A’uwé Xavante block BR‑158 in Mato Grosso to demand railway consultation and land demarcation

On 3 August, leaders and warriors of the A’uwé Xavante people from the Areões Indigenous Territory in Nova Nazaré, Mato Grosso, closed the BR‑158 highway. The blockade protested the construction of the Ferrovia de Integração Centro‑Oeste (FICO), a grain‑export railway that would cross 21 Indigenous lands, and demanded the completion of demarcation for four traditional territories that were omitted from the 1996 decree. Protesters also cited the lack of a prior, free and informed consultation required by ILO Convention 169.

Separately, Brazil’s environmental registry, the Cadastro Ambiental Rural (CAR), is under review after the Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling on illegal deforestation. Minister Flávio Dino ordered federal and state governments to adjust CAR procedures to protect Indigenous, Quilombola and other traditional community lands, which have been vulnerable to overlapping claims and land‑grabbing. Advocates argue that without explicit safeguards, CAR cannot effectively defend the territories that are essential for biodiversity and climate mitigation.