Unprecedented COP30 Climate Protest: Thousands Unite in Brazil to Demand Global Action

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Tens of thousands of people thronged the streets of the Amazonian city hosting COP30 talks on Saturday, dancing to thumping speakers in the first large-scale protest at a UN climate summit in years.

As the first week of climate negotiations limped to a close with nations deadlocked, Indigenous people and activists sang, chanted and rolled a giant beach ball of Earth through Belem under a searing sun.

Others held a mock funeral procession for fossil fuels, dressed in black and pretending to be grieving widows as they carried three coffins marked with the words “coal,” “oil” and “gas.”

“Our goal is to exert pressure on nations to honor their commitments and prevent any backsliding,” stated Txai Surui, a notable Indigenous leader aged 28, in a conversation with Agence France-Presse.

It was the first major protest outside the annual climate talks since COP26 four years ago in Glasgow, as the last three gatherings were held in locations with little tolerance for demonstrations — Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan.

Called the Great People’s March by organisers, the Belem rally comes at the halfway point of difficult negotiations and follows two Indigenous-led protests that disrupted proceedings earlier in the week.

“It’s refreshing and offers a vibrant contrast to the often dull and clinical atmosphere inside the COP meetings,” remarked Scott.

“Today we are witnessing a massacre as our forest is being destroyed,” Benedito Huni Kuin, a 50-year-old member of the Huni Kuin Indigenous group from western Brazil, told AFP.

“We want to make our voices heard from the Amazon and demand results,” he said. “We need more Indigenous representatives at COP to defend our rights.”

Tyrone Scott, a 34-year-old Briton from the anti-poverty group War on Want, said it was an “Indigenous-led, movement-led, people-powered march.”

“Here, we’re discussing agroecology, feminism, and the role of trade unions in safeguarding livelihoods and advocating for improved employment conditions,” explained Giovani Del Prete, age 33, to AFP.

Their demands include “reparations” for damage caused by corporations and governments, especially to marginalised communities.

A giant Palestinian flag and “free Palestine” banners appeared throughout the crowds.

One protester on stilts dressed as a greedy Uncle Sam denouncing “imperialism,” while other artwork took aim at Donald Trump, the US president who denigrates climate science and champions fossil fuels.

The event, which organizers estimated drew a crowd of 50,000, concluded without incident as participants peacefully dispersed.

“These are the politics that we must move forward to defeat the climate crisis.”

After a 4.5-kilometre march through the city, the demonstration stopped a few blocks from the COP30 venue, where authorities deployed soldiers to protect the site.

On the following Friday, Indigenous demonstrators temporarily blocked an entrance for about two hours to highlight the challenges they face in the Amazon, leading to urgent negotiations to ease the tension.

On Tuesday, Indigenous protesters forced their way into the Parque da Cidade — the COP30 compound built on the site of a former airport — clashing with security personnel, some of whom sustained minor injuries.

Countries found themselves at odds over trade strategies and insufficient climate goals, while a significant confrontation is anticipated regarding calls for wealthy nations to significantly increase financial support to help poorer countries adapt to climate change.

High stakes

Inside the venue, COP30 president Andre Correa do Lago conceded the first exhaustive week of negotiations had failed to make a breakthrough and urged diplomats not to run down the clock with time-wasting manoeuvres.

“The stakes are too high for us to allow procedural tactics or stalled discussions to stand in the way of progress,” he said.

He promised to publish a “note” on Sunday to summarise the positions of parties — a to-do list of sorts for government ministers taking over the negotiations on Monday.

Countries locked horns over trade measures and weak climate targets, while a showdown looms over demands that rich nations triple the finance they provide poorer states to adapt to a warming world.

Countries including Denmark, the UK and Kenya are also rallying support behind Brazil’s proposal to agree a “roadmap” for advancing the phaseout of fossil fuels.

“We’re very much up for supporting them on that roadmap … We would love to see an outcome on that,” said UK climate minister Katie White, adding such a proposal would need the support of “the vast majority of countries”.

Such efforts are fiercely opposed by Saudi Arabia, among other oil-producing nations, and some parties told AFP they strongly doubted the proposal would be approved by consensus at COP30.