Kretã Kaingang, executive coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, explains the likely impact of PL 490/2007 as allowing the government to officially take possession of Indigenous peoples’ lands, and throw open those lands “to predatory enterprises, such as mining, and, in practice, make demarcations unfeasible”.
Of course, the fight is not over, by any means. On 23 June, after the draft bill was approved by the parliamentary committee, more than 450 Indigenous leaders from 25 communities across the country, gathered in the federal capital Brasilia to protest the attack upon the constitutional rights of Indigenous peoples in Brazil. The government responded by deploying riot police to fire rubber bullets and tear gas at the protesters.
The focus now shifts to 30 June, when the Brazilian Supreme Court rules on the pivotal case for Indigenous land rights and the country’s legislature prepares to vote on the equally decisive draft bill. As the war on the rights of Indigenous Brazilians intensifies, there is an urgent need for voices around the globe to be raised in support of the resistance. And we urgently need the international community to amplify the voices of the Indigenous peoples of Brazil and to call for public pressure on the Brazilian government to uphold the Indigenous rights that are mandated by Brazil’s Constitution, as well as the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, whose adoption Brazil voted for back in 2007. On 28 June, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, special UN adviser to the secretary-general on the prevention of genocide issued a statement saying that she was particularly concerned about the situation of Indigenous peoples, specifically mentioning Brazil.
However, given that moral or humanitarian arguments seem to have very little impact on the Brazilian government, some have turned to the possibility of an international boycott against Brazilian agricultural products, including meat and soy, if these measures are passed. In May 2021, 40 international grocery, food supply, and investment companies published an open letter to this effect. It is likely that a boycott campaign will gain traction if the upcoming rulings change Brazilian laws to remove the rights of Indigenous peoples and protections for the Amazon, which could be devastating for the already fragile Brazilian economy.
Those who want to offer their support for Indigenous rights and environmental protections can sign an open letter whose signatories pledge, if necessary, to implement a boycott of Brazilian products that are linked with the destruction of lands and cancelation of Indigenous rights.
This content originally appeared on Common Dreams - Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community and was authored by Mark Harris, Denise Ferreira da Silva.
Mark Harris, Denise Ferreira da Silva | Radio Free (2021-06-29T19:14:06+00:00) The Brazilian Government Is Waging War on Indigenous Rights. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2021/06/29/the-brazilian-government-is-waging-war-on-indigenous-rights/
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