Back to Seminars

The illegal mining in the Yanomami Indigenous Territory in Brazil and its consequences to my people

Dário Votório Kopenawa Yanomami
In the Yanimami Indigenous lands, humans, animals, and the environment have suffered from the territorial devastation caused by mineral exploration since colonial times. In this Seminar Series, Dario Kopenawa, a Yanomami indigenous leader, denounces the vicious effects of illegal mining in indigenous territory that has caused illnesses as well the death of animals, plants, rivers, people and their cultures. Kopenawa highlights the effects of mercury contamination on the environment and criticizes former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro’s government for this sanitary and humanitarian crisis and its devastating consequences.
Dário Votório Kopenawa Yanomami is a well-known rights defender leader of the Yanomami Indigenous People. He is the Hutukara Yanomami Association (HAY) vice president and is currently student of Territorial Management at Federal University of Roraima, in Brazil. Dário is David Kopenawa’s son, the Hutukara Association president and a respected Yanomami shaman. He was born in 1982, in the Watoriki community (in the Serra do Vento region), at the Yanomami Indigenous Territory, also known as Demini, in the state of Amazonas, Brazil. It is the biggest Indigenous territory in Brazil, and is officially recognised since 1992. As an indigenous leader, he follows in his father’s footsteps, having started to fight for indigenous rights from a very young age. He became a school teacher in his community, heading an educational intercultural and bilingual project that emphasises the Yanomami written language appreciation. He was the head of his community school throughout many years. Dário Kopenawa has led many rights violations denounces against his people to the Brazilian authorities, mainly concerning the territorial invasion carried out by 20,000 illegal miners. As already happened in the past, this tragedy is once again causing territorial devastation, mercury contamination, exploitation of women’s bodies and much illness and death to the Yanomami. Dario Kopenawa is currently dedicated to denouncing this violent invasion, both in Brazil and abroad.

Learning points

  • What is the relevance of differentiating “illegal” and “legal” mining in the context of the Yanomami?
  • What are the consequences of mining on the lives of the Yanomami people?
  • How can non-indigenous people support the movement in defense of the Yanomami?

Contact us