Future in Brazil 1

Hi again.

It may not be getting as much press as it should but the Election this week in Brazil and the president-elect Jair Bolsonaro win may have serious consequences for the future of the Amazon and the rest of the world?

What’s even more interesting and concerning is that the victory could have been helped by the fact that Donald Trump was selected to power in the USA and in a way could have influenced the outcome in Brazil indirectly?

The issue is that, Environmental experts have warned of the severe threat to the Amazon posed by Brazil’s far-right president-elect Jair Bolsonaro.

The former army captain and avid supporter of Brazil’s former military dictatorship has in the past spoken passionately of closing environmental agencies tasked with forest protection and opening up indigenous territories to mining and agribusiness.

Bolsonaro had also said he would pull out of the Paris Agreement on climate, following in the footsteps of US President Donald Trump — whom he admires deeply.

Recently Amazon Watch Director Christian Poirier said “His (Jair Bolsonaro’s) antagonism for the land rights of indigenous and traditional communities and disdain for environmental protections jeopardize vast tracts of preserved forests, which could fall victim to reckless industrial development such as agribusiness and mining,”.

Brazil is home to around 900,000 indigenous people, who mostly live in the country’s Amazon states.

Ironically though, could it be that this result could in some odd way fix some of this?

One of the main reasons so many Brazilian voters supported Bolsonaro is his promise to fix the country’s ills — high rates of violent crime, a faltering economy, and endemic corruption.

I try to stay positive and hope the situation does not effect the environment of Brazil in any negative way?

Watch that space and in the meantime here below are some interesting reads on the subject……

https://www.dw.com/en/brazil-experts-warn-of-bolsonaro-threat-to-the-amazon/a-46068377

https://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11961

https://www.vox.com/2018/10/29/18037728/bolsonaro-brazil-election-guide