They are invaders': Brazil indigenous group takes on mining giant
As Brazil's far-right President Jair Bolsonaro seeks to authorise mining in indigenous reserves, a conflict with 12,000 members of the Mura indigenous group over a big potash mine in a remote area of the Amazon rainforest may forewarn troubles that lie ahead, report Sue Branford and Thaïs Borges from Autazes.
The company wanting to open the mine is Potássio do Brasil, a subsidiary of the Canadian conglomerate Forbes & Manhattan. Potash is an important fertiliser used heavily by agribusiness.
Potássio do Brasil quickly obtained authorisation from Brazil's mining agency to drill exploratory wells and began prospecting in 2013.
But then the indigenous communities woke up to what was happening. Speaking beside one of the exploratory wells, located on what the Mura claim is ancestral land, Aldinélson Pavão, the leader of the village of Urucurituba, could not hide his indignation.
"I am 47 years old," Mr Pavão said. "I was born here and brought up here. My parents and grandparents too. So I won't be told by Potássio, that comes from outside, that this land isn't ours. It is our land and they are the invaders."
One of the by-products of potash mining is vast amounts of salt.
The company insists it will prevent this salt leaching into aquifers and rivers. But the Mura remain concerned, given the region's high rainfall, extreme heat and its location on a flood plain.