A Brazilian Movement Appeals to the UN to Stop the Amazon’s Belo Monte Dam

Belo Monte damDelivered to the United Nations last Thursday, April 1st, a document claims that flaws in the environmental licensing process for the controversial Belo Monte Dam in Brazil were overlooked due to political pressure from the Lula administration.

The complaint documents the illegal and arbitrary nature of project approval, and how political pressure was brought to bear on licensing staff who questioned the irregularities in the licensing process.

More than 100 social movements, organizations and unions representing more than 40 communities in 11 cities signed the complaint, which also highlights the human rights violations that have and will occur if the project is built. The complaint states that opponents of the project have received death threats and intimidation as a result of their opposition.

The Belo Monte Hydroelectric Plant would be built in the Amazon region, close to the city of Altamira, Pará. The construction will involve excavating an amount of earth comparable to that moved for the Panama Canal, and will include the construction of two artificial reservoirs, flooding 516 km².

The entire Xingu River basin will be affected, an area that encompasses 30 indigenous lands, including four extractive reserves and eight environmental conservation units.

On February 1, 2010, IBAMA issued the provisional license for the construction of the hydroelectric plant. The document submitted this week to the UN denounces irregularities that were ignored by IBAMA’s directors, such as the lack of prior consultation with the affected communities and the weakness of the project’s Environmental Impact Assessment.

The political pressure exerted to obtain project approval regardless of the project’s irregularities is evident. Just two days before the license was granted, IBAMA’s own technical staff signed a note clearly stating that “there is insufficient evidence to demonstrate the environmental feasibility of the project.”

Two days later, the Brazilian Attorney General threatened to sue Pará’s federal prosecutors if they questioned the license’s legality, in a move perceived as arbitrary and intimidating by the leadership of the Federal Public Ministry.

“For us it is clear that government and big business” interests are overriding the law and international treaties to which Brazil is signatory,” said Antonia Melo, one of the leaders of the Xingu Forever Alive Movement, a network that brings together over 150 organizations, social movements and community associations.

Melo is one of those at risk because of her opposition to the plant’s construction. “I no longer leave my house, and barely walk down the street with my children,” she says.

Behind the threats to Antonia and other activists – like Don Erwin, Bishop of the Xingu – are employees of the company Camargo Corrêa and ranchers and politicians who control the media in the region.

“In 2008, even officials of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN) tried to intimidate me, but we denounced the activities of agents to the Federal Public Ministry,” says Melo

The document was sent to the following UN special rapporteurs: indigenous peoples’ rights, housing rights, right to food, right to physical and mental health, human rights, displaced people, independence of judges and lawyers.

The organizations that signed the complaint request the UN to ask the Brazilian government for more detailed information about the project, that the UN Rapporteurs undertake a site visit to Para, and that Brazil reconsiders building Belo Monte plant.

If construction starts, Brazil could be held responsible internationally for environmental crimes and abuses of human rights caused by the dam.

Tags:

You May Also Like

Stalking  Stokowski

There has been a revival of Noel Rosa’s life and work. But who is ...

A Plateful of Brazil for Trade Fair Giant Messe Frankfurt

Messe Frankfurt, one of the largest organizers of trade fairs in the world is ...

The Brazilian Plan to Build a Stronger South America

Brazil is on track to creating a South American Central Bank and  common currency ...

Drought-Stricken Brazilian Amazonas Sees Rain Again

Five thousand basic food baskets were sent today to the families affected by the ...

Word Mangler

My colleagues run for their office when I arrive and the coffee area empties ...

NGO’s File Suit to Force Brazil to Break AIDS Drug Patent

Brazil’s Ministry of Health estimates that 600,000 Brazilians are carriers of the HIV virus. ...

Powell: ‘Brazilian Way of Fighting Hunger Is Unworkable’

We do support Brazil. We feel strongly that poverty and hunger are two enemies ...

The Red Bishop Goes to Heaven

Hélder Câmara’s Thoughts By Francesco Neves "Are you going to heaven?", a reporter asked ...

Brazil Hopes China Will Curb Own Exports Avoiding Trade War

The executive secretary of the Brazil-China Entrepreneurial Council, Renato Amorim, said he believes in ...

Tired of Being Neglected by Brazil and Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay Woo the US

Uruguay says it is tired of being treated as Argentina’s "little sister" and has ...