Ibama imposes fine for illegal mining in Vale do Javari – 11/25/2023 – Daily life

Ibama (Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) imposed R$15 million in fines on two men, father and son, for being responsible for four illegal mining dredgers found in the Jutaí River, in the Vale do Javari Indigenous Land , in Amazonas.

According to the infraction notice, José Ademir da Silva, known in the region as Mr. Mimi, and Aislan Dione Silva are accused of “operating an effectively polluting activity (mining activity) […]without authorization from the environmental agency”.

Ibama’s operation seized and destroyed four dredgers that were operating illegally on the Jutaí River, all valued at more than R$5 million each — the amount on which the value stipulated for the fine was based.

Ademir’s responsibility for the equipment was revealed by the miners who operated the machines when they were approached by environmental inspection agents, according to the document.

The men reported that they worked for him, who also owned other excavators spread across the Javari Valley.

The report tried to contact Ademir and his son, by cell phone, but received no response.

Vale do Javari was the place where indigenous man Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips were murdered by illegal fishermen in June last year.

Pereira was a licensed employee of Funai (National Foundation for Indigenous Peoples) and left the organization, accusing the management of Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and the entity’s then president, Marcelo Xavier, of persecuting him and preventing him from carrying out his work in favor of communities in the region, where he spent his professional career.

Since then, in 2019, he started working for Univaja, the association of Javari indigenous people and where he carried out, among other things, inspection work against illegal invaders of the territory. He was even threatened with death before being murdered.

Xavier was indicted by the Federal Police in this case, for homicide with possible intent.

The PF alleges that the former head of Funai, including being a police officer, was aware of the reality and risks faced by people who worked in Vale do Javari and knew that an attack could happen, but did not act in the face of the situation.

The indictment cites the dismantling of the foundation, the persecution of Bruno when he was with the organization, the request for help from Javari employees since 2019, which was never answered, and a public civil action that determined that security measures be applied in the region, but there was no follow-up.

When he was murdered, Pereira was helping British journalist Dom Phillips with research for a book about the Amazon.

For the PF, the crime was ordered by Ruben Dario da Silva Villar, from Colombia, suspected of leading an illegal fishing criminal organization in the Javari Valley, on the border of Brazil with Peru and Colombia.

The executors were Amarildo Oliveira, Pelado; his brother Oseney de Oliveira, Dos Santos; and Jefferson da Silva Lima, Pelado da Dinha, according to a complaint from the MPF (Federal Public Ministry).

The Javari Valley has suffered from the growth of invaders in recent years, who are involved in illegal fishing, drug trafficking and also mining.