Antonio do Brinco

Antonio do Brinco Albina 2
Village
Antonio do Brinco as seen from Maripasoula
Antonio do Brinco Location in Suriname
Coordinates: 3°38′33″N 54°1′27″W
Country	Suriname
District	Sipaliwini District
Resort	Tapanahony
Population  (2015)[1]
• Total	ca. 1,000

Antonio do Brinco, also Albina 2,^[1] is a garimpeiros (illegal gold prospectors) village in the Tapanahony resort of the Sipaliwini District of Suriname. The village is located on the Lawa River,^[2] and is next to Peruano,^[3] and opposite Maripasoula in French Guiana.^[1] The village is named after Antonio with the earring (Portuguese: brinco) who constructed the first commercial building.^[4]

The village has grown rapidly in the early 21st century, and contains a string of supermarkets, restaurants, bars and brothels,^[1] who cater to both the gold prospectors and neighbouring French Guiana, because of lower prices.^[5] Many shops offer customers free transportation from Maripasoula with their boats and canoes.^[4]

The health situation in the village is dire. The river has been polluted with mercury.^[5] There are no medical facilities in the village despite a high prevalence of HIV, malaria,^[6] and during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was listed as a hot spot with many infections.^[7] As it was founded illegally, it is not listed as an official settlement^[8] and therefore has no school, no electricity other than private Diesel generators, no clean water supply, and no police station.^[2] There are plans to open a clinic operated by Medische Zending in the village.^[6]

References

1. "La Vie en face". Une Saison en Guyane (in French). Retrieved 6 July 2020.
2. "Ondernemers Lawa zijn brute roofovervallen zat". De Ware Tijd via Shoeket (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 July 2020.
3. ""Health Awareness Week" at Benzdorp for garimpeiros Lawa Tabiki". Malaria Suriname. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
4. Hoefte & Oostindie 2015, p. 76.
5. "Verkeerde benzine-opslag oorzaak brand Antonio do Brinco". De Ware Tijd (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 28 June 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
6. "Gratis onderzoek in 'Health Awareness Week'". Star Nieuws (in Dutch). Retrieved 5 July 2020.
7. "Covid-19: Record voor de tweede keer verbroken vandaag". Star Nieuws (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 July 2020.
8. Plan Bureau 2014, p. 170: "The reference concerns the absence of the village in table 3.1 of the official villages in the Tapanahony resort"

Bibliography

• Hoefte, Rosemarijn; Oostindie, Gert (2015). In and Out of Suriname (PDF). Caribbean Series 34. ISBN 978-90-04-28011-3. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
• Plan Bureau (2014). "Planning Office Suriname - Districts 2009-2013" (PDF). Planning Office Suriname (in Dutch).