In response to the growing threats to Indigenous lands, Amazon Watch and the Association of Brazil’s Indigenous Peoples (APIB) jointly launched the Complicity in Destruction IV report in February 2022. The report aimed to combat Bill 191/2020 and any attempts to undermine Indigenous peoples’ rights to their lands and self-determination, highlighting the activities of mining companies such as Vale, Anglo American, Belo Sun, Potássio do Brasil, Mineração Taboca/Mamoré Mineração e Metalurgia (both Minsur Group companies), Glencore, AngloGold Ashanti, and Rio Tinto. Working with APIB, the objective was to expose these companies and push them to make tangible commitments to protect Indigenous territories.
On February 13, APIB submitted a petition to the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples, requesting the removal and dismissal of Bill (PL) 191/2020 from the agenda. The bill, which aims to regulate mineral exploration on Indigenous lands, was under consideration in the Chamber of Deputies. APIB’s executive coordinator, Dinamam Tuxá, cites the Yanomami people’s tragedy as evidence of the potential harm PL 191/2020 could cause.
On March 31, Brazil’s President Lula da Silva urged Congress to withdraw the bill from the agenda. Initially proposed by former President Bolsonaro in 2020, the bill symbolizes his government’s anti-Indigenous policy. Indigenous leaders and organizations nationwide have denounced the initiative since the beginning of the proceedings, and we at Amazon Watch have repeatedly highlighted its unconstitutionality.
The call for withdrawal coincides with a health emergency in the Yanomami Indigenous Land, where illegal mining has sparked a humanitarian crisis. Mining has historically impacted communities, for example, the Brazilian military dictatorship’s era saw large mining projects, often accompanied by genocide against Indigenous peoples.
“We hope that the National Congress fulfills its duty to legislate for environmental balance, the social well-being of Brazilians, and respect for Indigenous peoples’ ways of life. We trust that Congress will respect President Lula’s request,” stated Minister of Indigenous Peoples Sonia Guajajara.
APIB asserts that the bill infringes upon Indigenous peoples’ constitutional right to exclusive use of their lands. Jurists and the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) have also identified the bill’s unconstitutionality.
PL 191/2020 serves as a carte blanche for other large-scale projects on Indigenous lands beyond mineral exploration. It would significantly heighten risks to life, the environment, health, and violence against Indigenous peoples if approved.
The bill could lead to the construction of hydroelectric plants and mining research on non-homologated, or not government-recognized, Indigenous lands without prior consultation with Indigenous inhabitants—a violation of Brazil’s constitution and international commitments, such as with ILO 169 Convention.
PL 191/2020 was a priority for the Bolsonaro government in the legislature. Amid the conflict in Ukraine and the resulting decline in Russia’s agricultural fertilizer supply, pressure for the bill’s approval mounted. The agribusiness lobby, ruralistas, viewed the opening of new mining operations as a means to ensure the national production of vital agribusiness inputs.
In partnership with these organizations, the persistent pressure campaigns led to a breakthrough when the British mining company Anglo American finally heeded the demands of Indigenous peoples and took decisive action. They withdrew 27 mining research permits intended to encroach on Indigenous lands in Brazil, including the Munduruku territory of Sawré Muybu.
