August 5, 2019, Strategic Culture Foundation (Russia)
https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2019/08/05/how-bolsonaro-maintaining-brazils-exploitation-local-international-levels/
Despite pleas for protection against miners invading their territory,
the indigenous tribes are unlikely to find recourse from the authorities.
Bolsonaro has stated his decision to open natural reserves for exploitation as
the reason behind what he terms “approximation with the United States.”
The constant declarations by
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to open the Amazon for natural resources
exploitation is putting both land and indigenous communities in peril. On
Saturday, the Waiãpi indigenous reserve was invaded by a group of heavily armed miners.
Earlier in the week, indigenous leader Emyra Waiãpi was stabbed to death. The
indigenous tribes are pointing towards Bolsonaro as the instigator and enabler
of violence targeting their people.
Despite pleas for protection against
miners invading their territory, the indigenous tribes are unlikely to find
recourse from the authorities. Bolsonaro has stated his decision to open
natural reserves for exploitation as the reason behind what he terms “approximation with the United
States.”
A recent study has attributed the destruction of
Brazil’s environmental policy to Bolsonaro and the political power of the
ruralists – an influential agribusiness association in Brazil which favours the
dispossession of indigenous people from their land. Under Bolsonaro, ruralists
and former generals
have been appointed to political positions.
Tereza
Cristina, a ruralist, serves as agriculture minister. Roberto Salles, also a ruralist, was appointed
as environment minister. Prior to his new role, Salles was involved in altering maps used for
environmental protection, thus leaving rivers exposed to mining pollution.
The latest government-enabled crime
might prove to be a precursor to ongoing violence against indigenous
communities as Bolsonaro seeks to dissociate between the indigenous people and
their land. In the latest developments, the new president of the National
Indian Fund (FUNAI) is Marcelo
Augusto Xavier da Silva, a federal police officer with ties to the agribusiness sector which
poses one of the greatest threats to indigenous lands.
Prior to his appointment, Xavier da
Silva had already been involved in disputes that sought to criminalise and
punish indigenous communities. As Ombudsman of FUNAI in 2017 during the
presidency of Michel Temer, Xavier da Silva ordered the federal police to persecute
indigenous people and NGOs over what he described as “indigenous occupation”.
The action was taken without consulting the former FUNAI president Franklimberg
de Freitas.
Former FUNAI employees have
criticised the appointment, which further weakens the organisation’s capacity
to act in protection of indigenous rights and environmental protection. Besides
pointing out his lack of expertise when it comes to indigenous communities, a
former FUNAI employee stated, with reference to Xavier da Silva,
“I am scared of him.”
This brief statement exposes the
dynamics of Bolsonaro’s rule. Prior to the elections, Bolsonaro stated, “If I’m elected, I’ll serve a blow
to FUNAI; a blow to the neck. There’s no other way. It’s not useful anymore.”
Recently he took to Twitter to compare the organisation and
indigenous communities to “a nest of rats.”
Transitioning from violent electoral
rhetoric to implementation has not been difficult for Bolsonaro. At an
international level, he enjoys not only US President Donald Trump’s support,
but also that of the EU, which has recently concluded a trade agreement with Mercosur. The agreement
includes environmental protection – a condition which Bolsonaro is intent on
destroying in Brazil. However, knowledge of the Brazilian government’s intent
to exploit Brazil for the benefit of multinational companies has not proved to
be a deterrent for the EU.
Indeed, at the summit, Bolsonaro
affirmed his government’s “commitment to opening our bloc as a trade instrument
with the world without the ideological bias that I criticised so much as a
parliamentary leader.” Bolsonaro currently holds the Mercosur presidency for
six months.
Implementing policies that aim to
destroy indigenous land and forcibly integrate indigenous communities depart
from colonial and neoliberal ideologies, contrary to Bolsonaro’s declarations.
Likewise, his decision to employ officials acting to protect business interests
at the expense of indigenous demands is also steeped in right-wing ideology.
Combining the force of international
politics when it comes to trade, and facilitating exploitation of resources by
seeking to eliminate indigenous input, is Bolsonaro’s strategy. Brazil might
not afford to take the country through the motions of another visible
dictatorship, but it will implement modified policies, acceptable to its
trading partners, who will not raise any contention when indigenous communities
are left to fight their battles in isolation.
*Ramona Wadi: Is an
independent researcher, freelance journalist, book reviewer and blogger. Her
writing covers a range of themes in relation to Palestine, Chile and Latin
America.
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário