After more than four years, Brazil has again designated indigenous protected areas. “Today I have the pleasure of signing the official approval of six indigenous territories,” said President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Two of the six new reserves are located in the Amazon region, two others in the northeast of the country and in the states of Goiás and Rio Grande do Sul.
With a view to the zero deforestation strategy he has promised for the Brazilian Amazon by 2030, the left-wing politician announced that the government will work hard to demarcate as much indigenous land as possible. According to studies, indigenous people are considered the best “guardians of the forest”.
Around 6,000 indigenous people had gathered since Monday for their big annual meeting “Terra Livre” (Free Land) on the esplanade of the ministries in the government district in Brasília. They demonstrated against legislative projects that threaten indigenous peoples and called for the establishment of protected areas under the motto “The indigenous future is today – without demarcation there is no democracy”.
Signing of the contract: The decree guarantees indigenous people exclusive use of resources in six new protected areas
The presidential decree guarantees the indigenous people the exclusive use of the natural resources on the now designated areas. Experts see the areas as a bulwark against deforestation in the Amazon – one of the greatest challenges in the fight against climate change.
Lula emphasized that the reserves are important in the fight against illegal logging of the rainforest. “It’s a time-consuming process, but we will ensure that as many indigenous reserves as possible are designated.”
According to the last census from 2010, around 800,000 indigenous people live in Brazil, most of them in reserves that together make up almost 14 percent of the country’s area. Under the government of Lula’s predecessor, right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro, land allocations to indigenous people had stalled.
Lula was not considered a Green during his previous terms (2003-2010). But now he has promised to strengthen environmental and climate protection as well as the rights of the indigenous people.
uh/AR (dpa, afp, epd)