Loggers are illegally cutting the mahogany forests of the Kayapo Indians in the Amazon, according to evidence presented yesterday to the Brazilian government by Greenpeace. Most mahogany logging was banned in Brazil in 1996, and logging of any kind is not permitted on Indian lands. Of the 13 companies that hold permits for sustainable mahogany logging, five have been fined for illegal logging in the past. Greenpeace believes that some of these companies may be responsible for the Kayapo logging. Paulo Adario, who coordinates the group’s Amazon campaign, said poor Brazilian Indians often allow loggers onto their land for a small fee: “We have to find alternatives for the Kayapo that are making some income from this.”
