“Marajó cannot be reduced to sexual exploitation”, says Lula government

After new reports of child sexual exploitation in Marajó came to light, the Ministry of Human Rights and Citizenship of President Lula’s government issued this Thursday (23) a note informing the actions in the region and praising the Cidadania Marajó program aimed at population of the region in Pará.

The government note was published after the repercussion of a song by singer Aymeé with the title “Evangelho de Fariseus” which mentions social and environmental problems on the Amazon island. The singer also made the following statement when participating in the “Dom Reality” program: “Marajó is an island a few minutes from Belém, my hometown. And there is a lot of organ trafficking there. That’s normal there. There is hard-level pedophilia.”

Without mentioning the complaints, the ministry reinforced “the priority of human rights and the voice of the Marajoara population” and demanded that “images of socioeconomic vulnerability or the way of life of the populations of Marajó, especially children and adolescents, not be associated, to the context of sexual exploitation”.

“The reality of sexual exploitation in the region is worrying and historic, but does not authorize its use in an irresponsible and decontextualized way. This only serves to stigmatize populations and worsen social risks. The experiences of traditional populations in the region Marajó cannot be reduced to sexual exploitation“, reinforced the ministry.

According to the ministry, the program established in 2023 represents a “new milestone in public policies” and has “the objective of confronting situations of sexual abuse and exploitation of children and adolescents and promoting human rights and guaranteeing access to public policies”.

In the note, the ministry also highlights that the population of Marajó “above all needs structuring and efficient public policies, with the inversion of the welfare and alienating logic of their reality and ways of life”. And he reinforced that “agendas were held in Marajoara territory, for diagnosis and itinerant ombudsman, with a delegation made up of representatives from MDHC and other Ministries and partner bodies”.

Regarding security in Marajó, the ministry pointed out that the program has the support of federal security forces, such as the Federal Police, the Federal Highway Police, the Ministry of Defense and the Secretariat of Public Security and Social Defense of Pará, in the sense of “dismantling networks of exploitation, abuse and sexual violence”. “Such actions and partnerships have been deepened as the program’s actions advance,” he said.

Damares reacted to the new allegations

This Thursday (22), former minister and senator Damares Alves (Republicanos-DF) claimed that the cases increased, after the Lula government and the Ministry of Human Rights canceled the Marajó program started during his administration. According to Lula’s Ministry, Damares’ old program was revoked due to low social participation in the project and little effectiveness of the actions.

“What has the Ministry actually done since then? I still hear and read reports of abuses in the region today. This breaks my heart and I sincerely hope that this song wakes up our society, wakes up Brazil. So that those who denounce abuses in region is not silenced. So that institutions dedicate less time to political polarization and persecuting supposed adversaries, and are more engaged in presenting concrete responses to this problem”, reinforced the senator.

“Marajó is asking for help and it is not new. May this time people be truly compelled to act when they hear the silent cries of children”, concluded Damares.