Brazil: United Nations representative speaks of indigenous genocide
Saturday, May 13th 2023 - 10:56 UTC
United Nations (UN) envoy Alice Wairimu Nderitu completed her mission in Brazil Friday after 11 days during which she investigated cases of violence committed against indigenous people, Afro-descendants, and other vulnerable groups, Agencia Brasil reported.
The UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser for the Prevention of Genocide visited the Yanomami and Guarani Kaiowá communities and met with indigenous and quilombola communities, in addition to members of the civil society and government authorities. A quilombola is an Afro-Brazilian resident of a quilombo, a settlement of former escaped slaves in Brazil.
Based on the information she gathered, she asked that genocide against indigenous populations be investigated and that those responsible be punished. The Under-Secretary-General said that only national and international courts can characterize the violations against these groups as genocide. The UN mission aimed to map the occurrences, and suggest ways to prevent and contain the problems identified.
“The crime of genocide should be investigated. My role is to point out the problems related to genocide. We have several risk factors. But the decisions regarding the investigations are up to Brazil, which signed the Convention for the Prevention and Repression of the Crime of Genocide. My role is only to show the risks, but not to solve them”, she said.
Wairimu understands that the lives of indigenous and quilombola communities have worsened in the last four years when the country was under the government of former president Jair Bolsonaro. But she preferred to focus on the issue from a broader point of view by pointing out that these populations are historically victims of violence and neglect.
More:
https://en.mercopress.com/2023/05/13/brazil-united-nations-representative-speaks-of-indigenous-genocide
