Ombudsman requested in a letter the list of measures adopted to assist the affected indigenous population
On Friday (Feb.3.2023), the DPU (Union Public Defender’s Office) sent a letter to the federal government about the delay in sending planes and personnel to the Yanomami Indigenous Land. The Public Defender’s Office had already sent a request for reinforcement of logistical and security support in the area on January 30.
In the new request, the DPU requested a response by this Monday (Feb 6) with a list of measures adopted by the federal government to control the crisis in the Yanomami indigenous territory. The request was forwarded to the Chief of Staff, the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples and Funai (National Foundation for Indigenous Peoples). read the full (183 KB).
“Considering the extreme urgency that the case requires, it is requested that responses be forwarded and concrete measures adopted for logistical-operational and personnel reinforcement to make actions with the Yanomami and Ye’kwana indigenous people more effective, until next Monday- fair (6)”, stated the DPU.
In the message, the defenders mention the “structural omission” by the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and claims that the PT administration has not yet adapted the response to “celerity” that the situation demands.
“In view of this, the assessment made by the DPU is that the Federal Government, although it has finally taken action to reduce the serious damage to the Yanomami and Ye’kwana people as a result of the structural omission of the previous administration, has not been adopting measures with the speed that the situation need”, says on the job.
The Ombudsman also reinforced the demands of the previous letter “so that more indigenous lives are not put at risk, that is, so that the regrettable and shocking scenes we witnessed two weeks ago are not repeated in the next”. O 1st documentsent on January 30, had been directed to the Ministry of Justice and Public Security and the Ministry of Defense.
Here are the requests made in the 1st official letter, which, according to the DPU, are still “no response from the aforementioned federal agencies”:
- determine, immediately, the sending of air means for the distribution of basic food baskets to the AUARIS region, in order to serve the following communities: i) kotaimatiu, ii) polapê and katanã, iii) Hokolaxi Mu, iv) õki hello; v) Xilipi and vi) Kuratanha and the communities that are on the river below kuratanha, as they are suffering from a serious situation of hunger;
- immediately expand all logistical support, including increasing the number of helicopters to assist the TIY, further increasing the number of health professionals in the region and acting in conjunction with SESAI and FUNAI, carrying out an active search throughout the Territory Yanomami to ensure that the indigenous peoples living in the TIY have the right to food, health, that is, the right to existence;
- ensure, considering the high level of danger in the region, the safety and integrity of Sesai and Funai professionals who work in the Yanomami Indigenous Land, as well as indigenous peoples.
This Sunday (Feb 5), the public defender’s office released a note stating that the letter had been sent to make recommendations given the urgency of the situation of the Yanomami and said that “recognizes the important efforts that the current federal government has made to reduce the damage caused by illegal mining to the Yanomami and Ye’kwana people”.
Here is the full text of the DPU note released on Feb 5, 2023, at 7 pm:
“The Federal Public Defender’s Office (DPU) clarifies that, on several occasions in recent years, given the extremely serious humanitarian crisis situation caused by illegal mining in the Yanomami Indigenous Land, it has acted to alert the Federal Government and demand urgent and effective measures to guarantee the rights of this population.
“The DPU recognizes the important efforts that the current Federal Government has made to reduce the damage caused by illegal mining to the Yanomami and Ye’kwana people, intensified by the structural omission of the previous administration, and understands that it is necessary to work collaboratively for the resolution of the problem. Therefore, without clashes, the Ombudsman points out ways and makes recommendations for this to happen as quickly as possible, as the situation requires.
“It is important to remember that, in order to allow a quick and effective response to this problem, as highlighted in the letter sent to the Ministers of the Civil House, of the Indigenous Peoples and to Funai, the Federal Supreme Court (ADPF 709) authorized Federal Government bodies and entities to implement all the necessary actions, starting with the opening of an extraordinary credit. This includes not only restoring the health conditions of these indigenous people, but also ensuring food and nutritional security and the extrusion of invaders from their lands.”
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