Artists warn about possible changes in Brazilian environmental laws

A group of artists visited on Wednesday (Mar. 9) Brazil´s Senate (9) to alert the Head of the House Rodrigo Pacheco about a series of draft bills that, according to the interpretation of this social movement, enable deforestation, weaken property rights of indigenous peoples and make the rules for the use of pesticides more flexible. In response, Pacheco stated such bills focus on changes in environmental laws and they will be discussed in commissions before going to the plenary.

He assured none of such draft bills would go directly to the Senate plenary without the proper assessment and processing within the scope of the permanent and thematic committees of the House.

Pesticides

The group of artists representing the so-called Movimento 342 Amazônia expressed concern about the approval of a constitutional urgency in the Lower House for voting on the draft bill that revokes the current Law on Pesticides, and makes the rules for the approval and commercialization of these products more flexible. The group decided to go to the Senate to prevent the same from happening there, when this and other bills reach the Upper House for assessment.

“We will deal very carefully with each of these five draft bills mentioned in the document I have received. We cannot be understood - neither Brazil nor the National Congress - as international outcasts removed from the environmental agenda,” the Head of Senate declared.

According to Pacheco, who was a congressional representative at the 26th United Nations Climate Conference (COP26), Brazil has a bad image in terms of environmental preservation and will be doomed to economic failure if it distances itself from the environmental agenda.

Other Draft bills

Other Draft bills criticized by the movement are 2.159/2021 (which loosens the rules of Environmental Licensing); 2,633/2020 and 510/2021 (which change land tenure regularization rules); 490/2007 (which establishes the timeframe for the demarcation of indigenous lands); 191/2020 (which creates rules to authorize the exploitation of natural resources in indigenous lands).

Some artists took the floor, criticized the draft bills, and asked for their rejection in Congress. “If these bills are approved, they could enable deforestation, allow mining and prospecting on indigenous lands, and unprotect the forest against land grabbing and criminals. As part of civil society, artists decided to come to this House, together with members of non-governmental organizations and experts on climate issues, to express their disapproval of these draft bills,” said musician Caetano Veloso, spokesman for the movement.

Within this political game, it is very important to prevent this barbarity that is about to happen. The responsibility of the Senate is huge. Agribusiness is practicing autophagy, destruction,” pointed out musician Nando Reis.

Federal Supreme Court

The delegation also visited the Federal Supreme Court (STF) and delivered a document with 42 signatures to 4 of the 11 ministers of the court who are in charge of the lawsuits in question.

The artists asked for priority in the judgment of 11 cases that deal with environmental issues, such as Amazon deforestation and fires in the Pantanal region.