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Dozens of Indigenous protesters clashed with security guards Tuesday at the COP30 summit in Brazil, causing minor injuries in a rare incident of violence at the UN climate talks.<\/p>\n
In the evening, Indigenous demonstrators and their supporters breached security barriers at the main entrance to the conference hall in Belem and scuffled with security officers there.<\/p>\n
The incident caused “minor injuries to two security staff, and minor damage to the venue,” a spokesperson for United Nations Climate Change told AFP.<\/p>\n
“Brazilian and UN security personnel took protective actions to secure the venue, following all established security protocols,” the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
Calm was quickly restored and security staff used tables and chairs to barricade the entrance to the high-level “blue zone” at the heart of the conference venue.<\/p>\n
An AFP journalist saw a police officer being evacuated in a wheelchair.<\/p>\n
Security inside the COP30 venue falls under the responsibility of the UN, while local authorities take charge of the surrounding area.<\/p>\n
UN police officers were asking those still inside the COP30 venue to evacuate the vast site of giant air-conditioned tents.<\/p>\n
“The Indigenous movement wanted to present its demands inside the blue zone but were not allowed in,” said Joao Santiago, a professor at the Federal University of Para.<\/p>\n
– ‘Voices ignored’ –<\/p>\n
Maria Clara, a protester with the Rede Sustentabilidade Bahia association, told AFP she wanted to draw attention to the plight of Indigenous peoples.<\/p>\n
“These voices are ignored,” she said.<\/p>\n
“They entered the COP30 venue to protest the fact that the COP will end but the destruction continues.”<\/p>\n
The March for Health and Climate, the organizers behind the protest, sought to distance themselves from the incident.<\/p>\n
“The march, which concluded before the COP30 venue, was a legitimate, peaceful, and organized expression of popular mobilisation, built through dialogue, responsibility, and collective commitment,” the group said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The UN spokesperson said “the venue is fully secured, and COP negotiations continue.” Brazilian and UN authorities were investigating the incident, the spokesperson added.<\/p>\n
Last week, Brazil’s Minister for Indigenous Peoples, Sonia Guajajara, said the UN summit would be “the best COP in terms of Indigenous participation.”<\/p>\n
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