Thousands of Indigenous people marched in Brazil’s capital on Tuesday to protest what they say are violations of their land rights by large corporations advancing farming, logging, and mining projects.
Indigenous leaders also sought to apply pressure on President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who has supported Indigenous rights and environmental stewardship in Latin America’s largest nation while also pushing oil and other projects that appear to go against those aims. The leftist leader is expected to run for reelection in October.
Free Land is Brazil’s largest Indigenous mobilization, bringing together about 7,000 Indigenous people from 200 groups from across the country who camp in Brasilia for a week to press for unified demands. This year’s gathering comes amid rising reports of violent attacks against the Pataxo people in Bahia state amid a land dispute with farmers, as well as significant protests in the Amazon region in recent months.
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