Tiago Karaí and Laudiceia Benites helped reclaim Guarani land. They died with their children in an accident last month.

Seven people from the Guarani community of Tekoa Kalipety, traveling between Indigenous territories with traditional seeds, died on August 14th when a semitrailer carrying maize detached and struck their vehicle. Among the dead were Tiago Honório dos Santos, known as Tiago Karaí, his wife Kerexu Laudiceia Benites, and their children Tadeu and Luna, along with Tiago's sister and two other community members.

Tiago and Laudiceia had spent years helping reclaim ancestral land in the Tenondé Porã Indigenous Territory, teaching Guarani language and culture, and organizing communities affected by a nearby rail expansion. Laudiceia studied traditional medicine and helped revive the practice of childbirth within the territory; Tiago had recently stepped back from leadership roles to train successors.

The truck driver fled the scene. Tiago had told colleagues he planned to return to a struggling community in Paraná that November with more members of his community.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.