NEWS
FROM BRAZIL supplied by SEJUP (Servico Brasileiro de Justica e Paz).
Number 523, December 20, 2004
In this edition of News from Brazil:
- The struggles of populations in
southern Brazil against dam constructions
There has been ongoing controversy and violence since the beginning of the
construction of the Barra Grande Dam, located on the Pelotas River between Rio
Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. On December 7, approximately 800 families
affected by the construction of the dammobilized in a protest march in Barra
Grande. These families have been living in encampments for more than 50
days to protest the deforestation of the area and the lack of indemnity for
those who lost their land. Fifteen hundred small family farmers have been
expelled from their land and, according to Mauro Brend, director of MAB
(Movement of Those Displaced by
Dams), the farmers will not permit further construction of these dams
while there are no guarantees for their resettlement.
The license for the construction of the dam was fraudulently obtained as the
Environmental Impact Study did not acknowledge the existence of 6,000 hectares
of primary Atlantic forest, as well as a rich reserve for Brazilian pines in
danger of extinction. The forest, which covers 2/3 of the future dam
reservoir, was described as “weeds” by Engevix, the company that did the
study. The federal government (Minister of Energy and Environment, Secretary
General) has met with members of MAB, the movement representing the populations
affected by the construction of dams in the south of Brazil. BAESA,
the firm responsible for the Barra Grande
dam, has been completely insensitive to the needs of the population.
The groups that make up BAESA (Alcoa, a U.S. firm; Camargo Corrêa; Banco
Bradesco; and Votarantin;) did not show up for the two meetings with MAB
and the Federal Government to negotiate a solution.
This has revolted the affected population and according to Eloir Vieira Soares,
leader of MAB, “BAESA does not seem to be worried about the situation of
extreme conflict that is occuring in the area of the dam construction.” These
conflicts were aggravated after the deforesting of the principal reserve of pine
trees in Barra Grande as well as the death of workers cutting the timber
in the region. According to Soares, there is a climate of
extreme tension:
“One more worker died because of the actions of large construction
companies of dams.
This is not an isolated incident but reflects the position of the company
concerned only with profits while putting people´s lives at risk”.
MAB is demanding that all of the social and environmental problems be resolved
before further construction of the dam.
Other main issues of the conflict are:
- The inclusion of 285 more displaced families in
the list of those to receive benefits;
- Agriculture credits to permit the farmers to
gather their harvest;
- Electric energy for 600 families in the area with
a discount for poor families that have been affected by the dam;
- Actions to resolve the problems of transportation
and construction that are a result of the dam construction;
- Protection for the Brazilian pine trees and
Atlantic forest in danger of extinction;
- The timber that is removed from the area be
donated by BAESA to build houses for the low-income population in the area;
- The acquisition of 500 hectares of land in the
area to be used as a cooperative for the farmers;
- Total execution of the terms of the Environmental
Accord that was singed by BAESA and the Federal Government, with
participation of the civil society;
- Creation of effective legislation that will
prohibit new social and environmental crimes from being committed;
In November, federal Procurator, Nazareno Wolff, ruled that BAESA must
negotiate
an accord with the populations affected in the area. According to him, the
license to operate the power plants will not be issued until all of the social
problems have not been resolved.
Érico da Fonseca, MAB leader, in commenting on the posture of BAESA, states,
“It is
difficult to believe that the farmers had to arrived at this level of conflict
in order for
BAESA to try to find a solution to the problems that they themselves created”.
Barra Grande is just one of many areas in the south of Brazil that is affected
by the construction of dams for power plants. Hundreds of families have
been displaced in Campos Novos, Foz do Chapecó, and at the basin of
the Uruguai River. According to Marco Antonio Trierveiler, of the national
directory of MAB, the construction of these dams is being conducted by a small
number of large national and multinational businesses that form specific
consortiums for each work. “For each dam, Votarantim, Bradesco,
Camargo Corrêa and the multinationals Alcoa and Tractebel camouflage themselves
differently so that they can avoid agreements already constructed by populations
who have struggled in the past with displacement”, states Trierveiler.
He emphasizes that “the Federal Government needs to be the negotiator between
the affected population and the businesses. It is not possible that large
economic groups and multinationals do what they want in these regions and that
there exists no government or judicial organ to solve the social problems
that these groups
have created”.
Source: MAB website, December 2004
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