Brazilian Floods: A Crisis of Inequality and Neglect

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is advocating for a monitoring system to ensure Brazil adheres to recommendations following last year's devastating floods in southern Brazil. The report underscores inequalities affecting Indigenous, quilombola communities, and marginalized groups during recovery. These disasters reveal broader issues amplified by climate change and urban neglect.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is urging for a constant monitoring system to track Brazil's adherence to its recommendations, after severe floods ravaged southern Brazil last year.

Speaking with The Associated Press, Javier Palummo, the commission's special rapporteur, emphasized the initiative's goals of maintaining a communication channel with Brazil's government, enhancing public accountability, and showcasing good practices while monitoring risks, particularly in the most affected areas and for vulnerable populations. The massive floods, which struck Rio Grande do Sul state between April and May 2024, impacted over 2.3 million people, with hundreds of thousands displaced and 182 fatalities recorded.

A report released by the commission exposes glaring inequalities in the recovery process. Indigenous and quilombola groups, female-led households, and unhoused individuals struggle with obtaining reconstruction aid. Lacking land regularization and institutional support, they remain marginalized and their vulnerabilities are exacerbated. Palummo highlighted the resilience of communities like the quilombola, where women spearheaded relief efforts, and the plight of the Mbyá-Guarani people displaced twice, who now face insecurity and cultural loss due to relocation.

Palummo stressed that these disasters reflect deep structural inequalities, worsened by unplanned urban expansion, environmental degradation, and environmental racism. The commission's report, a pioneering assessment, will be presented to local communities and government officials, as well as at a public hearing in Brasília.

(With inputs from agencies.)