Indigenous-Led Movement Tells Brazilian Government: #HandsOffTheAmazon
Mighty Earth joins the Indigenous led #HandsOffTheAmazon movement, including more than 30 civil society organizations, in signing onto a letter calling for renewed effort to protect the Amazon. Given the lackluster efforts taken by the Brazilian government in recent years, urgent action is needed to stop deforestation in the Amazon, protecting the livelihoods of Indigenous Peoples and the keeping the Amazon from ecosystem collapse due to decades of destruction.
#HandsOffTheAmazon is a global campaign coordinated by APIB (an organization representing the Indigenous Peoples of Brazil) and its international partners to mobilize civil society, multinational companies, and the financial sector in pressuring the Brazilian government to stop making empty promises and implement a long-term plan that restores environmental protections and upholds the rights of Indigenous Peoples. The letter, which will be the culmination of the campaign, will be delivered online and in-person to the federal government of Brazil and select Brazilian Embassies on Wednesday, October 7.
In the letter, the signatories make it clear that it is too late for another empty promise and demand comprehensive solutions, including the following actions:
- Establish and implement a concrete, long-term plan to fight deforestation and protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples.
- Prohibit and immediately halt all economic activity occurring in areas deforested after 2018.
- Restore and uphold territorial rights of Indigenous Peoples, as outlined in the Brazilian constitution.
- Prohibit and immediately halt all economic activity occurring in areas belonging to Indigenous and traditional communities, unless their full consent has been granted.
- Reinvigorate capacity of Brazil’s environmental agencies
- Enhance traceability by creating legal conditions for soft commodities (beef, soy, etc.) and other goods (timber, minerals, etc.) through due diligence requirements.
