Number 416, September 8, 2000.
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In this week's issue:
>NEWS BRIEFS
- Guarani retake ancestral land
- FARC promises to respect Brazilian border
- Catholic Church officials pleased with incoming results of plebiscite on the debt
- Human rights groups in Sao Paulo receive mail bombs
- Trial of the Corumbiara massacre ends: 4 more absolved, one more found guilty
- Study shows that concentration of land ownership and land idleness has increased
>A MESSAGE FROM THE WORLD SOCIAL FORUM ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
NEWS BRIEFS
- Guarani retake ancestral land
A group of 200 Guarani men, women and children have retaken ancestral land located in the state of Santa Catarina. Their land was taken over in the 1920's by a real estate company named Colonizadora Sul Brasil. The state gave away the 49 hectares to the company at a time when the country was trying to "settle" lands. As a result, the Guarani were violently forced off their land and relocated to another indigenous reserve inhabited by the Kaingang. After 80 years, and after becoming more aware of their right to traditional territory, the Guarani returned to their land, now "owned" by businessman Carlos Francisco Zimmer. Zimmer has obtained a court order for the expulsion of the Guarani. If they do not leave the land in 45 days, they will be evicted by the police.
The Guarani make up the biggest group of indigenous people in Brazil with a population of 30,000. They live in the states of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Espirito Santo, Mato Grosso and Maranhao. They were the first to make contact with the colonizers and have been in resistence for 500 years.
Source: Poratim
August, 2000
- FARC promises to respect Brazilian border
FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia) prepared a document this week in which they promised not to enter into Brazil, even if their conflict with their own government deepens. The decision to send the document was made after Brazil announced that it was going to send reenforcements to the border. "We wanted to reassure our neighbors," said FARC leader Ivan Reis. "The territory for which we are fighting is Columbia. Our position is that popular struggles should be dealt with inside national borders." The intention of the guerrilla movement is to avoid the involvement of other countries in the civil war, especially those that support the Columbian government, such as the United States.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
September 3, 2000
- Catholic Church officials pleased with incoming results of plebiscite on the debt
Bishops of the CNBB (National Conference of Bishops of Brazil) said on Tuesday that they are pleased with the results of the National Plebiscite on the Debt. The plebiscite, sponsored by the CNBB and other social movements, asked people to vote on whether or not Brazil should continue honoring current agreements with the IMF, whether Brazil should continue paying on the external debt without a public hearing, and whether Brazil should continue spending the majority of its budget on paying internal debt. "The quantity of persons who voted last weekend surpassed all of our expectations," said Father Alfredo Jose Goncalves, one of the coordinators of the vote. In total, 3,000 cities are participating in the vote which will end on September 7th, the day of the "Grito dos Excluidos" (Cry of the Excluded). Various politicians participated in the vote, including the governor of Minas Gerais, Itamar Franco, who voted "No" to all three questions.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
September 5, 2000
- Human rights groups in Sao Paulo receive mail bombs
This week, several people working in various human rights offices received mail bombs in Sao Paulo. Roberto de Jesus, president of the Associacao da Parada GLBT, a gay rights organization, Jose Bernardes da Silva, a coordinator for Amnesty International, Italo Cardoso, a city councilman and president of the city’s Human Rights Commission, and Renato Simoes, president of the state’s Human Rights Commission, all received suspicious looking packages in the mail this week. Fortunately, no one opened the packages and immediately called the bomb squad who dismantled the bombs. The same message appeared to all, announcing the death of all gays, blacks, Jews, and people from the Northeast of Brazil The group responsible for the bombs are neo-Nazis who call themselves "Raca Pura" (Pure Race). The group has promised to begin a series of acts against the aforementioned group and those who defend them. Various human rights officials are meeting to see what preventative measures may be taken.
Source: Linha Aberta
September 6, 2000
- Trial of the Corumbiara massacre ends: 4 more absolved, one more found guilty
The trial of the massacre at Corumbiara ended this week with the pronouncement of four more innocent verdicts and one guilty verdict given to police officers involved in the case. (See past issues of News from Brazil on our web site for more details on the case.) The state prosecutor claimed once again that there was no proof that three who were absolved participated directly in the murders of the landless workers. However, the prosecutor did hold responsible one of the ranking officers who headed the operation at the site, Major Vitorio Regis Mena Mendes, as well as Lt. Colonel Jose Pereira Ventura, who was in charge of the overall operation. Mendes received a guilty verdict from the jury and received a 19 year prison sentence from Judge Sandra do Nascimento. However, the jury found Ventura innocent as he was not at the scene could not control the situation. Overall, of the 12 officers accused of the deaths, 9 were absolved and three given prison sentences. The two landless workers were both found guilty and given prison sentences. All have appealed their case and remain free until a court decision is given concerning their requests for appeal.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo and Agencia Estado
September 1- 6, 2000
- Study shows that concentration of land ownership and land idleness has increased
A team of researchers and professors from the University of Campinas produced a study which demonstrates that the concentration of land ownership and land idleness has increased between the years 1992 and 1998, the time of Fernando Henrique Cardoso’s presidency. In these years, areas of ownership of large land tracts increased 56.2 million hectares, an area the size of France. Land idleness also increased 37%. The study demonstrates that contrary to what the government is claiming, there has been no effective land reforms during the Cardoso mandate.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
September 6, 2000
A MESSAGE FROM THE WORLD SOCIAL FORUM ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Sejup has received more information about the upcoming World Social Forum to be held here in Brazil in Porto Alegre, January 25-30, 2001:
Proposals for Topics and Conference Program
The World Social Forum will consist of two types of events: large panel
discussions concerning more general topics and strategy sessions
proposed by the participating organizations, seeking to exchange
experiences. On January 25, there will be an opening event at the Pôr do
Sol Amphitheater, for 50,000 people.
The following is an initial proposal for the panel discussions. The
Organizing Committee will continue to develop these ideas, and to invite
speakers based on the topics proposed. Please send your comments or
suggestions to: fsm2001@uol.com.br.
THE FOUR MAIN THEMES
THEME I: The Production of Wealth
1. Developing a More Egalitarian System of Production of Goods and
Services
2. Toward a New System of International Trade
3. Restructuring the International Financial System to Achieve Equality
and Development
4. Guaranteeing the Social Function of Land
THEME II: Access to Wealth and Sustainability
1. Translating Scientific Development into Human Development
2. Guaranteeing the Public Nature of the Common Resources of Humanity
and Prevent their Conversion into Merchandise
3. Promoting the Distribution of Wealth to Guarantee a Dignified Life
for All
4. Establishing Social Control over the Environment
THEME III: Civil Society and the Public Arena
1. Strengthening the Capacity for Action of Civil Society and the
Development of the Public Arena
2. Guaranteeing the Right to Information and the Democratization of the
Media
3. Guaranteeing Class, Racial, and other forms of Diversity
4. Guaranteeing Cultural Identity and Protecting Artistic Creation from
Mercantilization
THEME IV: Democracy and Citizen's Power
1. The Basis for Democracy and for Citizen's Power
2. Democratizing World Authority
3. The Future of Nation-States
4. Mediating Conflicts and Developing Peace
MOBILIZATION/ORGANIZING COMMITTEES:
THE WORLD SOCIAL FORUM BY COUNTRY
We are asking the International Committee to do the following:
- Send representatives to the WSF;
- Help promote the WSF;
- Send suggestions for topics and speakers;
- Help fund the participation of your partner organizations in Third
World countries;
- Send proposals to guarantee space in the Exhibit Hall of the WSF.
Among the challenges that the Organizing Committee faces is the
establishment of a balanced representation worldwide for the WSF. The
Organizing Committee is engaged in two lines of action to assure
balanced international representation: distributing invitations broadly
on a worldwide basis and seeking to organize organizing committees by
country or region. Each organization that already belongs to the
International Support Committee should contribute to the establishment
of a broad-based committee in their countries. These committees should
be diverse and representative.
- The World Social Forum Organizing Committee has a new office in São
Paulo:
Address: Rua General Jardim, 660, 8o Andar, CEP: 01223.010, São Paulo,
SP, BRAZIL
Tel: (55-11) 258-8914
Fax: (55-11) 258-8469
E-mail: fsm2001@uol.com.br
www.worldsocialforum.org
www.forumsocialmundial.org.br
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