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(Drum beating)
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- Synced and corrected by chamallow - - www.addic7ed.com -
SARAIN: I've come to Brazil to meet the Krenak people,
an Indigenous tribe that is struggling to survive
the aftermath of a huge mining dam rupture
that polluted the river they depend on.
This is Brazil's largest environmental disaster in history.
I'm flying to the state known as Minas Gerais,
which translates to "General Mining".
Minas Gerais is pockmarked with huge open-pit mines
that reveal what was once Indigenous land being stripped of minerals,
particularly iron ore.
For centuries, this state has been known for its mining,
and today many people are fighting back
against the environmental destruction caused by the industry.
♪
My first stop is Governador Valaderes.
I'm here to check out a demonstration
where devastated Brazilians have come out to protest
the companies responsible for poisoning the Rio Doce River.
We're here at the Caravan March.
Everyone here is here in solidarity to expose
the situation, the political situation
with the mining company. And everyone's here
essentially to march for the Rio Doce.
Hi, guys!
I heard about this demonstration
from brothers Douglas and Geovani Krenak.
(Chattering)
Why is it important for the Krenak people to be here
in this way right now?
_
Douglas and Geovani are two Krenak warriors
who are leading the fight against the mining companies
and working to educate the public
about how their community has been affected
by the death of their sacred river.
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The lifeblood of Brazil's southeast is the Rio Doce,
or Sweet River.
It runs hundreds of kilometres through Minas Gerais,
sustaining several communities along it's way.
Samarco, a joint subsidiary of mining giants
Vale and BHP Billiton,
operates an iron ore mine near the top of the river
and transports their product on the Vale train.
(Train horn blaring)
REPORTER: They produce about 30 million tons
of iron ore there every year.
That's a fraction of the nearly quarter billion production
that BHP has overall.
The toxic waste these iron ore mines produce stays behind,
stored in giant pits called tailings ponds.
The only thing between this waste
and the rivers that feed it are the earthen dam walls.
(Water gushing)
On November 5th, 2015,
a dam ruptured and collapsed at the Samarco mine.
There were no alarms, no warnings.
People who took out their cell phone cameras
could not have realized that they were filming
the very beginning of Brazil's worst environmental disaster in history.
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REPORTER: A sludgy torrent carrying water and mud
stained with mineral waste from an iron ore mine
flooded areas miles away from the rupture.
SARAIN: After nearly wiping out an entire town,
the dam rupture killed at least 17 people,
injured dozens, and left hundreds of people homeless.
The day after the dams burst,
the CEO of Samarco made a public statement.
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♪
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On November 25th, 2015,
the United Nations released information
noting that the Rio Doce is now considered by scientists to be dead.
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Over the next 16 days, Brazil's worst environmental disaster
unfolded as the toxic waste
travelled over 600 kilometres down the river,
bleeding out into the Atlantic Ocean.
For the millions of people who depend on the Rio Doce,
life will never be the same.
(Sobbing)
But I wanna understand what this means for Douglas, Geovani,
and the rest of the Krenak community.
The Krenak live on small settlements along the river,
and for them, the stakes are even higher.
They understand this river as Watu,
a spiritual parent who sustains their entire way of life.
This is a place where elders share wisdom
and children go through right of passage ceremonies.
This is where people catch the fish to feed their families,
and none of this is possible anymore.
♪
So I'm on my way to Krenak territory.
Today is the Day of the Indian in Brazil,
and traditionally this is not a day that is respected
by Indigenous people. This is a day where
the government and mainstream culture celebrate
"The Indian" as they want to see it, not as
Indigenous people here are.
So in response to that, the Krenak people
and other tribes are gathering here in Krenak territory
to celebrate, and have ceremony, and to play games,
and to be with each other. So
this is my first time heading to Krenak territory, and
I've dressed in my regalia to show respect
for their celebration and their honouring today.
♪
On the contentious Day of the Indian,
the Krenak are throwing their own celebration
to welcome Brazilian tourists and school kids to their territory.
This may be the first time that some people
meet an Indigenous person,
and the Krenak have their traditions on full display.
(Crowd chattering)
(Cheering)
♪
Wah!
(Laughing)
Okay, wait.
♪
(Laughing)
Thank you, thank you!
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What do you hope for the non-Indigenous people who are here?
What do you hope that they are receiving?
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(Chattering)
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The community gather in a traditional welcome ceremony,
and I feel so honoured.
I don't speak the language here,
but the strength and energy of ceremony is universal.
Three hundred years ago, the colonial government declared
a so-called "just war" on the Krenak,
and trained troops to murder them and missionaries to assimilate them.
The Krenak land was sold from under their feet,
and sometimes they were sold along with it.
Some eventually escaped, walking hundreds of kilometres back
to their traditional land.
Today, the few hundred community members left
are still struggling to survive.
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The Krenak say the only way they can survive
is if they can reclaim their traditional and historical sacred territory:
a lush forest with clean water.
They have been fighting for it for years,
working with lawyers to make their claims legitimate to the state.
But the government still doesn't recognize
their right to this land.
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♪
(Rooster crowing)
SARAIN: This river used to be filled with life,
but today it is eerily quiet.
Many people don't even wanna come in contact with the water
for fear of becoming contaminated.
♪
Douglas and Geovani have connected me
with Krenak elder Zezao.
Zezao taxis the community back and forth across the river.
He has spent 29 years on the Rio Doce fishing,
but now his fishing nets lay unused.
When you are his age, how do you go about reinventing yourself
when everything you know is gone?
♪
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So what do you do now for money?
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Do you think that the river will ever come back?
And if so, when do you think that will be?
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(Laughing)
SARAIN: She's shy.
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He just manhandles her!
(Laughing)
Everywhere you look here, the people have been forced to adapt
because of the destruction caused by the mining companies.
The Krenak have always been fishermen and hunters,
not farmers.
These cows were given to them a decade ago
as compensation from Vale
after one of their hydroelectric projects damaged
the Krenak hunting grounds.
Ironic, seeing as Big Agriculture is responsible
for so much of the deforestation in Brazil.
(Rooster crowing)
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Is this the first generation of dairy farmers
in the Krenak territory, and do they traditionally farm?
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SARAIN: The Vale train runs 24 hours a day,
seven days a week, sometimes every couple of minutes.
Each year it carries 100,000 tons of iron ore to port,
and every time it cuts through Krenak land,
it reminds people of everything it's taking away.
This is also a place of power,
where the Krenak people block the train tracks
to protest the disaster and demand compensation.
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(Singing)
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(Chanting)
When attempts to negotiate with Samarco and Vale failed,
it was the protest that gained the Krenak people
delivery of drinking water and an agreement that Samarco
would clean up the river.
In Brazil, protests like these can have serious consequences.
Over the last decade, over 500 land defenders
and environmentalists have been killed with total impunity
for standing in the way of so-called progress.
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(Train rumbling)
(Train horn blaring)
(Bell dinging)
♪
All of a sudden the train pulls right up beside us and stops.
And the train stood there and made its presence known,
and they never talked to us.
I didn't know what was going to happen.
I didn't know if this was normal.
It makes me aware of what they're up against every single day.
That train is in their backyard.
Do you think that Vale is trying to intimidate you?
Is that what that was?
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- Did it work? - No.
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The Rio Doce was once a limitless water resource
for the Krenak people.
They used it for every aspect of their daily lives,
from cooking and washing to ceremony.
Now, because the river is poisoned with heavy metals,
including arsenic and mercury, they are dependent on Samarco
for daily delivery of rationed potable water.
And when they run out, they run out.
Oh, Barcelona!
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(Truck rumbling)
How long will they continue to provide water for you?
(Chuckling)
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Geovani, what are you doing?
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Does Vale, Samarco... are they also responsible
for making sure that these containers are usable?
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So what if this breaks?
(Chuckling)
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What do you want for your future,
for yourself, for your family?
You're choosing to stay on Krenak territory to stay here.
What is your dream for the future?
Uh...
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(Laughing)
SARAIN: Across the river is the sacred territory in Sete Saloes.
I'm headed there today with Douglas and Geovani's families.
The foothills of the territory
is where the Krenak people used to lived.
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Sete Saloes is where the Krenak found safety
when the military dictatorship sent their soldiers
and their Indian protection services out to torture, rape,
murder, and enslave the Indigenous people.
The regime was in power for 21 long years,
only falling in 1985.
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Go, go, go, go.
When the Krenak reclaimed some of their land in 1997,
the government did not recognize their sacred territory
or their rights to this land.
It is now a government-owned national park
that could be vulnerable to mining interests.
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(Shouting)
So we just walked for the last...
well over two hours, and we finally arrived
at the sacred waterfall in the sacred territory, Sete Saloes.
I'm exhausted, and I'm just filled with gratitude
for this beautiful, clean water.
It's the first clear water I've seen since I've been here.
♪
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It's my last night in Krenak territory,
and I've been invited over to Douglas's house for dinner.
In a few days, Douglas and Geovani
are headed to Rio de Janeiro,
where they've been invited to speak at annual Vale protest,
and I plan to meet them there.
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What year are these from?
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He has a mullet.
(Laughing)
In this... In Canada, we call it a mullet.
Yeah, pretty badass.
I think a lot of people in Brazil and outside of Brazil
have this image of Indigenous people
only being in the Amazon.
You know, the "Amazonian."
How do you feel about that, and how do you feel about
the way the Krenak have been represented to
not only Brazil, but the rest of the world?
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REPORTER: It's been nearly nine months
since the Samarco mining dam disaster in Brazil
caused a deadly mudslide to take out entire communities.
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SARAIN: Prosecutors and police insist this wasn't an accident.
They allege the company ignored repeated warnings
that the dam could not withstand the strain of increased production,
and Samarco executives now face charges of homicide
for the deaths of 19 people.
I've come to Belo Horizonte
to meet with the representative of Samarco.
I want to know how long they plan on delivering potable water
and financial compensation to the Krenak.
Good morning, sir.
- Good morning. - Thank you so much for
having us this morning.
Could you please explain what kind of compensation agreement
the company has reached?
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Did you consult with the Indigenous communities,
and were they informed of the risk ahead of time?
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How long will you continue to deliver
bottled and potable water to the Krenak?
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Who is providing these studies
that are providing the scientific evidence?
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After the dam burst on November 5th,
the CEO of Samarco said that people's lives
would be affected, but not that much.
Do you agree with this statement?
I'm sorry, I don't know.
(Chattering)
Yes, I don't know that, and you know, I think it's not a...
a constructive question. I'm sorry, okay?
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The Samarco representative says their scientific findings
are reported to the government.
However, allegations of corruption within the state are rampant.
This is a country that relies heavily
on resource development for its economy,
so what incentive is there for the government
to question Samarco's findings?
With as much as 60% of Brazil's congress
facing charges of corruption or other serious crimes,
who knows if there will ever be justice.
Before I fly to Rio, I have one last stop in Minas Gerais.
I've connected with an independent scientist
at Univale University who has been tracking the river's progress.
Hi, nice to meet you.
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What kind of heavy metals?
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It doesn't indicate that the water is recovering?
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What are the concerns for people, for the environment?
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♪
(Flute playing)
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(Flute playing)
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(Flute playing)
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SARAIN: We've come to Rio to join the annual Vale protest.
We are marching to the old Vale building
with a group of protestors who come out every year
to denounce the mining company.
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Vale is currently present in over 38 countries,
and has made quite a name for itself.
The company has been repeatedly accused of both environmental
and human rights violations, including acts of espionage
and modern-day slavery.
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Douglas and Geovani have come all this way
to represent the Krenak community,
hoping to share their story with the residents of Rio.
But there's definitely a feeling of complacency here,
and the crowd is much smaller than they anticipated.
♪
But it's more than that.
They are literally the poster children for the movement.
♪
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The reality is that there's a river that is dead,
and images of Indigenous
people being pasted on the walls of Vale
won't change the fact
that the Krenak people still have no water.
♪
(Waves crashing)
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- Synced and corrected by chamallow - - www.addic7ed.com -