Ari Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau
Ari Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau was a teacher and tribal leader of of the Jupaú people, A.K.A. Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau. The Jupaú people live in the Amazon rainforest, in the state of Rondônia, on the borders of the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Indigenous Territory. Although this area of the Amazon is protected by law, and theoretically reserved for the sole use of the native people, the lands of the Jupaú are continually invaded and threatened by illegal loggers and ranchers.
Ari was a leader of the Guardiões (Guardians) who patrol indigenous lands and document invasions of their territory. His activism in defense of his people's traditional lands and the integrity of the forest attracted the ire of the loggers and ranchers of the region, and he received numerous death threats, as is common for environmental activists in much of Brazil.
Death & Justice
Ari was murdered on April 18th, 2020, in Tarilândia, Jaru district, Rondônia, a day before Brazil's Indigenous Peoples' Day. He was apparently killed by multiple blows to the head and his body was later found discarded on the side of a dirt road.
Two years and 3 months later, a suspect was finally arrested and is currently under investigation. The federal police have since returned the case to the state authorities, because their investigation concluded that, despite multiple death threats from his opponents, Ari was not killed for his environmental activism, but rather because the suspected murderer simply got annoyed with the presence of an indigenous person in the region.
Unfortunately, Ari's case is not unique in Brazil. The year after Ari's death, in 2021, 27 human rights and environment defenders were murdered in the country, making Brazil the third-deadliest country for such activists, behind only Mexico and Colombia. In 2017, Brazil was the deadliest country for environmental activists, with 57 murders. Of the 300 land-related deaths between 2009 and 2021, only 14 (5%) were brought to court.
In Rondônia, where there is a high degree of popular hostility toward indigenous rights and the protection of natural areas, the prospect of Ari's case resulting in conviction remains uncertain, and whether there were other parties to his killing remains unknown.
Deforestation in Rondônia
The background for this case and so many like it (included the widely publicized murder of British journalist Dom Philips and Brazilian indigenist Bruno Araújo Pereira, in 2022). is the ongoing destruction of the Amazon rainforest.
In the four years of Jair Bolsonaro's presidency, as he defunded the organizations charged with defending the Amazon and vowed to end the demarcation of protected lands, 45,586 km2 of the Amazon were lost. That's an area the size of Holland being lost every few years. And once lost, we won't be seeing those forests again in our lifetimes. Mature native rainforests take thousands of years to recover completely.
The images below show the spread of deforestation in Rondônia, home of the Jupaú:
The struggle continues
The Jupaú people continue to fight in defense of their land and their lives. Their fight is not only an existential matter for them, but for all of us who wish to live on a planet that retains the ability to sustain human civilization. Ari gave his life for the cause. Please honor his sacrifice.
To make a donation, visit Kanindé, Ethno-Environmental Defense Association and follow the instructions on their site.
For more information watch the documentary The Territory, available on DisneyPlus, or check out the following resources: