The chief Raoni MetuktireBrazilian indigenous leader and one of the most emblematic defenders of Amazon in the world, was admitted to an intensive care unit for respiratory problems this Saturday, his doctors reported.
Raoni, 93, was taken to the intensive treatment unit of the Dois Pinheiros Hospital, in the Brazilian city of Sinop (central-west), “as a preventive measure” and “he is stable,” according to the doctors in a statement.
He has been diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and heart problems.
Recognizable by his characteristic lip disc, the chief has toured the entire planet to defend the cause of the Amazon rainforest and indigenous communities before heads of state, popes and monarchs.
At the beginning of May, he spent five days in the same hospital for abdominal pain and was treated for a hernia. On Thursday he returned to the medical center after “new clinical discomfort,” the statement details.
Born in the town of Brokenin the state of Mato Grosso (west-central), Raoni did not see a white man until he was about 20 years old.
The chief became known in Brazil during the 1970s, when he campaigned against the construction of the trans-Amazon highway during the military dictatorship (1964-1985). He made his first international tour in 1989, after meeting the British musician Sting in the Amazon.
Since then he has remained active as one of the most visible voices in defense of the largest rainforest in the world.
