means to control the ownership of the land and riches in
Brazil. In spite of this scenario, it was once again seen that indigenous
peoples were not intimidated and "showed resistance, combativeness, and
hope and strengthened their traditional organizations or created new forms
of organization in a growing process of autonomy."
Brasilia, 7 November 1996
Indianist Missionary Council - Cimi