Brazil’s president-elect, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, defended on Wednesday that climate change and poverty are two «inseparable» realities that must be fought together and promised «stricter» punishments against those who threaten the environment and the resources of the Amazon.
At the same time, he called for the presence of more countries in the United Nations Security Council for better global governance and to put an end to the «privilege of the veto», which threatens balance and peace. «The world today is not the same as in 1945,» he said.
During his speech at the UN climate summit being held these days in the Egyptian city of Sharm el Sheikh, Lula emphasized that «the fight against global warming is inseparable from the fight against poverty».
Lula pointed out that a more empathetic society is needed, based on «trust» between peoples and «beyond immediate national interests» in order to tackle a problem that especially affects the most vulnerable.
For this reason, he advocated the mobilization of more resources so that «developing countries, especially the poorest», can face a problem that «to a large extent» has been caused by the richest.
Lula da Silva said he will advocate «vehemently» for the Amazon to host the United Nations climate summit in 2025, although Brazil will host the G20 a year earlier. «Rest assured that the climate agenda will be a priority. My return will also pay off what I promised in 2009,» he said.
Brazil had already proposed to host COP25, in 2019, but the arrival to power of Bolsonaro implied the withdrawal of the South American giant as host of a forum that was initially moved to Chile and, due to protests, finally landed in Spain.
«I am here to say that Brazil is ready to rejoin the efforts to rebuild a healthier planet, a fairer world, capable of welcoming with dignity all its inhabitants, not just a privileged minority,» said the new Brazilian president.
In this sense, he pointed out that «the inequality between rich and poor» is also reflected in the efforts to reduce the ravages of climate change, recalling that «the richest 1 percent of the planet’s population will exceed the limit of carbon dioxide emissions by 30 times».
«There is no climate security for the world without a protected Amazon (…) The fight against climate change will have the highest profile in the structure of my government», said Lula, who promised to prioritize the fight against deforestation and leave behind «the environmental crimes» of the previous Executive.
«We will strictly punish those responsible for any illegal activity, be it prospecting, mining, logging or improper agricultural occupation. These crimes particularly affect indigenous peoples,» said Lula, who also announced the creation of a Ministry of Indigenous Peoples.
The aim is to place indigenous communities at the center of this issue and make them the beneficiaries of a growth policy based on social inclusion «with nature as a strategic ally, and no longer as an enemy to be defeated».
«We cannot postpone this debate any longer. We need to face the reality of countries where the physical integrity of their territories is threatened and the survival conditions of their inhabitants are seriously compromised. It is time to act», Lula concluded his speech.
