Occupy the Dam: Brazil's Indigenous Uprising

In the Amazonian backcountry, tribes are challenging
construction of the world's third-largest dam--by
dismantling it. Here's what they can teach us about
standing up to power.

by John Perkins
posted Jul 23, 2012
www.yesmagazine.org

Last month, hundreds of indigenous demonstrators began
dismantling a dam in the heart of Brazil's rainforest to
protest the destruction it will bring to lands they have
loved and honored for centuries. The Brazilian government
is determined to promote construction of the massive, $14
billion Belo Monte Dam, which will be the world's third
largest when it is completed in 2019. It is being
developed by Norte Energia, a consortium of ten of the
world's largest construction, engineering, and mining
firms set up specifically for the project.

Hydroelectric energy is anything but "clean" when measured
in terms of the excruciating pain it causes individuals,
social institutions, and local ecology.
The Belo Monte Dam is the most controversial of dozens of
dams planned in the Amazon region and threatens the lives
and livelihoods of thousands of Amazonian people, plants,
and animals. Situated on the Xingu River, the dam is set
to flood roughly 150 square miles of already-stressed
rainforest and deprive an estimated 20,000 people of their
homes, their incomes, and--for those who succumb to
malaria, bilharzia, and other diseases carried by insects
and snails that are predicted to breed in the new
reservoir--their lives. Moreover, the influx of immigrants
will bring massive disruption to the socioeconomic balance
of the region. People whose livelihoods have primarily
depended on hunting and gathering or farming may suddenly
find themselves forced to take jobs as manual laborers,
servants, and prostitutes.

History has shown again and again that dams in general
wreak havoc in areas where they are built, despite
promises to the contrary by developers and governments.
Hydroelectric energy is anything but "clean" when measured
in terms of the excruciating pain it causes individuals,
social institutions, and local ecology. The costs--often
hidden--include those associated with the privatization of
water; the extinction of plants that might provide cures
for cancer, HIV, and other diseases; the silting up of
rivers and lakes; and the disruption of migratory patterns
for many species of birds.

The indigenous cultures threatened by the Belo Monte Dam,
including those of the Xikrin, Juruna, Arara, Parakana,
Kuruaya and Kayapo tribes, are tied to the land:
generations have hunted and gathered and cultivated the
same areas for centuries. They--as well as local flora and
fauna--have suffered disproportionately from the effects of
other hydroelectric dams, while rarely gaining any of the
potential benefits. Now they are fighting back.

The indigenous people's occupation of the dam garnered
international attention, connecting their situation to
other events across the globe.
Indigenous leaders from these groups have asked the
Brazilian government to immediately withdraw the
installation license for Belo Monte. They demand a halt to
work until the government puts into place "effective
programs and measures to address the impacts of the dam on
local people." They point out that a promised monetary
program to compensate for the negative impacts of the
mega-dam has not yet been presented in local villages;
also, that a system to ensure small boat navigation in the
vicinity of the cofferdams, temporary enclosures built to
facilitate the construction process, has not been
implemented. Without such a system, many will be isolated
from markets, health care facilities, and other services.
The cofferdams have already rendered much of the region's
water undrinkable and unsuitable for bathing. Wells
promised by the government and Norte Energia have not yet
been drilled. The list of grievances goes on and on and is
only the latest in a very old story of exploitation of
nature and people in the name of "progress." Far too
often, this has meant benefiting only the wealthiest in
society and business.

for the rest of this story, and a photo essay, go to

http://www.yesmagazine.org/peace-justice/occupy-the-dam-brazils-indigenous-uprising

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