Natives are Willing to Fight for their Land

Amazon River Basin

The hydroelectric dam is for the good of Brazil, claims President of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff. The dam, which is in an undeveloped region of Brazil, is being built out of a need for infrastructure, especially before the World Cup and Olympics, which Brazil will be hosting in the near future.

Ze Da Moreira has told CNN that the military will be sent to the site to remove the natives sitting on the land, who claim the land is theirs. The government intends to use the military to instill fear, not for violent purposes. 

Moreira claims that the land in question is owned by the government, and has not ever belonged to the natives of Brazil.

In fact, Moreira thinks that the dam will be for the good of the entire nation, natives included.  He has assured CNN that the natives will be the first to get the jobs that result from the construction of the dam.

Alana Lima, daughter of the chief of the Botocudo tribe, acknowledges that the natives lack legal right to the land. “It's the land that my family has owned for hundreds of years perhaps we have no "deed" to the land, but this has been our livelihood...our lives. This is where I grew up.” 

Lima is also aware that the military is arriving, with the intention of talking to the tribe. However, she will die for the land in the event the situation gets violent. 

Lima believes that the government will suffer for its actions if they remove the tribe by force. “Human rights groups around the world are ready to defend our right to be here.” She does regret, however, that the tribe is the only group willing to die for its rights, and that human rights groups will have to carry on the tribe’s legacy passively.

In contrast with Moreira’s belief that the dam will help the natives, Lima questions the government’s intentions. “The government cares only about people in the cities.  We're not confident that this will improve the country as a whole, and believe it will improve the lives of the wealthy, and those in cities... but not people like me.”

We await word on the result of the military confrontation.