“Brazil must move forward on business and human rights – UN expert group”, 17 June 2016

...Brazil must move forward on business and human rights, and avoid the risk of sliding backwards, the Working Group on Business and Human Rights said today as it presented to the Human Rights Council the report* on its December 2015 official visit to the country.“Brazil has a solid legal system and institutions to protect against business-related human rights abuse, and we urge the country to build on advances and better protect human rights in practice,” said...Dante Pesce, who...heads the UN expert group. “The participation of Brazil’s vibrant civil society and courageous human rights defenders is also essential,” he stressed. “...[W]e are extremely concerned about the huge risks facing some activists who raise their voices against business-related human rights abuse, and saddened by the high number of deaths of human rights defenders.” During its visit, the Working Group heard testimonies from communities who had been adversely affected by business operations, including the Belo Monte hydropower plant, construction projects related to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, and the Fundão tailings dam rupture in Mariana, Minas Gerais...