Death Flights in the Amazon

Welcome to IWPR’s Frontline Update, your go-to source to hear from journalists and local voices at the front lines of conflict.

 THE BIG PICTURE  

An IWPR-supported investigation that revealed how Peruvian drug traffickers were terrorising indigenous communities and destroying precious rainforest has won the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) Shining Light Award.

In revealing a vast transport network, Death Flights in the Amazon provided critical evidence local communities are using to lobby for more security. The report, by the team at Mongabay-Latam – a Spanish-language news service covering regional environmental issues – received the honour during a gala event at the 14th Global Investigative Journalism Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

 VOICES FROM THE FRONTLINE 

"This investigation, which used artificial intelligence to map 67 illegal airstrips in the Peruvian Amazon, revealed the violence faced by Indigenous communities in three regions of the Amazon,” explained Mongabay-Latam Managing Editor Alexa Velez.

The story – the result of a year-long data-gathering, analysis and on-the-ground reporting project – used an AI-powered search tool created by Earth Genome to find deforestation patterns.

“Locating an airfield from space in the Peruvian Amazon is like finding a toothpick hidden in a misshapen soccer field, like locating it among the grass, weeds and bare earth,” said one member of the investigative team.

Before this project, little was known about how organised crime operations in areas of the Amazon affected isolated Indigenous communities.

“If we talk about them and say that drug trafficking happens here, they will find out and then — bam! — they will take you down,” a local Indigenous source, who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons, told Mongabay-Latam. “They are lawless.”

Velez said that the impact had been substantial.

"The report enabled Indigenous leaders to use its findings as evidence to demand greater protection,” she continued, “while international media highlighted its use of AI as a methodological breakthrough in investigative journalism.”

 WHY IT MATTERS 

The story was part of an IWPR project providing Latin American journalists with the training, financial resources and mentorship to combat these challenges.

"IWPR mentors helped us with suggestions on how to improve our investigations, find new journalistic sources, verify information in our texts, think through visual solutions, and generate ideas to improve their dissemination,” Velez said.

Describing the data the story revealed as “terrifying,” Velez continued, “The insecurity facing the country needs to move beyond a centralized, urban focus. A comprehensive approach is required—one that makes visible the threats faced by Indigenous peoples who are currently confronting growing illicit economies and are utterly defenseless in the face of drug trafficking, in territories where state presence and action are non-existent.”

 THE BOTTOM LINE 

Amid major challenges from trafficking networks and other criminal groups, investigative reporters such as the Mongabay-Latam team shed light on under-reported issues affecting some of the most vulnerable in society.

Often telling stories that the powerful would prefer to hide, this information is vital for public understanding, policymaking and accountability.

Investigative reporting uncovers new information which can empower local communities to advocate for their rights and achieve real-world change – reporting with true impact.

In the face of deteriorating media freedoms and diminished funding resources, IWPR continues to support local journalists in these courageous efforts.