Colombia. On 4 June 1968, under Federal Law 5.449, the entire area of the municipality of Benjamin Constant, to which Tabatinga was subordinated, was classified by the Brazilian government as a National Security Area, due to its extensive open border with other countries and its poor border surveillance. For a long time Tabatinga was a district of Benjamin Constant. Tabatinga's political emancipation occurred on December 10, 1981, under the constitutional amendment of the State of Amazonas No. 12, which now defines the Tabatinga district as an autonomous municipality. The installation of municipal offices took place on January 1, 1983. Geography Ethnic composition The population of Tabatinga municipality is quite heterogeneous. It is formed by Brazilians, Peruvians, Colombians, among them indigenous people of different ethnic groups, most of whom are Tikunas and Kokamas. Among the Brazilians in Tabatinga, there is the rotating population, corresponding to the military of the armed forces, bank branch workers and people who work for public agencies of the Brazilian government, because it is a border region, a large number of federal police officers, federal revenue agents, federal prosecutors, among others, are seen. The Ticunas Indians form the largest ethnic group in Tabatinga, and the Tukuna Umariaçu indigenous reserve is found in the region of the municipality, inhabited by a majority belonging to this ethnic group. The official language of the municipality is Portuguese, but Spanish and tribal languages are understood, including Tikuna language. Economy The city's economy is driven by a significant portion of the informal economy and subsistence agriculture. It is also made up of public sector jobs and the extensive financial exchange of the Colombian city of Leticia, which, based on dollar regulation, takes place in parallel in the city between the Colombian Peso and the Brazilian Real. Security Due to the extensive border with Colombia and Peru, Tabatinga is considered by the Federal Police and the Brazilian Army to be one of the main points of entry of cocaine into Brazil. According to Brazilian police authorities, the precarious enforcement and extensive problems of neighboring nations with illicit narcotics production make Tabatinga a frequent point of entry for drugs bound for Brazil's major cities. References External links Human mobility in the triple border of Peru, Colombia and Brazil, Márcia Maria de Oliveira, São Paulo May/August 2006 (abstract in English, text in Portuguese). Pictures of Tabatinga, Pictures of Tabatinga. Municipalities in Amazonas (Brazilian state) Populated