Overview

The Lawa River forms the border between Suriname and French Guyana and runs right through Wayana habitat. The Wayana are one of the first population groups that lived in this area. While Suriname gained independence from the Netherlands, French Guiana remained under French rule, so one side of the bank remains European territory. In recent years the area has been taken in by Brazilian gold prospectors, all digging for great fortune, resulting in mercury pollution in the river reaching huge proportions. The Lawa River not only forms the natural divide between two different worlds, it is also the lifeline for the people of the area. It transports, it feeds, it cools, but it also poisons...