"Indigenous activists demand justice after 5 shot in Amazonian ‘palm oil war’", 09 August 2023

...“Guys, Dayane [Tembé] is very bad...She is going to the hospital, we are going there. I was shot twice, once in the shoulder and once in the thigh.” That was the audio message from Felipe Tembé...

...[P]rivate security guards from palm oil company Brasil BioFuels S.A. (BBF) allegedly also shot an Indigenous woman, Erlany Portilho Ferreira Tembé, and Indigenous man, Pylikape Tembé, in Tomé-Açu municipality, in the state of Pará, according to Indigenous leaders. Three days earlier, on Aug. 4, “heavily armed” BBF guards and military police deployed from the state capital, Belém, allegedly shot 19-year-old Kauã Tembé in what leaders have called an “arbitrary action” in the Bananal Indigenous village.

In all, five Indigenous people were wounded in just 72 hours, activists say...

..."Police are taking steps to clarify the facts, initiate inquiries and identify the other suspects involved in this Monday’s case.” However, Segup didn’t respond to Indigenous peoples’ accusations about the involvement of police officers in the attack on Aug. 4.

In an emailed statement, BBF denied the accusations and accused the Indigenous communities of invading an area that “is not demarcated indigenous land but the company’s private property,” and also of attacking its outsourced private security. The company said the disputed area belongs to BBF since 2008 and it has all the legal documentation...

The company said the details are described in a July 8 report filed with the Tomé-Açu Civil Police, alleging claims of use of documents of dubious origin by the Indigenous. BBF said it also filed a July 18 police report against “about 100 invaders” and a July 26 police report into robberies and theft of palm fruit, the assault of a company worker, and two employees being held hostage. BBF’s full statement in Portuguese is available here...