Number 55, November 26, 1992.

CHILDREN AND YOUTH

- Public prosecutors demand the demission of 30 functionaries of FEBEM.

On Thursday November 19, public prosecutors requested the demission of 30 functionaries of the Foundation for the Welfare of Minors (FEBEM). The functionaries in question are suspected of having committed violence against minors in FEBEM in the Tatuape unit in the city of Sao Paulo. Violent attacks on the minors by functionaries took place on November 3 when they returned to the FEBEM detention center which was partially destroyed in a rebellion last month.

Two public prosecutors interviewed dozens of minors in the detention center last week. "Approximately 100 adolescents were beaten with chains and pieces of timber" commented one of the public prosecutors, Ebenezer Salgado Soares, in the "Folha de Sao Paulo" in a report on the violence in its edition of November 20. According to public prosecutor Soares, a youth of 16 years had his leg broken and needed six stitches to his mouth. Another now has developed back problems due to the violence while a third who already had renal problems suffered paralysis of the kidneys due to the violence; he will now need a kidney transplant. According to Soares, some of the functionaries continue to attack the minors. In some sections of the detention center, the adolescents are kept permanently in the cells.

The public prosecutors have called for a police inquiry to investigate the crimes committed by the functionaries against the adolescents. According to deputy Beatriz Pardi who is a member of a Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry currently investigating the question of minors and who visited the detention center last week a number of functionaries have been committing acts of violence against the minors while the remainder of the functionaries are opposed to this violence.

- Coordinator of Street Children speaks of extermination.

The national coordinator of the Movement of Street Children (Movimento dos Meninos e Meninas de Rua), Mario Volpi, claims that at least 4 children are assassinated daily in Brazil. According to Volpi, since the data of the Institute of Legal Medicine (Instituto Medico Legal) is not very precise the number of assassinations could be higher. He went on to state that the children are killed "by civil and military police, by extermination groups or by the community which at times takes justice into its own hands".

The Minister for Justice, Mauricio Correa, who participated in the Third National Meeting of the Street Children in Brasilia last week said that the government is concerned about the violence and the threats being suffered by children and the street educators. He went on to explain that the Ministry of justice could only intervene if the States made this request. He requested that the Federal Police give protection to the delegations from the States of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Espirito Santo who participated in the Third National Meeting.

At the Meeting, 24 children presented reports about the situation in each state. The activities of the extermination groups, torture and beatings, prostitution and the lack of housing were the problems mentioned with greater frequency. Present at the Third National Meeting were 800 street children from Brazil as well as children and educators from the United States, Germany, Canada, Italy, Argentina, Uruguay and Bolivia. According to organizers of the meeting a further two children who worked in the organization of the event were assassinated during the days prior to the start of the meeting. This brings to four the number of leaders involved in the preparation of the event who were assassinated. Denouncements were made during the Meeting that death-threats were received by one of the assassinated youth.

- Children in FEBEM of Brasilia are "housed in cages like animals" denounces judge.

The FEBEM of the Federal Capital, Brasilia, known as the Centro de Reclusao Provisorio (Cere) leaves much to be desired according to a report in the "Folha de Sao Paulo" of November 18. Apart from being severely overcrowded two cases of Aids have been confirmed amongst the youth held there. However according to estimates made by health professionals, at least half of the youth housed in Cere probably are infected with the HIV virus.

"The building is open to infection and is unhealthy, there are no professional activities and because of the lack of space the youth are housed in cages like animals" denounced judge Celmo Fernandes. According to Deputy Geraldo Magela of the Workers Party who is also president of the Commission of the Defense of Human Rights and Citizenship of the Legislature of the Federal District there is no policy of re-education of these youth.

Cere is the only building in Brasilia geared for the detention of youth offenders. It was built to cater for 20 such offenders but there are at least 60 housed there. Each cell of 5 square meters is occupied by four youth who share two beds. The only ventilation is a small opening on the iron door of each cell. The Public Ministry has brought a case against the government of the Federal District demanding that adequate housing be provided for the youth offenders within a space of six months. "I haven't ordered the closure of Cere because I have nowhere to put the youth" commented judge Celmo Fernandes.

WOMEN

- 27% of all Brazilian women have been sterilized.

One of the conclusions of the preliminary report of the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) which currently is investigating the mass sterilization of Brazilian women is that there is international interest in demographic control in Brazil. Foreign governments and organisms interested in this project are investing large sums in this area according to the preliminary report. Approximately 27% of all Brazilian women in the child-bearing age bracket had been sterilized in 1986; this percentage is three times higher than in developed countries.

According to the report, the principal Brazilian entities who promote the sterilization are Bemfam (Sociedade Civil de Bem-Estar Familiar no Brasil) and Cpaimc (Centro de Pesquisas e Assistencia Integrada da Mulher e a Crianca). The financial resources of both of these entities come from foreign organizations.

According to Senator Carlos Parrocinio, who is a member of the Commission, Bemfam and Cpaimc carry out in fact policies of demographic control defended by foreign governments and entities and this "has negative repercussions over national sovereignty".

The Commission discovered that Cpaimc which has its headquarters in Rio de Janeiro received large grants from such international organizations such as FPIA (Family Planning International Assistance), Pathfinder and Jhpiego. Bemfam which also has its headquarters in Rio de Janeiro and is affiliated to the International Planned Parenthood Federation received a grant of U.S. $1.3 million from this organization. The total amount of international funds received by Bemfam in the last five years according to the Commission report has been U.S. $20.3 million.

CHURCHES

- "Without ethics there is no solution" says CONIC document.

Only by respecting ethics in public life will it be possible to overcome the periodic crisis which afflict Brazil claims the document released at the end of the Assembly of the National Council of the Christian Churches of Brazil (CONIC) on November 19 in Sao Paulo. Seven Christian Churches participated in the Assembly - the Roman Catholic Church, the Christian Reformed Church, the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil, the Lutheran Evangelical Church of Brazil, the Methodist church, the United Presbyterian Church and the Syrian Orthodox Catholic Church of Brazil.

The document recalls the 10 years existence of CONIC and its defense of the poor, the suffering and the marginalized by the organization during this period. It continues by stating that at the moment Brazil is facing a crisis of ethical values, especially in public life. Corruption, lack of respect for life, the hunger for power on the part of certain political parties and groups, the re-emergence of totalitarian ideologies such as neonazism and racial prejudices are given as examples of the results of the lack of ethical values. "Ethics in public life is not only a social necessity; it is also an evangelical demand" continues the document.

Given the existence of such problems, the document calls on christians not to support even by silence actions which damage the integrity and rights of the human person or which corrupt public administration. The document concludes with eight proposals:

1. No form of corruption - either active or passive, should be accepted. Furthermore it is necessary to remember that an equally grave fault is omission in the area of corruption, especially so since those who are affected are usually the poorest and least protected sectors of society.

2. Profound structural changes in the public administration which would impede corruption should be proposed and supported.

3. Education for ethics should be promoted for children, youth and adults both within and outside the Churches.

4. Participation should be encouraged in grassroots movements which strive for ethics in the economy, in politics and in public life in general. This participation should favor the transparency of the State and the formation of a society which is truly pluralist and democratic.

5. The confusion should be avoided between a just struggle for ethics in public life and populist and moralist postures which merely comdemn and which are geared to manipulate popular indignation for personal and electoral ends rather than striving for the establishment of ethical principals.

6. Any kind of discrimination should be vehemently opposed especially so that against women and children and also the racial discrimination against indians, negroes, jews and people from the North East of Brazil.

7. As an expression of a real indignation against recent cases of corruption, the condemnation and punishment of all those involved should be demanded. Here there should be no confusion between christian love and mercy on the one hand and the non application of justice on the other.

8. The neoliberal ideology as the only model of development of contemporary human society should be rejected.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES

- Construction of dam threatens the future of indigenous group in Sao Paulo.

The Conselho Indigenista Missionario - CIMI (Indigenist Missionary Council) of Sao Paulo have requested us to publish the following very urgent request for solidarity:

Dear Friends,

We need your solidarity and active collaboration urgently in order to avert yet another potential ecological and human disaster. SABESP (the body responsible for furnishing water to the city of Sao Paulo) has finalized its plans to build a reservoir in the Atlantic Forest Region (Mata Atlantica) by harnessing the waters of the River Capivari. The cost of the enterprise, now estimated at U.S. $130 million is to be met by the State of Sao Paulo and the World Bank.

The study done by SABESP regarding the environmental and human consequences of this project only recently and indirectly came into the hands of environmental and indigenous groups and we now find ourselves battling against time to revert the situation.

Some basic facts:

1. The Capivari river, located in the southern part of the State of Sao Paulo (Serra do Mar) flows through the neighboring Guarani indian reservation of Rio Branco. The damming of the flow will decrease the waters by 60% thus destroying a vital source of food supply for the indigenous community.

2. The presence of 700 workers in the forest, close to three indigenous villages, will inevitably bring all the socio-cultural and economic forms of destabilization associated with this kind of macro-project.

3. The Capivari river will be diverted into the Guarapiranga reservoir which is in a state of accentuated degradation due to the neglect of the State Government in abiding by the law of protection for reservoirs.

4. The State Government has received financial resources from international bodies to de-pollute the Billings reservoir which is the one which at the moment supplies metropolitan Sao Paulo. To date, no de-pollution program of this reservoir has been initiated.

5. It is alleged in the impact study that the State has engaged in progressive dialogue with indigenous entities and with the indian communities directly involved so as to guarantee that the negative impacts of the project will be minimised. No such conversations have taken place.

6. It is further stated in the study that the State Government provides medical assistance and technical expertise in agriculture to the local indian communities. No such assistance exists (except perhaps in the minds of some government officials so as to impress the World Bank).

7. A public hearing set for June 1992 so as to clear the way for the project was canceled under pressure from environmentalist and indigenous bodies. This hearing is now set for December 4 next at 7.00 PM in an inaccessible location and to which the indigenous communities directly affected have not been invited. They plan to stage a protest that day in some part of the city.

Conclusion:

We need your help urgently to stop this project, at least so that a proper debate can get under way regarding the viability and necessity of such undertakings. Because of the urgency involved and the small time span available we ask that you send a protest message by FAX to:

Secretary For Environment,

State of Sao Paulo,

Dr. Eddi Milare,

Fax 011 280 5468

and also to the Brazilian representatives in the World Bank -Mr. George Papadopolis and Mr. Philip Owusu at fax 061 226 4993.

Please invite other groups and individuals to also send protest fax messages.

Thank you for your interest and support,

Sincerely,

Patrick Clarke,

CIMI - Sao Paulo (Fax 011 917 2151)

- Guajajara Indians take 100 hostages to call attention to the invasion of their lands.

During a week the Guajajara indians of the Cana Branca region of the State of Maranhao held 82 people hostages (initially there were over 100 hostages) and hindered the flow of traffic on the highway which links the municipality of Barra da Corda with the state capital. They demanded the withdrawal of the population of the village of Sao Pedro dos Cacetes who had invaded their territory and the punishment of those involved in the assassination of a member of their group - Augusto Pereira on November 01.

The hostages were released after the indians met with the Minister for Justice, Mauricio Correa, as well as with the Governor of the State of Maranhao. The Guajajara insisted on the presence of the minister during the negotiations since other agreements regarding the withdrawal of the invaders had been broken. The Government of the State of Maranhao has insisted in the past in keeping the village within the indigenous area. The agreement reached with the minister calls for the setting up of a commission which will have representatives of the federal and state governments, of the Lawyers Organization (OAB), of the Indigenist Missionary Council (Cimi) and of the indians. The commission should present its proposals for the withdrawal of the invaders within 30 days.

The Guajajara indians have suffered a long history of aggression. In 1979, 9 pregnant indians were assassinated by the inhabitants of Sao Pedro dos Cacetes. The federal government released funds for the resettlement of the invaders in the village of Sao Pedro dos Cacetes. The funds were received by the state government who did nothing to promote the resettlement of the invaders. In 1980, two members of the group were assassinated by a rancher with the help of the military police; their bodies were severely mutilated and thrown in a river. During the 1980s the indians suffered extensively from the presence of the invaders. In May of 1990, nine members of the Federal Police invaded a Guajajara village and tortured several indians, including women and children. On this occasion with the help of indians from other villages, the Guajajara disarmed the police. The arms were returned when a promise was made that the invaders would be withdrawn. However, this promise was not fulfilled. The recent taking of hostages and the closing of the highway were thus methods used by the indians to call attention to their plight. If a solution is not found, it is feared that more deaths could take place.

- 5000 gold prospectors have already returned to the Yanomami territory.

Once again the Yanomami territory has been invaded by approximately 5000 gold prospectors; this invasion is seen as a serious risk to the survival of the Yanomani according to a statement released by the Indigenous Missionary Council (Conselho Indigenista Missionario - CIMI) on November 19 last.

Clear signs of the new invasion are also in evidence in the State capital of Roraima - Boa Vista, which is the city nearest the Yanomami territory. Here purchases of equipment for gold mining have risen significantly in recent weeks. According to a real estate agent in the city, the purchase and renting of properties have increased by 40% in the city during the last two months due to the return of the gold prospectors.

On November 13 last, the remaining members of the Federal Police were withdrawn from the Yanomami territory. These police were members of the Operacao Selva Livre (Operation Free Forests) which was initiated in 1990 and had as its objective the destruction of illegal air-strips in the Yanomami territory as well as the removal of gold prospectors from that region. The principal motive for the exit of the Federal Police from the region according to the government indigenist entity - FUNAI, is the lack of funds.

Since the gold prospectors have started to circulate freely once again in the Yanomami territory, diseases especially malaria are once again on the increase amongst the indigenous population. So far this year, 150 Yanomami died from malaria and fears increase that this situation will worsen now with the return of the prospectors.

- Timber merchants continue to destroy indigenous areas.

In the State of Amazonas near the border between Brazil, Peru and Columbia, timber merchants continue to devastate the indigenous area known as the Vale do Javari. This area is inhabited by ten indigenous groups some of which have not yet been contacted. For example, 90% of the timber sold by companies in the city of Benjamin Constant comes from the Vale do Javeri. A local timber merchant, Alvaro Caldas Magalhaes, recently stated that he is prepared to take on the Federal Police in order to have access to the timber in the indigenous areas. He recently issued death threats against functionaries of the government indigenous entity working in the region as well as against the indigenous leadership and missionaries working with the indians.

This threat took place after Federal Police confiscated 500 logs, motor-saws and a tractor all within the indigenous area. According to the police, the timber-merchants had been using the tractor to open roads within the forest. In order to avoid violence and to guarantee the withdrawal of the timber-merchants, a number of entities have requested the Minister for Justice, Mauricio Correa, that protection be offered to those who received death-threats and that the process of demarcation of the indigenous area be speeded up.

RURAL QUESTIONS

- Book launching highlights serious rural problems and their solutions.

Father Ricardo Resende of the town of Rio Maria, State of Para recently launched his book "Canto da Terra" (The Song of the Earth) in Sao Paulo. During the launching, Father Resende called on the Brazilian government to give immediate protection to all who have suffered death-threats in rural areas. He sees this as a emergency solution.

According to Father Resende, the principal and most important measure against rural violence is an agrarian reform. He recognizes however that such a reform would interfere with vested interests of certain powerful groups. Another measure which the government needs to urgently take according to Father Resende is the abolition of slave labor. "The government knows where slave labor exists and could easily start police inquiries and bring them to a logical conclusion".

A third of the cases of rural violence in Brazil take place currently in the State of Para. Two thirds of such crimes take place in the southern region of the State where Father Resende works. He has already received several death-threats.

- The Movement of Rural Landless Workers thanks the support to free their imprisoned members.

In its edition of October 22, NEWS FROM BRAZIL carried a report from the Movement of Rural Landless Workers (MST) outlining the unjust imprisonment of its members in the States of Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais. In a recent news up-date, the MST informs that due in large part to the arrival of national and international protest messages all those imprisoned with the exception of Ivanete Tonin have been freed. MST requested us to thank you for your support and asks that further protest messages be sent to the judge of Rio Brilhante, State of Mato Grosso, requesting the immediate release of Ivanete Tonin. The address is:

Dr. Joao Rosa de Lima,

Forum,

Rua J. S. Maia 117,

79130 Rio Brilhante,

MS., Brazil. Phone (067) 452-7322.

RACISM

- "Event of the 1000 Peoples" repudiates racism.

An "Event of the 1000 Peoples" brought together approximately 5000 participants on November 22 in the center of Sao Paulo. The Event was organized by the Democratic Movement Against Nazism and All Forms of Discrimination (Movimento Democratico Contra o Nazismo e Todas as Formas de Descriminacao). Its principal objective was to repudiate all forms of racial manifestations which recently have been increasing in Sao Paulo and are especially directed against jews, negroes and people from the North East of Brazil.

The coordinator of the Democratic Movement, Antonio Carlos Arruda, said that Brazilian society needs to have courage to admit that this is a country of various ethnic and cultural groups and to believe in the possibility of a harmonious and fraternal co-existence. He went on to state that racism is experienced in the day-to-day experiences of the population especially in the area of job discrimination where negroes, people from the North east and homosexuals have access by and large only to inferior jobs.

According to the secretary general of the Democratic Movement and who also represented the Jewish community, Laszlo Krausz, the Event "was an answer to the aggressive attitudes of certain organized entities who are even being helped from abroad". The representative of the North Eastern community, Virgilio de Almeida, recalled that the northeasterner is seen in Sao Paulo as lazy and incompetent but remembered that this group has been responsible for the construction of the city. The rabbi of the Jewish community, Henry Sobel, stated that it was of prime importance to educate public opinion that discrimination of any kind threatens the very foundations of society.

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