Timoteo warns against the threats to their precious water source, saying, “This water was left by our creator; water is sacred for the Mbya Guarani peoples, the origin of all human beings, it cannot be destroyed by capitalism. We live in the great garden of our creator, we must care for human life.”
From privatisation of water sources and restricted local access, to mass contamination disasters from mining and river stagnation from dam constructions, indigenous peoples across Brazil and the world are facing assaults on their water.
When the Fundão tailing dam in Minas Gerais, Brazil, ruptured in November 2015, it unleashed 50 million tons of toxic waste from one of the world’s largest iron mines into the Doce river. It was the largest environmental disaster in Brazil’s history. The Mariana Disaster, as it is known, killed nineteen people and completely contaminated more than 500km of the Doce River.
The Krenak people who live along the Doce River have had many aspects of their way of life destroyed, the river being central for fishing, bathing and many traditional ceremonies. They have been denouncing this crime of gross negligence and seeking justice, such as at the UN Climate Conference COP23 in Bonn, as is shown in this video of regional leader Geovani Krenak.