BUENOS AIRES (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th December, 2019) A group of human rights lawyers has filed a "preventative" lawsuit against Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro with the International Criminal Court (ICC), accusing him of crimes against the country's indigenous people, a co-author of the complaint told Sputnik.
According to lawyer Juliana Vieira dos Santos, Bolsonaro is to blame for "instigating genocide of the indigenous peoples" of Brazil.
The lawyer claimed that "dehumanization" of indigenous people was underway - a narrative that allegedly encourages "the support base [of Bolsonaro] to make violent decisions."
Vieira dos Santos noted that the lawsuit was of a preventative nature, albeit claiming that there was enough proof that attacks on the lands of indigenous people had become a "state policy" under Bolsonaro.
The lawsuit has been filed by the Human Rights Lawyers Collective and the Arns Commission for Human Rights Defense.
If the ICC authorizes an investigation against Bolsonaro and finds him guilty, he may face confiscation of property and up to life in prison.
