Loggers in Brazil who had illegally entered an Amazon Indian reserve captured an eight-year-old indigenous girl and burned her alive.
The child, who belonged to the isolated Gwaja-Awa tribe, is believed to have wandered away from her village to play and got lost in the forest.
The group of illegal loggers who were trespassing in the 1000-acre reserve in Maranhao state, northern Brazil, came across the young girl, tied her to a tree and set fire to her, it is claimed.
Luis Carlos Guajajaras, a local Indian leader from another tribe protected by the reserve, told Brazil's Terra website that members of his community had witnessed the horrific murder.
He said the white loggers had been illegally paying Indians from his tribe, the Guajajara, to let them pull down trees using heavy machinery and chains when the lost child appeared.
He said: 'It happened deep in the forest. The loggers were doing business with the Guajajara Indians and found the Gwaja girl. And they burned the child. Just because they wanted to, out of nothing but pure wickedness.
'She was from another tribe, they live deep in the jungle, and have no contact with the outside world. It would have been the first time she had ever seen white men. We heard that they laughed as they burned her to death.'
Today the Indigenous Missionary Council confirmed reports of the murder, which is believed to have happened in October or November.
The group, which is linked to the Catholic Church, claim to be in possession of a video of the child's charred body, filmed by members of the Guajajara tribe.
The council's coordinator Rosa Diniz said the group were only informed of the incident this week by tribal leaders.
She said: 'We are talking about a very large area, where people witnessed the crime and told their elders, who came to us.
'We are seeking more information before we pass the case on to the Federal Police. But according to the evidence we already possess, a child has been burned alive by loggers who were illegally trespassing on an Indian reserve.'
Indian leader Luis Carlos Guajajaras claimed he had informed Brazil's National Indian Foundation of the murder as soon as he had heard about it, but officials failed to investigate.
He said: 'We found out about it when we stopped to help a group of injured Indians. On the way to the first aid point they told us about this girl's death.
'It's very difficult to locate the Gwaja-Awa because they live in the forest, have never been contacted and speak another language. This makes finding out what really happened more difficult.
'Now, after this violence, they must have fled even further into the jungle.'
There are an estimated 15,000 indigenous people living in the Maranhao reserve, made up of various tribes, living in different degrees of isolation.
Brazil's indigenous tribes are under constant threat from loggers, miners and ranchers who pose a risk to Indians' lives and well-being and destroy their natural resources.
The most recent statistics released by the Indigenous Missionary Council claimed there were 452 murders of Indians in Brazil between 2003 and 2010.
SOURCE
The child, who belonged to the isolated Gwaja-Awa tribe, is believed to have wandered away from her village to play and got lost in the forest.
The group of illegal loggers who were trespassing in the 1000-acre reserve in Maranhao state, northern Brazil, came across the young girl, tied her to a tree and set fire to her, it is claimed.
Luis Carlos Guajajaras, a local Indian leader from another tribe protected by the reserve, told Brazil's Terra website that members of his community had witnessed the horrific murder.
He said the white loggers had been illegally paying Indians from his tribe, the Guajajara, to let them pull down trees using heavy machinery and chains when the lost child appeared.
He said: 'It happened deep in the forest. The loggers were doing business with the Guajajara Indians and found the Gwaja girl. And they burned the child. Just because they wanted to, out of nothing but pure wickedness.
'She was from another tribe, they live deep in the jungle, and have no contact with the outside world. It would have been the first time she had ever seen white men. We heard that they laughed as they burned her to death.'
Today the Indigenous Missionary Council confirmed reports of the murder, which is believed to have happened in October or November.
The group, which is linked to the Catholic Church, claim to be in possession of a video of the child's charred body, filmed by members of the Guajajara tribe.
The council's coordinator Rosa Diniz said the group were only informed of the incident this week by tribal leaders.
She said: 'We are talking about a very large area, where people witnessed the crime and told their elders, who came to us.
'We are seeking more information before we pass the case on to the Federal Police. But according to the evidence we already possess, a child has been burned alive by loggers who were illegally trespassing on an Indian reserve.'
Indian leader Luis Carlos Guajajaras claimed he had informed Brazil's National Indian Foundation of the murder as soon as he had heard about it, but officials failed to investigate.
He said: 'We found out about it when we stopped to help a group of injured Indians. On the way to the first aid point they told us about this girl's death.
'It's very difficult to locate the Gwaja-Awa because they live in the forest, have never been contacted and speak another language. This makes finding out what really happened more difficult.
'Now, after this violence, they must have fled even further into the jungle.'
There are an estimated 15,000 indigenous people living in the Maranhao reserve, made up of various tribes, living in different degrees of isolation.
Brazil's indigenous tribes are under constant threat from loggers, miners and ranchers who pose a risk to Indians' lives and well-being and destroy their natural resources.
The most recent statistics released by the Indigenous Missionary Council claimed there were 452 murders of Indians in Brazil between 2003 and 2010.
SOURCE
Luis Carlos Guajajaras, a local leader from a separate tribe, told a Brazilian news website that they tied to her a tree and set her alight as a warning to other natives Photo: AP
devils never change
these people should be found and procacuted by the highest courts.it shouldnt be overlooked because she was indian.it should be done because a law was broken,a 8 yr.old lost her innocent life because of stupidity .on the illegal loggers part..they should br hung for it...
yes, devils never change, but we can :) They are losers, we are not, nothing in this planet goes without noticed by God and they will pay! They will pay and the price is very expensive.
Its sick and gross how a human can be treated like this its crime to all humanity this type of stuff should be brought forward and people like them made to pay with the death penalty and humity watch them get executed live all over the world id be happy if all who would do this crime on humanity know that this is what they are gonna get if they do this disgusting thing this is so sad.
It is sad that somethings never change. It is terrible what greed will make people do. But my guess is that those who kiilled that poor innocent child will never pay for their heartless crimes. And furthermore would probably do it again.
Until we recognize this child as a sister, a daughter, our true heart's love we are able to create a psychological distance that mediates our response, so that we are willing to let it go and go on with our lives. She is my daughter, she is my sister, my own mother's and fathers flesh. This must not stand. She is mine, and she is yours. How do we create a world where our loved ones are precious, and no one dare treat them so heartlessly. Before you answer, remember the men who did this are our brothers... How do we make our brothers repent, and turn their hearts from such wickedness? Truly... what would you say if this were your brother, to turn his heart? Say it. It is.
Brazil is still wild
1512, 1612, 1712, 1812, 1912 and now 2012 and the barbarians are STILL here. Peace to all the souls who have perished in the Genocide of the Indigenous People of the americas. And Courage to all who have survived. SOLIDARITY.