Parliament debates land grabbing and deforestation in the Amazon

Brussels, 19 June 2020 - MEPs debated land grabbing and deforestation in the Amazon.

The Greens/European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA) group had already pressured for a debate on deforestation and land grabbing in the Amazon region, following the Brazilian law proposal PL-2633/20, which would legalize land acquisition in the past; the dismantling of the Brazilian legal framework to combat deforestation and protect indigenous peoples under the government of Jair Bolsonaro.

This proposed law would encourage large-scale environmental and social damage in favour of agricultural exports. The Greens/EFA group calls for a halt to deforestation, for the protection of forest communities and for an interruption of the EU-Mercosur ratification process. The ratification of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement is still on the agenda of the German Presidency of the Council.

"The European Commission has guaranteed that it would not enter into agreements with countries that do not respect the Paris Agreement and it is clear that Brazil is not respecting it and that the EU-Mercosur agreement will have to be terminated," MEPs affirm.

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