The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
Bi-Weekly Press Briefing on Brazil by Ravina Shamdasani, UN Human RIghts.
“We are concerned about the continued lack of information on the whereabouts and wellbeing of British journalist Dom Phillips and indigenous rights defender Bruno Araújo Pereira in the Javari Valley, a remote area in western Amazon of Brazil, neighbouring Peru and Colombia. Our regional office for South America is monitoring the situation closely,” said the spokesperson.
Pereira and Phillips have been missing since Sunday 5 June, when they were last seen travelling in a boat on the Itaquaí river, reportedly to conduct interviews with indigenous communities.
“Javari Valley in the Amazon is the second biggest indigenous territory in Brazil, and it is believed to have one of the world’s highest concentrations of uncontacted indigenous tribes. The area is also seriously affected by illegal trafficking, mining, and fishing, and it is reportedly suffering from increased activities of armed groups,” Shamdasani added.
Phillips and Pereira have played important roles in raising awareness and defending the human rights of the indigenous peoples in the area, including by monitoring and reporting illegal activities in the Javari Valley. Pereira had reportedly received threats related to his work in defence of indigenous peoples and the environment.
“We urge Brazilian authorities to redouble their efforts to find Phillips and Pereira, with time of the essence in view of the real risks to their rights to life and security. It is therefore crucial that authorities at the federal and local levels react robustly and expeditiously, including by fully deploying available means and necessary specialized resources to effectively search over the remote area in question,” she said.
“We also commend civil society groups who have been coordinating efforts to locate the two men, including by sending search-and-rescue missions to the area,” Shamdasani added.
In conclusion the spokesperson said “we stress our concern as to the wider context of constant attacks and harassment faced by human rights defenders, environmentalists, and journalists in Brazil. The authorities have the responsibility to protect their role and ensure that they can exercise their rights, including their rights to freedom of expression and association, free from attacks or threats.”
For more information and media requests, please contact for more information and media requests, please contact: Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org or Jeremy Laurence + 41 22 917 9383 / jeremy.laurence@un.org or Marta Hurtado - + 41 22 917 9466 / marta.hurtadogomez@un.org
Tag and share - Twitter: @UNHumanRights and Facebook: unitednationshumanrights
- Exterior shot: Alley of flags Palais des Nations
- Wide shot: briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “We are concerned about the continued lack of information on the whereabouts and wellbeing of British journalist Dom Phillips and indigenous rights defender Bruno Araújo Pereira in the Javari Valley, a remote area in western Amazon of Brazil, neighbouring Peru and Colombia. Our regional office for South America is monitoring the situation closely.”
- Wide shot: briefing room participants
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Javari Valley in the Amazon is the second biggest indigenous territory in Brazil, and it is believed to have one of the world’s highest concentrations of uncontacted indigenous tribes. The area is also seriously affected by illegal trafficking, mining, and fishing, and it is reportedly suffering from increased activities of armed groups.”
- Wide shot: briefing room participants
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “We urge Brazilian authorities to redouble their efforts to find Phillips and Pereira, with time of the essence in view of the real risks to their rights to life and security. It is therefore crucial that authorities at the federal and local levels react robustly and expeditiously, including by fully deploying available means and necessary specialized resources to effectively search over the remote area in question.”
- Close up: Ravina Shamdasani
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “We also commend civil society groups who have been coordinating efforts to locate the two men, including by sending search-and-rescue missions to the area.”
- Close up: cameraman filming
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “We stress our concern as to the wider context of constant attacks and harassment faced by human rights defenders, environmentalists, and journalists in Brazil. The authorities have the responsibility to protect their role and ensure that they can exercise their rights, including their rights to freedom of expression and association, free from attacks or threats.”
- Wide shot: briefing room
Similar Stories
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | HRC
Russia’s deportations of Ukrainian children amount to crimes against humanity: independent UN rights probe
Scores of Ukrainian children are still missing after being deported far and wide across Russia and occupied territories while their families continue to search for them, human rights investigators said on Thursday.
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | OCHA
The UN’s emergency relief chief on Wednesday condemned the “$1 billion-a-day” cost of the war roiling the Middle East, at a time of severe cuts to the global body’s humanitarian work in emergencies and “soaring” needs.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO , UNHCR , UNICEF , WFP
Middle East war: UN warns of ‘toxic rain’ danger from oil depot strikes as mass displacement, aid supply shocks spread
Toxic “black rain” linked to strikes on oil depots, mass displacement and continuing disruption to humanitarian supply chains are upending lives across the Middle East and beyond after 10 days of war in the region, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani on Friday made the following remarks on Israel’s military ground incursions and displacement orders in Lebanon.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , IOM , WHO
The escalating war in the Middle East has heightened growing concerns about further civilian suffering and displacement in the region and far beyond, UN agencies said on Friday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights chief Volker Türk made the following remarks at a press stake out on the current situation in the Middle East.
“The crisis sparked in the Middle East one week ago following US and Israeli attacks on Iran, and Iran’s counterattacks, has been spreading like wildfire. It is causing significant damage in Iran, Israel and at least a dozen other countries, mostly in the Gulf, with risks of major economic and environmental ramifications across the world,” he said.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani on Tuesday made the following remarks on the current situation in the Middle-East.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNHCR , WFP
Schoolgirls killed, thousands displaced, aid routes compromised: UN humanitarians deplore effects of new Middle East war
On the fourth day of Israeli and United States airstrikes against Iran and amid growing violence and instability in the Middle East, the UN urgently called for protection of civilians and warned of growing displacement and humanitarian needs.
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM
Well over 1.3 million people have fled Sudan’s ongoing war for South Sudan, the UN migration agency, IOM, reported on Friday, amid rising violence and a massive humanitarian emergency linked to the country’s political crisis.
2
1
2
Statements , Conferences , Edited News | HRC , OHCHR
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Friday presented to the 61st Human Rights Council his global update on the human rights situation.
2
1
2
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Thursday presented to the UN Human Rights Council a new report on the human rights situation in occupied Palestinian territory.
2
1
2
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Thursday briefed the Human Rights Council in Geneva on the human rights situation in Sudan: “Nearly three years of brutal conflict have almost turned Sudan into a land of despair. The report I am presenting today is yet another chapter in the chronicle of cruelty. It outlines clear, ongoing patterns of violence against civilians, including killings, rape, and torture. As the fighting has intensified, violations of international law by all parties to the conflict have surged, while accountability has remained practically absent,” he said.