Climate. Indigenous Amazon groups urge the UN to curb organized crime, not militarize territories
Climate. Indigenous Amazon groups urge the UN to curb organized crime, not militarize territories
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Indigenous organizations from across the Amazon and Latin America sent a letter Monday to the United Nations warning that organized crime — including illegal mining, drug trafficking and logging — is driving violence and accelerating environmental destruction in rainforest communities. However, they urged governments to avoid heavily militarized responses in Indigenous territories.
(…)
The appeal comes as Indigenous communities across the Amazon increasingly find themselves caught between expanding criminal networks and state security operations. In recent years, illegal gold mining, logging and drug trafficking have spread deeper into remote rainforest regions in countries including Brazil, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador, bringing violence, mercury contamination and deforestation. (AP, 11.05.2026)