During a press conference on Monday, the Workers' Party (PT) presidential candidate Lula da Silva promised to contain the deforestation of the Amazon basin through a forceful fight against illegal mining in Brazil.
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"We are going to put an end to illegal mining," Lula said and pledged to work to stop the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, which has accelerated due to President Jair Bolsonaro's pro-market policies implemented since 2019.
"It is not necessary to cut down a tree" in the Amazon to raise cattle or plant soybeans or corn, said the leftist candidate, who is the favorite to win the October 2 elections.
To contain the destruction of Amazonian ecosystems, Lula will create an Indigenous Peoples Ministry and reestablish the institutions and norms destroyed by Bolsonaro, a far-right ruler who defends the exploitation of natural resources even inside Indigenous territories.
The tweet says: "Deforestation and fires erupt in the south of the state of Amazonas. The Amazon would not withstand another Bolsonaro’s term. Lula has all the conditions to modernize the practice and make a new administration much better than the previous ones in the environmental area. We have to get rid of the genocide now!
To reduce deforestation, Lula will also implement public programs to provide farmers with credit at low interest rates to encourage crops that regenerate the soil and capture carbon.
"Illegal mining is a tumor growing in our country. Bolsonaro's incentive to illegal mining has exacerbated violence against the Indigenous peoples. Misrule continues to exterminate peoples who protect and fight for our future!," said Sonia Guajajara, an Indigenous woman who is a candidate for lawmaker for the Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL).
"See what Bolsonaro has transformed Brazil into... Once again, we are threatened by the hatred this man promotes. We don't want violence to rule this country!," she added.