Demarcation Diaries
10 September 2001
When Maluvi, one of the Deni in our team, put up the sign reading
"Terra Deni - Area Proibida" on the first point of our
demarcation boundary, we were all delighted that we really are
helping to make
it happen!
The first plate we put up signified the first concrete step towards
marking a corridor of a natural reserve area where the Deni people
live, and it is also only the second time Indians in the Amazon
have demarcated their land with their own hands.
It was the first day of demarcation, and we set off early in
the morning in good spirit. Our mission today was to put up two
signs two kilometres apart along a igarape (stream) parallel to
Rio Xerua.
The Indians living in the Amazon often use streams and rivers
to separate their lands, and during times of conflict, the rivers
are often regarded as a neutral area.
Our team is helping to demarcate 62.5 km of the Deni's boundary,
and about 20 km of it is "naturally demarcated" by this
igarape that we are following the first day.
We thought today's mission would be easily accomplished and we
could all come back before 2pm to have our lunch. But we have
both underestimated the difficulty of working inside the jungle,
and have made some mistakes as well.
We departed in the voadeira (aluminium boat), and a couple minutes
later we found that we did not bring the signs with us! This was
the first confusion of the day, but it was only the beginning.
There was no difficulty in locating the first point and putting
up the sign, but at the end of our two-kilometre trail, we found
we were in the wrong spot! Since it is dry season in the Amazon,
it was difficult for us to follow the stream or even to find its
location.
The Deni living in the area had difficulty finding the igarape
too, because there are so many little streams in the Amazon, and
stream courses change time after time.
Finally, we put up the second sign at a spot we thought might
be the igarape we were looking for, marked the coordinate through
the Global Positioning System, and came back to check with Riberato,
the chief topographer on board. Of course, we were wrong.
Walking inside the jungle was difficult too. It took us more
than five hours to finish the two km trail and come back to the
voadeira. For most of the time, we had to chop our way through
the bush and woods. The three Deni in our team were very strong
and excellent "choppers." Without them, we would have
moved like "tracajas" (river turtles).
The soil is always full of things to trip you, rotten wood here
and fallen sticks there. And tripping in the forest could be painful,
if not dangerous. I tripped once and trying to balance myself,
I grasped a tree and had a palm-full of needles from the stem
of the tree. My palm is still hurting while I am writing this
update.
But the most difficult thing is mud. Often we had to step on
muddy soil, and sometimes the mud was so soft that my lower leg
would disappear in the mud and it was difficult to pull my leg
out.
Despite the confusion and difficulty, it was a day full of joy
because I was seeing, learning, and even tasting so many things!
The Deni and Ribamar, our native Greenpeace volunteer who is regarded
by people on the Comte Savio as "the gypsy of the Amazon,"
were good teachers about the forest. They told us the different
uses and myths of the trees in the forest. For example, the leaves
of Mulateiro, a big, straight tree with greenish skin, could be
made into tea, and local people believe that drinking it would
give them magic power to stay young. The burnt ash of the Cocau
tree can be used for washing, and it would dye hair red for two
months.
Riba was particularly enthusiastic to introduce native jungle
cuisine to us. When he is thristy, he cuts a piece of log and
drinks the dripping water from the stem. The water was cold and
tasts a bit sweet. He also picked up nuts and fruits, such as
Apurui, which was similar to Passion fruit, but had many more
seeds and a strong sour taste.
My favourite was the heart of the palm tree, which can be eaten
raw and has a very smooth taste. The most exotic dish we ate was
a white worm called Tapuru, which can be found in Cocau nuts.
I ate two of them, raw, and they actually tasted quite good.
In the evening, I had some interesting cultural exchanges with
the Deni. I tried to learn how to say and write their names, then
Marcio came and asked me to translate his name into Chinese. I
wrote it down in a piece of paper, and the Deni were all very
curious about Chinese characters.
Mavahali, the patarahu (chief) of a Deni village, passed me a
piece of paper and gestured for me to write his name in Chinese.
I tried my best to translate his name into Chinese and with the
help of our Portuguese speakers, tried to explain how this worked.
Then he found out that I had only translated "Mavahali,"
and he frowned, raised his voice, and said with pride: "Mavahali
Deni!" I had forgotten to translate "Deni," which
always goes with their names!
Then Vabishi, Vaisuvi and the others all followed suit. Their
names are not at all easy to translate into Chinese, but I tried
my best with pleasure, because this was probably a very interesting
and special souvenir for them.
Kontau
Find out about the different
volunteers on the demarcation project.
|
