Indigenous leaders in Brazil and human rights groups are calling on an international court to prosecute the country’s president for crimes against humanity to eliminate environmental protection measures in the Amazon rainforest.
William Bourdon, a Paris-based lawyer, filed a request on Friday for a preliminary investigation by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, according to reports.
“It’s a matter of great urgency,” Bourdon told The Guardian. “We’re running against the clock, given the devastation of the Amazon.”
Since Bolsonaro took office in 2019, deforestation has increased by almost 50% in the Amazon region, which covers much of Brazil, and invasions of native territories by wild cat miners and farmers have increased by 135%, according to a Brazilian environment. . report.
Bourdon wants to see Bolsonaro tried for “ecocide”, which refers to causing long-term damage to the environment and indigenous peoples. The lawyer filed the 68-page complaint on behalf of native leaders Almir Surui and Raoni Metuktire.