Increase in Amazon fires may be criminal, Bolsonaro argues
President Jair Bolsonaro said today (Aug 21) the increase in fires reported in the last few days in the Amazon may be the result of criminal activity. It could stem, he argued, from the suspension of government funding to NGOs and the countries in the Amazon Fund—an international initiative to help preserve the forest. The main donors, Germany and Norway, announced the suspension of their resources after the deforestation rates in the region were published.
“The crime exists and we have to prevent this crime from increasing. But we blocked the money to NGOs, amounts from overseas, of which 40 percent were earmarked for NGOs. There’s no such thing anymore, we brought an end to the money from public agencies to NGOs, so they’re missing it. So these ONG people could be criminally involved in order to bring attention against me, against the Brazilian government. This is the war we’re facing,” he said while leaving the Alvorada presidential residence this morning. “I’m not saying it is the case, but, the way I see it, these NGOs—which represent the interests of other countries—are interested in it.”
Bolsonaro has described the donations to the Amazon Fund as well as efforts to demarcate indigenous land and environmental reserves as an attempt “to buy our sovereignty in installments.”
“Demarcated territories are not meant to protect the Indian, but to leave it mostly intact so that the area may be explored by other countries in the future. You think these countries are trying to help because they have a big heart? They don’t want to help. Everyone knows there’s no such thing as friendship between countries—there’s interest. What we have in the Amazon region is something the world doesn’t have. The world grows at a pace of 70 million people a year. These people need food, they need to grow, and where does raw material come from for that? From this area,” the president argued.
Curbing the blaze
Bolsonaro noted that the teams from the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) and the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) are working to curb the wildfires in the Amazon and the Armed Forces are expected to bolster control measures alongside local teams. The National Force should also send 40 men to the region.
“It’s a crime, and the government is not insensitive to it. But we have a war going on against Brazil right now—the war of information,” he said, adding that the government will investigate who is responsible for the crime.
