• Producer(s):

    ARTE GEIE, Docdays Productions

  • Territories:

    Worldwide.

  • Production year:

    2019

  • Language(s):

    German, French

  • Rights:

    TV, NON-THEATRICAL, INTERNET

In the Amazonian region of Madre de Dios, Peru, gold mining lays down the law. It is eating into the jungle, polluting rivers with mercury and gradually poisoning the inhabitants. Environmentalists and the military are fighting against an invasion of illegal gold miners.

On the riverbanks, the camps of tens of thousands of illegal miners – often poor inhabitants from other Andean regions – have become actual cities; these lawless areas are controlled by gangs. Until a few months ago, neither the police nor the army dared to venture into these gang-controlled territories. But since February 2019, the Peruvian state has gradually regained control of “La Pampa” by sending in the army to dismantle the camps.
Peru is the world's seventh largest gold producer and 90% of Madre de Dios' precious metal is believed to come from artisanal or illegal mines.