Residents Association of the Extractivist Reserve of Riozinho do Anfrísio – Amora (Pará)

Objectives and target population:

The project sheds light on the lack of security for human rights defenders. The idea is to point out cases of violence that occur in the region of the Xingu and Tapajós River basin in Pará, and get people to reflect on the influence of the media’s approach on the vulnerability of indigenous leaders.

Leaders from the P.A. (settlement), Resex (Extractivist Reserve) and PDS (Sustainable Development Project) of the region will participate.

Main activities:

– Leadership training, to emphasize the culture of peace and recognize the importance of human rights defenders’ actions;

– Mobilization of the community to expand the struggle for access to justice and other public services;

– Creation of a Regional Seminar on protecting human rights defenders;

– Incentivize the creation of a Human Rights Council in Xingu and Tapajós River basin with representation by the leaders participating in the training activities and local and regional social organizers, to bring communities closer to the public instruments of social control (rights councils, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, among others).

Context:

The residents of the P.A. (settlement), Resex (Extractivist Reserve) and PDS (Sustainable Development Project) suffer segregation, without the public services of health care and education, for example, and have their socio-environmental rights violated, with irregular, limited access to land.

The struggle for these rights resulted in extreme violence against human rights defenders, with cases of death threats, torture and assassinations. These populations are also victims of police violence, for example, during repossession activities.

About the organization:

The mission of Amora – the Association of Residents of the Riozinho do Anfrísio Extractivist Reserve is to defend the interests of the community in order to improve the quality of life and social well-being of all, while valuing culture and the way of life of traditional populations.

Defending the environment from harmful human intervention; combating illegal tree cutting; and protecting the leaders who defend the reserve and other preserved areas of the Xingu and Tapajós River basin are among the group’s objectives.

Partnerships:

To be able to carry out the activities proposed in this project, Amora has networked with Feagle – the Federation of Extractivist Settlement Communities of Gleba Lago Grande; and with the Trade Union of Rural Workers and Settlers of Santarém.

Amora is also involved with community networks and has had its activity recognized by the international organization Front Line Defender. The group also works with the Public Ministry and the Pastoral Land Commission.