‘Dalai Lama of the rainforest’ to visit North East
Jun 1 2009 The Journal
A SPIRITUAL leader from the Brazilian Amazon is the special guest at an annual pilgrimage to Holy Island in Northumberland later this month.
The pilgrimage on Saturday, June 13 has been organised by CAFOD, the development and relief agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.
Davi Kopenawa Yanomami has been dubbed ‘the Dalai Lama of the Rainforest’ after 20 years of international campaigning to secure Yanomami land rights and protect the rainforest from logging and mining operations. He is the president of CAFOD partner organisation, the Hutukara Yanomami Association.
Davi is touring the UK and Europe this month to give a stark warning to world leaders that any climate change initiatives will be jeopardised if the rainforests are not protected.
He will travel to the North East to meet CAFOD supporters and thank them for their continued support for CAFOD’s campaign to protect indigenous lands in Raposa Serra do Sol.
Last July, many CAFOD supporters in the North East attended a Brazil night in Felling, Gateshead, and signed a petition calling for the Brazilian government to respect the rights of the indigenous people of Raposa Serra do sol where Davi lives. The campaign was successful and now the indigenous people can maintain their land as a “single, continuous territory” free from powerful abusive land occupiers.
CAFD Hexham & Newcastle Diocesan Manager, Anne-Marie Hanlon, who visited CAFOD projects in Brazil in 2006 said: “This is a real honour for us, and we are thrilled to have Davi coming to Holy Island this year. He is an inspirational speaker and comes from a tradition where people are still fundamentally linked to their environment.
“It will be very interesting to hear what he has to say about climate change, and also to hear how his customs value the stories of his ancestors just as he will hear how we revere our Northern saints.”
The pilgrimage starts at 11am on June 13 at the beginning of the Pilgrims’ Way and is open to the public.
