Countries blame Brazil at the UN for weaknesses in Bolsonaro’s management with indigenous people

The rights of indigenous peoples and the attacks on human rights defenders, environmental activists and journalists were among the points that Brazil was criticized in the session of the UN Human Rights Council that examined the state of this area in the country.

Called the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), this Monday (14) meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, brought together representatives from 122 countries and members of the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL).

Over the course of more than three hours, international governments commented, in general, on the Brazilian situation, exposing concerns and indicating recommendations to be adopted in the coming years. The UPR is held every 4 and a half years —the country has already gone through the process in the 2008, 2012 and 2017 cycles— and was already scheduled for now, coinciding with the end of the electoral period and other forums that ended up reinforcing isolation. of the president, like the COP27, in Egypt, and the G20, in Indonesia.

Indigenous peoples were mentioned by more than 25 countries, in speeches from the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, Australia, Paraguay and Peru. In addition to extensive quotes on the need to reinforce the protection of these communities, there were explicit references to the demarcation of lands – a topic otherwise ignored in the Bolsonaro administration, who promised to eliminate them.

Several interventions also recommended more attention to combating attacks on human rights defenders, environmental activists and journalists. In questions sent in advance, as part of the preparation for the Geneva meeting, the UK was direct.

“Following the murders of British journalist Dom Phillips and Brazilian indigenist Bruno Pereira, what steps has the government of Brazil taken and plans to take to combat environmental crime and strengthen its protection of environmental and human rights defenders in the Amazon?” text. The two were killed in June, in Vale do Javari (AM), in a case of great international repercussion in the face of criticism of the omission of the authorities during the investigations into the disappearance.

The attacks on the work of journalists — a common practice among the president and his allies — were highlighted in comments, among others, by the Netherlands, the USA, France and Moldova, who also cited the recurrence of hate speech in Brazil.

“The international community has shown that it has been following the entire Bolsonaro government very closely, which represented a period of degradation of human rights”, he tells Sheet Camila Asano, program director at Conectas Human Rights.

According to her, although the issue of freedom of expression and of the press is part of the human rights debate at the UN, the specific mention of journalists’ activities is not common. “It shows how civil society, including those seeking to point out pain points, has suffered persecution.”

The coincidence of the meeting with the change of government was another topic present — and also an unusual one. Even having the right to speak for just a minute, some representatives, such as the United Kingdom and Mozambique, used the plenary to comment on the conduct of the electoral process, which, at various times, was questioned by the current president.

The Covid-19 pandemic, an area in which the government is poorly evaluated internationally after almost 689,000 deaths, appeared both in recommendations for mitigating the effects on the population and in mentions of the need to strengthen the Unified Health System.

Headed by Minister Cristiane Britto (Women, Family and Human Rights), the Brazilian delegation summarized management measures and commented on some topics without mentioning the speeches of the other countries.

In closing, Britto pointed out actions to combat hunger, citing the Auxílio Brasil program, to combat violence against children and women and the administration of the pandemic, pointing out that the government “made vaccines available to all Brazilians” — omitting delays in the process and speeches. contrary to him from the president himself.

She also said that combating violence against the LGBTQIA+ population was a priority, as was combating corruption, which she called “the biggest human rights violation ever recorded in our country” — also omitting cases involving government officials.

In conclusion, he declared that “the biggest differential of the Bolsonaro government was the investment in the Brazilian family, with the defense and protection of life from conception”.

The female issue, due to violence and femicide and the right to abortion, had greater space in relation to previous sessions. In Asano’s assessment, in addition to the better understanding at the UN that sexual and reproductive rights are human rights, the repercussion of recent cases of difficulties in accessing legal abortion made the matter enter the list of concerns and recommendations.

In the speeches, not only actions within the federal government are mentioned. Issues such as the demarcation of indigenous lands, pending in the Federal Supreme Court, or the attempt to change the Anti-Terrorism Law in Congress show that the protection of human rights is transversal in the State. Even at the state level, issues such as the role of the police were present.

“Structural racism appeared a lot, especially in the speech of African countries and is closely linked to police violence. It is a strong message for elected governors”, says Asano.

Many recommendations had the character of indication for the Presidency of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), who, in fact, will be responsible for the implementation of the final report, which should be finalized at the end of November. The new government will have until March to position itself and define what it intends to comply with.

“For the transition team, it is necessary to understand that the international community is very concerned about the need to strengthen civil society participation mechanisms, seen as a way to strengthen democracy.”