Gregorio Mirabal, member of the Kurripako indigenous people of Venezuela.COICA
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The images of what is happening in the Amazon have remained in the eyes of many. The current drought has not only left populations in Brazil cut off due to loss of river access, but large amounts of fish and the famous pink dolphins appear to be dead. Although there are many reasons that led the Amazon to experience this scenario, for Gregorio Mirabal (56 years old), member of the Kurripako indigenous people in Venezuela, Amazonas Department, there is no other way to describe what happened as something New to describe pandemic: “the climate pandemic”. “It’s mercury pollution, deforestation, drought, climate change, everything that led us to this,” he says.
As a member of the Strategic Committee of the Scientific Panel for the Amazon (SPA) and as Climate Change and Biodiversity Coordinator of the Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin (COICA), Mirabal insists that the most urgent step is to avoid this type of consequences To avoid this, the indigenous people must recognize their territory and give it a title, since they are the ones who have shown themselves to be the best at protecting it. He also warns that the region’s climate has become unpredictable and that the experience in Brazil is just a small snapshot of what is happening across the region.
Thousands of dead fish in Lago do Piranha in Manacapuru (Brazil) on September 27th. Raphael Alves (EFE)
Questions. We have heard drastic news about the situation in Lake Tefé in Brazil and the deaths of dolphins. But what is the current situation in the rest of the Amazon?
Answer. The first thing I have to say is that with the El Niño phenomenon and the climate crisis, in addition to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has had not only health but also environmental impacts, as it is linked to fires, a high rate of deforestation and Mining was accompanied, The Amazon is experiencing a very strong process of violation. In fact, I believe that at this moment we are facing a new pandemic, namely the climate pandemic, and this is the point of no return. And now what is happening in Brazil, which has the largest Amazon at 60%, but where there are fewer indigenous peoples, is a drastic situation that is taking up all the focus. But we must remember that the entire Amazon is connected and that what is happening with the dolphins and the drought is happening in all the rivers that are also affected by mercury pollution.
Q And what exactly is the point of no return? What are the risks?
R. There are two risks. For one thing, the Amazon will be completely flooded in some parts and completely dry out in other parts. So when we talk about the point of no return, it means that the Amazon becomes a savannah and we exceed the temperature increase of over 1.5°C on a global scale. The consequence is global. We would all lose.
Q What makes you, as indigenous communities and as part of COICA, want to hear and see what is happening in the Amazon?
It’s a memory. As is known and according to studies by the United Nations, where there are indigenous communities, there is about 70% to 80% protection of water, forests and biodiversity. But what we see is that we are saving, and on the other hand, the current global economic system needs not the trees, but what is underneath: oil, gold, fossil fuels, and that creates a lot of pollution. There is destruction. So our point is: If the Amazon is not protected and deforestation is not stopped by 2025, we will reach the point of no return. The world says that 30% of the planet needs to be protected by 2030, but we say that in the Amazon it should be 80%.
Q How did you personally experience these changes?
R. I will give you the example of my territory. I am on the border between the Guanía River and the Orinoco, between Venezuela and Colombia, and further up is the Negro River in Brazil. There, in the last three years, we have experienced the phenomenon of floods, of rain at times when it has not rained, but also rivers drying up when it has previously rained. That means our ecological calendars are already distorted. And this is happening throughout the Amazon, because we have spoken about it with the brothers from Peru, from Colombia, from Brazil. The farms no longer produce the same food because there is either no water or they are completely flooded and nothing can be grown. Before there was balance in the natural calendar, we knew when to harvest, when to prepare for summer or winter. That is now impossible.
Q What solution do you suggest in the short and long term for such a drought?
Solutions that have to do with our governments. This year the Amazon Summit took place in Belém de Pará and 100 agreements were signed. That was in August, but what happened to the first promise? The first planning meeting was not called. So this reflects that the governments of Latin America act in an emergency and wait for the catastrophe or the climate pandemic to come, as I say. The other thing is that it’s the governments that have the money. One of the axes to prevent such events as droughts is that climate finance reaches communities, because only 1% or 1.5% reaches us. The money is increasingly being made available to curb climate change in large cities. A stronger government presence is also needed to address problems such as mining and deforestation. It is currently estimated that almost 5,000 square meters of tropical forest are lost every five seconds, and this is irreversible. And finally, we have been demanding the granting of property rights to our territories for more than 20 years because we protect them. But they haven’t realized it yet, so anyone can come in and destroy the forest. Ultimately it comes down to political will.
Gregorio Mirabal offers a conference.COICA
Q What role do you think governments outside the Amazon should play in the face of this crisis, given that the Amazon is multi-regional and crucial to global climate regulation?
R. I will answer with another example. When war broke out in Ukraine, or as is now happening in Israel and Palestine, the amount donated to support them was incredible. But these wars worry us because they are borne by nature, by oil. And where do these resources come from? What most threatens the Amazon from Latin America. We wrote a letter to United States President Joe Biden asking for a moratorium on Amazon oil and a just energy transition. But they don’t seem to care. The same goes for the Chinese government, which has not expressed concerns about the preservation of the Amazon. What we can save is the interest of European Union countries such as Norway, Finland, Germany or France, which have shown signs of supporting us.
Q Just this week Columbus Day was celebrated, which shows very strong colonization patterns? What does it mean to you?
R. In my organization this day is celebrated on October 11th, but it is more of a date for reflection, a day of mourning. To remember that we had one world, one way of life, and that they made it seem like a new world to us, even though we had been here for more than 100,000 years. It is a date that reminds us that millions of indigenous peoples have disappeared from the planet. Before there were between 15 and 20 million, now there are only 3 million in the Amazon region. Globally, we only make up 6% of the population. But the message I want to leave is one of hope, of resistance. To understand that we, that the Amazon must be a world heritage site in order to continue to live on the planet.