Brazil’s Lula vetoes core part of legislation threatening Indigenous rights

By ELÉONORE HUGHES
Associated Press

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has vetoed the core aspects of a bill passed by Congress that threatened to undo protections of Indigenous peoples’ land rights. The bill proposed to enshrine a legal theory arguing that the date Brazil’s Constitution was promulgated — Oct. 5, 1988 — should be the deadline for when Indigenous peoples already had to be physically occupying land or be legally fighting to reoccupy territory. That theory was rejected by the Brazilian Supreme Court in September. A week later, the Senate approved the bill on a vote of 43 in favor and 21 against. Lula vetoed portions of the legislation Friday, which was the deadline for him to act or the full legislation would have taken effect.