IACHR says that Bolsonaro’s actions to curb Covid-19 spread among indigenous peoples was insufficient

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), an organ of the Organization of American States (OAS), has decided favourably to a Guajajara and Awá peoples of the Araribóia Indigenous Territory denouncement against Bolsonaro government. The decision pointed to the negligence by the government in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic and recommended precautionary measures. Failures in health care and the presence of invaders in their territory were some points presented by the indigenous people in December last year.

As already denounced by other communities, the complaint mentions the Special Indigenous Health District (DESEI) in Maranhão State as the epicenter of positive cases of the disease among the indigenous of the region, at the beginning of July last year. Based on the analysis of the data presented - such as the fact that 8% of the population of TI Araribóia had been diagnosed with Covid-19 by August 2020 - and the lack of information from the Brazilian state on the implementation and effectiveness of plans to combat the disease among the indigenous population, the commission understood that “there were no elements indicating that the actions of the state have been sufficient and effective in protecting the indigenous peoples who live in the Indigenous Land Araribóia”.

Faced with this finding, the IACHR asked Brazil to adopt measures to protect the rights “to health, life, and personal integrity” of the Guajajara and Awá of Araribóia, which includes adequate medical assistance and preventive actions against the spread of the disease.