This archive report was first published on 10 July 2020.
Deep in the Brazilian Amazon, the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a painful cultural divide between indigenous people and the government. The crisis has left many in a difficult position, torn between seeking medical help in the city and risking the loss of their ancestral funeral rites.
Lucita Sanoma, a young mother from the Yanomami community, recently lost her two-month-old baby to suspected coronavirus. The infant was buried in a hospital in Boa Vista, 300 kilometers from their village, without her knowledge or consent.
The burial followed government health guidelines that contradict Yanomami culture, which dictates that the deceased must be cremated. The authorities' actions have been met with outrage from indigenous leaders, who argue that the government must respect and understand the cultural significance of their funeral rites.
According to indigenous leader Mauricio Yekuana, the government's health policies disregard the indigenous perspective and impose its own views on the community. 'The government just wants to impose its view of things on the indigenous people and force them to listen to what it wants to do,' he said.
As part of the Yanomami's funerary rites, the remains are displayed in the forest before they are cremated. The ashes are collected in an urn to be buried in a new ceremony much later. Lucita Sanoma has expressed her desire to bring her son's body back to the village, where she can mourn him with her community according to their ancestral rites.
However, the authorities have yet to decide whether she can bring her son's body home. The situation has left Lucita Sanoma and many others in a state of distress, highlighting the need for the government to respect and understand the cultural significance of indigenous funeral rites.
Published on July 10, 2020.
