Bolsonaro, at UN, Denies Pandemic Mismanagement, Blames Indigenous for Amazon Fires

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Before a General Assembly celebrating the 75th anniversary of the United Nations, with the slogan “The future we want”, on Tuesday President Jair Bolsonaro inaugurated the leaders’ meeting – a tradition reserved for Brazil since 1955 – with a speech in the usual attacking style.

His first target was the media, for purportedly “spreading panic among the population” throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Then, regarding the fires in the Amazon and Pantanal, Bolsonaro tried once again to relieve his government of criticism for its management in the fight against illegal patch burning; Bolsonaro claimed that Brazil is “the victim of one of the most brutal disinformation campaigns”, as he did in his speech last year.

Failing to mention any investigations into the criminal actions of farmers, both in the Amazon and the Pantanal, the President stated that “the indigenous and peasants” cause the fires for their survival – again, with no mention of factors such as the actions of prospectors and land grabbers. He also referred to the high temperatures in the Brazilian Midwest as the culprit for the environmental disaster.

In the recorded opening speech – an adjustment imposed by the health crisis – Bolsonaro used a simplistic interpretation of Brazil’s responsibility for environmental preservation to advocate the advance of agribusiness. Companies in the sector recently joined NGOs to present proposals to curb deforestation in the Amazon and prevent investor flight. However, the President singled out Brazilian agribusiness as having one of the best environmental practices in the world. The criticism, he said, was part of a misinformation campaign – a theory that several of his cabinet Ministers are espousing.

In relation to the Amazon, Bolsonaro argues that local wealth is the target of greed from international institutions, allied with “profiteering and unpatriotic” Brazilian groups, which are interested in undermining the government.

On the Pantanal, the presidential approach was similar. He failed to mention the Federal Police investigations that identified the outbreak of a number of hotspots on four farms, which supports the suspicions that the fires were deliberate. “I uphold my policy of zero tolerance for environmental crimes. (…) I remind you that the Amazon region is larger than all of Western Europe. Hence the difficulty in fighting not only the fires but also illegal logging and biopiracy,” he justified.

Still in the environmental area, Bolsonaro also hinted that Venezuela was responsible for the oil spill that reached Brazil’s northeast coast last year, although investigations have yet to reach any such conclusion.

The President also stated that Brazil uses a small portion of its territory for agriculture, noting that the country is a leader in tropical forest conservation, has the cleanest and most diverse energy mix in the world, and is responsible for only three percent of the world’s carbon emissions, despite being one of the ten largest economies. “We guarantee food security to one-sixth of the world’s population while preserving 66 percent of our native vegetation and using only 27 percent of our territory for livestock and agriculture – figures like no other country has.”

Reactions

Bolsonaro’s speech prompted reactions from organizations linked to environmental and human rights protection. “By destroying Brazil’s international image as he is destroying our biomes, Bolsonaro proves that his patriotism has always been a façade,” said Marcio Astrini, executive secretary of the Climate Observatory. “He accused a non-existent collusion between NGOs and foreign powers against the country, but by denying the reality and failing to present any plan for the problems we are facing, it is Bolsonaro who is threatening our economy. Brazil will pay the bill for this irresponsibility for a long time to come. We have a President who sabotages his own country.”

Camila Asano, program director of Conectas Human Rights, classified the President’s speech as “disrespectful to world leaders,” as he “underestimated his peers’ intellect and awareness of the crisis in Brazil.” In her opinion, the President “denied the severity of the environmental destruction, blamed ‘peasants and indigenous peoples’ and attacked the work of environmental organizations.”

Management of the coronavirus pandemic

The President also sought to defend his government from criticism for its management of the coronavirus pandemic, which in Brazil has killed over 137,000 people. To this end, he shifted responsibility to the 27 governors for their management of the isolation and “freedom restrictions” measures, thereby distorting a Supreme Court decision that local governments, whether municipal or state, should determine the measures of social distancing to be observed. Throughout the pandemic, Bolsonaro has opposed the isolation measures decreed by municipalities and state governments based on recommendations by the World Health Organization and the scientific community. “The President was responsible for sending resources and means to the whole country,” he said.

And he attacked the media: “As was the case in most parts of the world, part of the Brazilian media also politicized the virus, spreading panic among the population. Under the motto ‘stay home and we’ll see about the economy later’, they almost brought social chaos to the country”, he claimed.

Next, he stressed his government’s economic measures. He mentioned the emergency basic income program, a National Congress initiative for 65 million people, incorrectly stating that its installments “amount to approximately US$1,000” – the value of each of the first four individual monthly installments was R$600, equivalent to about US$120 at the current exchange rate, and the latest four are only R$300. He also emphasized the support for health and relief actions for small and micro business companies, as well as the compensation to states and municipalities for the loss of revenue.

Foreign policy and nod to the religious base

Bolsonaro also stated that Brazil is not only a “leader in environmental preservation”, but also stands out in the humanitarian and human rights area. And he once again attacked the Nicolás Maduro regime in Venezuela, recalling that Brazil had welcomed refugees from the country. “The Operação Recolhida (Operation Welcome), headed by the Ministry of Defense, welcomed almost 400,000 Venezuelans, displaced by the serious political and economic crisis caused by the Bolivarian dictatorship.”

The President concluded his speech by “reiterating” his “solidarity and support to the people of Lebanon for the recent adversities they have suffered,” as well as confirming Brazil’s support for the peace agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. “Brazil also welcomes the peace and prosperity plan launched by President Donald Trump, with a promising approach to resume the path of the much-desired solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

He also gave a nod to his religious base, making “an appeal to the whole international community for religious freedom and the fight against Christophobia,” highlighting that “Brazil is a Christian and conservative country, and has the family as its foundation.”

Source: El País