Bolsonaro Election Leaves Indigenous Brazilians Afraid For Their Land

(@FahadShabbir)

Bolsonaro election leaves indigenous Brazilians afraid for their land

Brazil's indigenous peoples have long battled to protect their ancestral lands and native cultures -- but the election of far-right president-elect Jair Bolsonaro has sparked concerns that hard-won rights could be eroded.

Rio de Janeiro, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Nov, 2018 ) :Brazil's indigenous peoples have long battled to protect their ancestral lands and native cultures -- but the election of far-right president-elect Jair Bolsonaro has sparked concerns that hard-won rights could be eroded.

Both before and since his election just over two weeks ago, Bolsonaro has drawn ire by making inflammatory remarks about women, black people and the LGBT community.

But when it comes to Brazil's indigenous population, he's made actual threats.

"Today, many people are afraid," Luiz Eloy Terena, a legal advisor to the Articulation of the Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB), told AFP.

"We're worried because he (Bolsonaro) has already stated that he will reduce indigenous lands.

" According to Brazil's national indigenous foundation (FUNAI) there are over 800,000 indigenous people and more than 300 different tribes in the country.

They are fighting to preserve a way of life imperiled since European colonialists arrived in South America more than 500 years ago.

There are 426 demarcated territories in Brazil, established in the 1980s for the exclusive use of their indigenous inhabitants. Access by outsiders is strictly regulated.

Posing a particular threat are those looking to make money from farming, mining and logging -- and Bolsonaro is their champion.

Speaking to the television program Brasil Urgente last week, Bolsonaro said that "if it were up to me, there would be no more indigenous land demarcation."

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