SAO PAULO, April 21 - An international human rights commission has accused Brazil of failing to obey its own constitution and ringfence ancient tribal territories in a landmark court case that pits the state against indigenous people.

A Peruvian court has upheld the right of Awajun and Wampis indigenous communities to be consulted about oil drilling on their land, in a case supported by Catholic Church leaders.

Brazilian airline Gol has agreed to pay R$4m ($1.3m) to the Kayapo indigenous tribe as compensation for material and spiritual damage caused by a 2006 plane crash which left a huge tract of their land “cursed”.

Indigenous leaders and activists gathered in Quito, Ecuador, last Thursday, March 9, to denounce the Ecuadorian government for its complicity in allowing international mining companies to take over indigenous territory.

Native communities in Brazil’s far western Amazon region have been shaken by the loss of a highly respected shaman, whose death from a snakebite has underscored the precarious state of the country’s indigenous health care system.