This morning, after a protest in front of the main entrance of the complex where COP30 will be held, COP30 President Andre Correa de Lago, Ministers Marina Silva (Environment) and Sonia Guajajara (Indigenous Peoples) met with representatives of the Munduruku people. Correa do Lago considered the dialogue “constructive” and Marina said the demonstrations were “legitimate”. Authorities have listened to indigenous peoples and clarified the status of projects that have been the subject of protests.
— They have come a long, long way to be heard. So we brought them here to have a dialogue. It was a very constructive and very positive dialogue. They have very strong and very legitimate concerns and they have sent us two documents which we have duly received and we will try to take forward all the concerns that they have, the COP30 President said.
Mr. Correa do Lago said he sought to make clear that COP30 is “an exercise in favor of indigenous peoples, one that will strengthen consultation with indigenous peoples, and therefore a conference that should be supported.”
The peaceful protest took place in the morning and was attended by 90 indigenous members of the Munduruku tribe. Indigenous peoples say the federal government is pursuing infrastructure projects that threaten Munduruku territory in the Tapajos and Xingu river basins and other ethnic groups.
What are the demands of indigenous peoples?
They call for the revocation of Decree 12,600/2025, which establishes a national waterways plan and selects the Tapajós, Madeira and Tocantins rivers as the priority axes for cargo navigation. They also want more responsiveness in demarcating indigenous lands and expressed opposition to carbon credit projects and jurisdictional REDD+ mechanisms being discussed at the conference.
Minister Marina said the group asked for clarification on the delimitation process for two territories in Munduruku, Sawle Maiban territory and Sawle Bapan territory.
According to her, the delimitation of the Saule Maiban territory was already signed by Justice Minister Ricardo Lewandowski last year and is now being done with Funai, who has already hired a company to carry out the physical delimitation process.
Protests during the first week of COP30
The first day of the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP), which has been held in Belem since Monday (10th), was marked by protests.
Regarding the Sole Bapan territory, Marina said the delimitation was included in the land package and a declaratory ordinance would be enacted for that boundary, so the process could proceed.
— This manifesto from the people of Munduruku is legitimate (…) We will continue to ensure these processes move forward by the end of this year, — Marina said.
Marina also updated the status of the encroachment removal process on the Munduruku Indigenous Land. She said the process began in 2004 and involved 19 ministries. 53 camps were destroyed and trespassers were fined R300 million. 39 excavators and 60 dredgers were also destroyed.
However, Marina said that when the intrusion operation was carried out, there was very strong publicity that the operation extended to state security forces, which resulted in “some criminals fleeing”. According to the minister, Ihama plans to return to the scene.
Regarding concerns regarding the Feroglaon project, which aims to connect Sinop (MT) and Mirituva (PA) and expand the flow of grain through Tapajos, the minister clarified that no application for approval for the railway has been made within Ibama.
— The process is judicialized. When EIA-Rima was presented (to Ibama), it was very bad. However, their concerns continue, and they are legitimate concerns, Marina stressed to journalists.
About The Author
