With over 98 percent of all the country's indigenous lands within the Amazon, some tribes are particularly exposed as fires rage in the region.
In this Aug. 27, 2019 photo, members of the Kayapo indigenous group attend a meeting to discuss community issues in their village Bau, located on Kayapo indigenous territory in Altamira in Brazil’s Amazon. About 98% of all Brazil’s indigenous lands lie within the Amazon. “Just outside, our reserve is being heavily deforested. It’s being badly destroyed,” a Kayapo leader said.
So far in 2019, Brazil reported 83,000 fires, a 77% increase from the same period last year. Many of those were set in already deforested areas by people clearing land for cultivation or pasture. As a multitude of international players discuss how to develop and protect the Amazon, Kayapo and others find themselves on the front line of firefighting efforts and an ever-acrimonious feud with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
“The non-indigenous do whatever they want and then put the blame on the Indian,” Katitaurlu said, explaining that when his group reported a fire to authorities, a rancher said the tribe had set the blaze themselves.
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