Indigenous people took to the streets of Belem, in Brazil to protest , as leaders of eight Amazonian countries met on the first day of the Amazon Summit on Tuesday, August 8.
Holding signs demanding the protection of their land, demonstrators marched down the street waving flags and shouting slogans against mining, oil drilling and what they called "extractivist projects" in the Amazon.
The eight Amazon rainforest nations are expected to face divisions over proposals to block new oil drilling and end deforestation when they meet for their first summit in 14 years.
The meeting of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO) gathers heads of state from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela for two days in the northern Brazilian city of Belem.
They will aim to forge unified policies, goals and positions in international negotiations on some 130 issues ranging from financing for sustainable development to indigenous inclusion.
(Source: Reuters)