UN Expert Offers Warnings Regarding Indigenous Land Demarcation and Climate Change
Rapporteur suggests measures to strengthen the fight against environmental crime and the protection of forests
Relatora destaca violência contra defensores de direitos humanos em diferentes partes do Brasil. Foto: ONU
After an 11-day visit in April 2024, the United Nations Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights Defenders, Mary Lawlor, published a report on her visit to Brazil.
During her stay, Mary met with authorities, social movements, human rights organizations, legal experts, diplomats, and other individuals in order to prepare her report.
Published last Friday (31st), the text suggests that the Federal Supreme Court (STF, acronym in Portuguese) should prioritize the judgment of Law no. 14,701/23, the Temporal Framework Law. The report will be publicly discussed in March at the UN Human Rights Council.
Read more
The expert offers several recommendations to multiple state entities and authorities, such as the President, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples, among others.
Human Rights Defenders
In her report, Mary highlights the attacks and risks faced by human rights defenders, both current and historically. Hence, she recommends that the federal government should prioritize this agenda by strengthening state bodies in the protection of human rights, including human rights connected to land, the environment, and the fight against climate change.
The recommendation also includes the request for the Ministry of Human Rights and Citizenship to transfer responsibility over implementing the human rights defenders’ protection program to the federal government, together with state governments.
The Environment and Climate Change
The rapporteur also brought recommendations for the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. In the text, she suggests working with the Federal Prosecution Office for the effective judgment of environmental crimes, in addition to considering the expansion of the list of protected trees in the country, as an urgent measure to fight deforestation.
The expert also recommends developing programs to encourage forest protection and prevent deforestation at municipal and state levels.
Land Demarcation
In the report, Mary asks for the “utmost urgency” in prioritizing indigenous land demarcation, an action that is to be carried out by the Ministry of Justice and Public Security in a collaboration with the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples.
