During the four years of the Bolsonaro government, the Apyterewa Indigenous Land, in Pará state, was proportionally the most deforested of all Indigenous lands in Brazil, according to data from the National Foundation for Indigenous Peoples (known in Portuguese as FUNAI) and the MapBiomas project.
The invasion started in the 80s and reached 70% of all territory during Bolsonaro’s presidential term. Despite the ratification, in 2007, of the Apyterewa Indigenous Land, invaders continued coming into the area, which had more non-Indigenous people (3,000) than Indigenous individuals (1,400).
The situation started to change in October last year. Brazil’s Supreme Court (STF, in Portuguese) ordered the federal government to begin the “disintrusion” process, that is, expelling the illegal occupants of the land.
Four months later, in February this year, representatives of the Court and the National Justice Council (CNJ, in Portuguese) visited Apyterewa and confirmed the operation had succeeded. Deforestation there is almost zero. Farmers, cattlemen, illegal miners and illegal loggers ran away.
The drastic change is the result of a war operation involving more than 300 officials from FUNAI, the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), the National Force, the Federal Police, the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN), the Army, the Federal Highway Police (PRF, in Portuguese) and other agencies.
Indigenous leader confirms the area was liberated
On Wednesday (6), the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples made the symbolic return of the Apyterewa land for the Parakanã people during a meeting of the Apyterewa Indigenous Land, which is in São Félix do Xuingu, Pará state, and is eight times larger than the city of São Paulo.
Xokarowara Parakanã, an adviser of the Ministry of Health in the Apyterewa land, said to Brasil de Fato that the area is, now, free of farmers.
“We couldn’t sleep thinking about the Bolsonaro government and illegal miners trying to come into our territory. Bolsonaro caused a lot of problems for us. We have been fighting for over 20 years. With Lula, we got free from invaders, illegal miners, illegal loggers,” said Xokarowara.
He added that the Parakanã people intend to reforest the devastated territory where hunting and fishing have become difficult, and drinkable water isn't abundant anymore. He underlined that the Indigenous movement will demand from the federal government that it continue its actions to protect, monitor and guarantee food security.
“The government will have to support us by creating two more permanent bases in the territory and also make the [presence of security] forces, institutions, the Federal Police and the National Force permanent there. This has to be permanent," he stated.
Invaders of Apyterewa made part of the January 8 attack
The illegalities found in the Apyretewa Indigenous Land shocked even experienced indigenists.
The City Hall of São Felix do Xingu built a school aimed at non-Indigenous people in the territory. Five farms were fined for slave labor, and more than 70,000 head of cattle were counted inside the area.
:: National Force deployed to the most devastated Indigenous land during Bolsonaro's term ::
The Renascer village, a small city with shops, internet connection and even a gas station, served as a support area for invaders. A large structure like this could only be built with the prospect that the invasion would continue for a long period, even though it was illegal.
Janete Carvalho, Funai's Director of Territorial Protection, explained that Renascer was an occupation very close to Funai's base and that it was completely dismantled in the process of disintrusion.
“The Renascer Village was very symbolic because it summarized the invasion process. It was very close to the Funai base. From 2017 on, there was the consolidation of this place, which changed from shacks to a well-structured area, with had a gas station,” she recalled.
Churches and bolsonarism helped to consolidate the invasion
There were moments of tension, with federal agents facing protests and violent reactions from the invaders. As the operation progressed, Indigenous peoples and public servants were threatened.
:: From slavery to paradise: Indigenous people reforest the Amazon’s deforestation arc ::
One invader tried to disarm a man from the National Force and was shot dead by the agent. The case is under investigation by Brazil’s Federal Police. A Funai employee was shot in an ambush. He has recovered and is in good health.
Nilton Tubino, the coordinator of the General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic, said that the influence of religious leaders and Bolsonaro explains the resistance of the illegal occupiers to the disintrusion measures. According to him, some invaders took part in the coup attempt on January 8, 2023.
“Most people in that region support Bolsonaro. That's a fact to bear in mind. The involvement of churches and their presence within the Indigenous land, particularly in the Renascer Village, were relevant components of the illegal occupation,” said Tubino.
“We identified an individual with an ankle monitor who participated in the January 8 coup attempt. He was in prison for three months. He revealed that many people from the region also took part in the attack,” Nilton Tubino explained.
Edited by: Thalita Pires
