Drugs are becoming institutionalized: Interview with Ticuna leader in Peru’s Amazon

Francisco Hernández Cayetano, president of a federation representing Ticuna and Yagua communities in Peru's Amazon tri-border region, describes drug trafficking and illegal mining as having deforested 60 to 70% of local forests and drawn children into coca fields. He says the resulting substance abuse among Ticuna youth has become normalized within families who have no other economic options.

Hernández attributes the crisis to a near-total absence of state investment along the Peru-Colombia-Brazil border, contrasting Peru's inaction with somewhat more developed responses in Brazil and Colombia. In response, Ticuna leaders from all three countries have formed an 18-member cross-border platform intending to bring shared demands to each country's parliament.

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