Brazil’s Trump, right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro, formally authorized deployment of military forces in the Amazon rainforest region, purportedly to fight deforestation and fires. Surely the massive influx of armed troops to the region populated by indigenous people won’t result in coronavirus infections and COVID-19 deaths. The decree was published in the government gazette today.
From Reuters:
Last year, Bolsonaro waited until August to send troops into the region, following international outcry over a wave of fires in the rainforest, which traps vast amounts of greenhouse gases that cause climate change.
The order is effective from May 11 to June 10, but can be extended to 60 days in total, as Bolsonaro did last year.
Vice President Hamilton Maurao said last week that the government planned to send in the military as part of a plan to establish bases in the Amazon to fight deforestation.
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Brazil’s Bolsonaro readies troops to fight Amazon rainforest destruction
📷: kremlin.ru