Campaigners had urged Lula to veto the bill entirely, but many have welcomed his alterations
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has signed into law a controversial bill that scientists and environmentalists had dubbed the “devastation bill”, but vetoed key articles that would have in effect dismantled the country’s environmental licensing system.
On Friday, the final day to either sanction or veto the law, Lula struck down or amended 63 of the 398 provisions in a bill that, as approved by congress last month, had been regarded as the most significant setback to Brazil’s environmental protections in four decades.
Environmental campaigners had urged the president to veto the bill in its entirety, but many welcomed Lula’s decision and are now calling on civil society to mobilise to pressure lawmakers into upholding the vetoes.
That will not be an easy task for the Lula administration, given that the largely opposition-controlled congress has repeatedly defeated key government proposals – including by overturning previous presidential vetoes.
