"Executive order transfers regulation and creation of indigenous reserves to agriculture ministry controlled by agribusiness lobby"

"RIO DE JANEIRO -- Hours after taking office, Brazil’s new president, Jair Bolsonaro, has launched an assault on environmental and Amazon protections with an executive order transferring the regulation and creation of new indigenous reserves to the agriculture ministry – which is controlled by the powerful agribusiness lobby.

The move sparked outcry from indigenous leaders, who said it threatened their reserves, which make up about 13% of Brazilian territory, and marked a symbolic concession to farming interests at a time when deforestation is rising again.

“There will be an increase in deforestation and violence against indigenous people,” said Dinaman Tuxá, executive coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous People of Brazil (Apib). “Indigenous people are defenders and protectors of the environment.”"

Dom Phillips reports for the Guardian January 2, 2019. [2]

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"Uncontacted Tribes Face 'Extinction' Under Brazil's New President, Advocates Say" (CBC Radio) [3]