Survival International, a human rights organization that fights for tribal peoples, has launched a campaign to prevent the annihilation of tribal peoples in Brazil to coincide with the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
The campaign “Stop Brazil’s Genocide,” focuses on protecting uncontacted tribes of the Amazon such as the Kawahiva people, ending violence and land theft directed against the Guarani Indians in southern Brazil and stopping PEC 215, a proposed constitutional amendment which would seriously undermine indigenous land rights and spell disaster for tribes nationwide.
Survival’s Director, Stephen Corry, said: “Tribal peoples have been steadily annihilated across the Americas for centuries. That has to end. Instead of looking at tribes as inconvenient obstacles to “progress,” Brazil must recognize that they are an intrinsic part of its modern nation, and deserve to have their land rights protected so they can survive and thrive.