The invaders were surrendered by the indigenous people last Tuesday (23) in an area known as “Malaria”, in the Homoxi region, one of the hardest hit by illegal mining in the territory, which is between Amazonas and Roraima. They were handed over to National Force agents and have since been under police escort.
The action to remove the miners took place on Wednesday through Operation Catrimani II, launched to remove the invaders. The Brazilian Air Force (FAB) transported the miners to the Boa Vista Air Base, from where they were taken to the Federal Police headquarters by National Force agents.
“[Eles] were under escort from the National Force until the arrival of air support, as the alternative landing sites are far away, which requires extra attention to planning and conducting the flight, mainly due to the instability of the weather”, detailed the Military Command of the Amazon.
In the PF, the police authority charged the 11 involved, nine men and two women, with the crimes of usurpation of Union Assets and invasion of Union Land. Initially, the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples reported that 12 miners had been captured by the indigenous people , but the PF and the Armed Forces reported this Wednesday that there were 11 people.
The prisoners were sent to the prison system. They must still go through a Custody hearing.
Group surrendered by indigenous people
When the miners were surrendered by the indigenous people, the Urihi Yanomami Association (UAY) informed federal agencies about the case in an official letter. In the document, the association justified that “[eles] They did this because they were witnessing their only means of consuming water being contaminated by mercury, due to the presence of miners in the locality”.
In the document on the capture of the miners, signed by President Júnior Hekurari, Urihi called for faster operations to remove the invaders, especially in the most isolated areas. In the association’s assessment, operations become inefficient if they are not accompanied by monitoring and specific strategies at the territory’s entry points.
Garimpeiros are captured by indigenous people and handed over to the National Force in Yanomami Land
“The operations already carried out fall far short of the need for protection required to stop a new expansion of illegal mining within the Yanomami Indigenous Land, highlighting that it is still possible to detect the presence of invaders in these regions with episodes of violence.”
The Ministry of Indigenous Peoples (MPI) estimates that around seven thousand illegal miners continue to be active in the territory. The number of invaders decreased by 65% in one year, compared to the beginning of federal government operations, when there were 20,000 invaders in the territory.
To combat the permanence of invaders in the territory, federal government security forces launched operation Catrimani II. The new phase of withdrawal of miners occurs after the installation of the Government House in Roraima, which aims to monitor and face the Yanomami crisis.
Tags: Garimpeiros surrendered indigenous people removed Yanomami Land arrested Roraima
