Bolsonaro says new demarcation lines for indigenous could render Brazilian agribusiness impossible

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil’s President of the Republic, Jair Bolsonaro, said yesterday, December 15th, that the outcome of the ruling of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) of the deadline for the demarcation of indigenous lands could make agribusiness unviable in the country. According to him, if the STF allows the recognition of new areas of traditional indigenous occupation after 1988, the decision “simply buries Brazil”.

“We know that if we lose, I will have to decide because I understand that this new time frame buries Brazil. Some things are obvious, and we cannot understand why certain people act against their homeland; it’s unbelievable”, said the president at the Modernize Brazil – Business Environment event, organized by the federal government and held at the headquarters of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp).

At the end of August, the STF resumed its judgment on the deadline for the demarcation of indigenous lands. The Court judges the case on the dispute over the possession of the Ibirama Indigenous land in Santa Catarina State.

The area is inhabited by the Xokleng, Kaingang, and Guarani peoples. The process has what is called general repercussions. It means that the decision taken will serve as a beacon for other similar cases to be resolved throughout the Judiciary.

The STF ministers voted on whether the indigenous people would only have the right to the lands in their possession from October 5th, 1988, the date of the promulgation of the Federal Constitution.

The result is 1 to 1: Minister Nunes Marques voted in favor of the thesis. Minister Edson Fachin, on the other hand, voted against the deadline. In September, Minister Alexandre de Moraes requested a review of the action, and there is no deadline to resume the trial.

With information from Agência Brasil

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