AmericasBrazilian indigenous leaders subpoenaed for criticizing government
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Indigenous people of several ethnic groups protest calling for the demarcation of their lands and the resignation of the Minister of Environment, Ricardo Salles, in Brasilia, Brazil, April 20, 2021. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino/File Photo
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Brazil s indigenous affairs agency Funai has called on a top indigenous leader to explain her criticism of the right-wing government of President Jair Bolsonaro and the impact its handling of the COVID-19 crisis has had on native people.
Federal police have subpoenaed Sonia Guajajara, head of Brazil s largest indigenous umbrella organization APIB, to testify on her statements at the request of Funai, which was set up in 1967 to defend the interests of indigenous people.
Brazil’s Bolsonaro vowed to work with Indigenous people. Now he’s investigating them
by Mongabay.com on 4 May 2021
At least two top Indigenous leaders in Brazil, Sônia Guajajara and Almir Suruí, were recently summoned for questioning by the federal police over allegations of slander against the government of President Jair Bolsonaro.
Both probes were prompted by complaints filed by Funai, the federal agency for Indigenous affairs, just a week after Bolsonaro pledged at a global leaders’ climate summit to work together with Indigenous peoples to tackle deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.
The NGO Human Rights Watch said it’s “deeply concerned” about the government’s moves and called any retaliation against Indigenous peoples a “flagrant abuse of power,” while APIB, Brazil’s main Indigenous association, called the government’s approach a “clear attempt to curtail freedom of expression.”
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Last modified on Wed 17 Feb 2021 17.15 EST
Jair Bolsonaro could face charges in the international criminal court (ICC) after being accused of crimes against humanity.
Indigenous leaders in Brazil and human rights groups are urging the court to investigate the Brazilian president over his dismantling of environmental policies and violations of indigenous rights, which they say amount to ecocide.
William Bourdon, a Paris-based lawyer, submitted a request for a preliminary examination to the tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, on Friday. The chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, will then determine whether there are grounds for an investigation against Bolsonaro.
There is no deadline for a decision but “it is a matter of great urgency”, Bourdon said. “We are running against the clock, considering the devastation of the Amazon.”