First Lady speaks in New York at Columbia University’s Global Leaders Forum; says governments that defend the environment are a “prime target” for criminals
The First Lady of the Republic, Janja Lula da Silva, stated this Saturday (21.Sep.2024) that climate problems are also caused by “criminal terrorist actions” and that the main target, in these cases, are “governments that have environmental protection as an ethical principle”. Said there is no “human effort that can be controlled” the fires if people “don’t stop setting fires”.
“We know about the droughts in Brazil, but we are living in difficult times. The fires are obviously caused by human action. And there is nothing that can control them, no human effort can control them if people do not stop setting fires. I am distressed, but we cannot lose hope.” said Janja.
The First Lady participated in the event “Food for Humanity: Unlocking the Potential of Universities to End Hunger and Malnutrition”, held by Columbia Universityin New York (USA). The Poder360 attended in person.
In his speech, Janja stated that the global response to climate change “it has not been fast or effective” to mitigate the impact on humanity. He stated that the problem is a direct consequence of “human predatory action”.
“As if the urgent challenge of preparing and adapting to these events as they accelerate were not enough, we also have to deal with criminal terrorist actions with economic interests, against environmental protection policies, generating fear and hopelessness in the population. The main target is governments that have environmental protection as an ethical principle,” said the first lady.
Without making direct references in his speech to the fires that are ravaging several regions of Brazil, Janja declared that “economic and commercial interests of some cannot be the driving forces of destruction”.
The Federal Police have opened 85 investigations into the forest fires in the country because of indications that they were deliberately set. The Minister of the Environment, Marina Silvasaid on Tuesday (17.Sep) that the country is experiencing a “climate terrorism” and that the fires in Brazil have a criminal origin. He also related the current situation with the so-called “Fire Day”, registered in 2019 after a series of arsons in Pará.
Janja has been in New York since Wednesday (18.Sep). He got ahead of the president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) because he would participate in 3 events before the Chief Executive’s departure:
- Thursday (19.Sep.2024) – participated in the event “Sustainable Development Goals in Brazil – Global Compact”, held at the UN headquarters;
- Friday (20.Sep.2024) – went to the event “Fair, inclusive and anti-racist economies to leave no one behind”, also held at UN headquarters;
- Saturday (21.Sep.2024) – participated in a debate on the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty at Columbia University on the panel “Food for Humanity: Unlocking the Potential of Universities to End Hunger and Malnutrition”.
Lula arrives in the city late Saturday afternoon. He will participate in the opening of the 79th General Assembly of the UN (United Nations), on Tuesday (September 24, 2024). Janja’s speech is in line with what the PT member is expected to present in his speech, which will probably continue to demand that richer countries provide financing for environmental preservation and energy transition and will say that the situation in Brazil is a consequence of the climate crisis that the planet is going through and that everyone is responsible.
In her speech, the First Lady stated that women and children are more vulnerable and suffer disproportionately the losses of various crises, including wars. “Investing in the fight against poverty and climate change by proposing policies with a gender perspective in their design and implementation is an effective way to promote gender equality and reduce all forms of inequality,” said Janja.
The first lady quoted the former president Dilma Rousseff (PT), current president of the Brics Bank (economic bloc founded by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) as an example of female representation in spaces of power and command. “We no longer want her to be one of the few exceptions. Other multilateral development banks and international economic and financial institutions need women in charge.”he stated.
Janja presented the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty, Lula’s main initiative as interim president of the G20. He stated that the governments of Michel Temer (MDB) and Jair Bolsonaro (PL) were responsible for dismantling public policies in the country that led to the return of millions of people to Hunger Map.
When praising her husband’s management, she said that “with political determination and focus” It is possible to lift people out of hunger. He stated that the government managed to approve with Congress the exemption of taxes for basic food basket products and the inclusion of meat among the basket items.
Janja said that there is internal resistance within the G20 to the alliance proposed by Lula, but that the Brazilian government is making an effort to move forward.
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