The Chapada Diamantina has become kind of a fixed star in the travelers’ tourist universe. Pepped up mainly through travel bibles a la lonely planet. A fast development that has turned the self-declared "Ecotourism Center Lençóis" since its very beginning mid 19th century firmly in the grip of ruthless slave-owners, man-hunters (of Native Americans) and diamond barons into an anachronistic stronghold of contemporary ruthless exploitation.
Local and newly arrived "ecotourism entrepreneurs" take advantage of the misery of the predominantly Afro-Native American population in order to enrich themselves astronomically. Nothing gets redistributed. Everything goes in the land of unlimited corruption. Destruction of nature and exploitation of children included. The gleaming but cheating label "Ecotourism" pushes the terrible reality deep enough into the shadows so that even visitors with the best of intentions, but dazzled by the many kicks of traveling, new culture experiences and caipirinha, don’t realize anything of the truth behind the euphemistic p.r. creation.
And how could they, in a few days of superficial contact with a culture area which at times is centuries away from their own reality at home?
Of course there are also (a few) decent people among the Lençóis hotel and agency owners. Yet most of those who stubbornly resist corruption mainstream give up some day. They throw the towel and leave for another place. Because the town’s alliance of profit-über-alles exploiters and destroyers won’t tolerate spoilsports. Everything has to stay exactly like it has always been. (Even if that accelerates in the long run the very own downfall.) Very few become stinking rich and richer, and the majority continues wretchedly captive in their unchangeable role of waste humans (= energy) for the former.
It thus isn't a big surprise not only for anthropologists, that the small town of Lençóis finds itself in a spiral of violence rather characteristic for medium-sized Brazilian towns.