Brazilian voters rejected the image of an authoritarian strongman for a much-loathed ex-military man who promised to restore the state and boost the economy by building large metal-and-rubber-paneled bridges across the Amazon. But 56-year-old far-right President Jair Bolsonaro is still considered by the international community to be a threat to the Amazon’s one-of-a-kind culture. His recently elected justice minister, Thiago de Aragao, has been accused by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of crimes against humanity in relation to environmental destruction. The commission alleges that Aragao and his father participated in the slaughter of the Imatian-Sanaga community in the state of Pará in the 1970s, just after the disappearance of Brazilian president Goulart, which according to several outlets was orchestrated by the military. “I never [killed anyone],” Aragao responded to the commission. “I didn’t know it was possible to do anything when the secret police were around. You’re the first person to bring this up … I can tell you now that I wouldn’t give up blood from a chicken to make money.”
Read the full story at The Guardian.
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