Number 65, February 11, 1993.

HUMAN RIGHTS

- Massacre in Carandiru and campaign against impunity.

The massacre of 111 prisoners in the prison of Carandiru, in Sao Paulo, on the 2nd of October last, will be the theme of the Southern Region of the National Movement for Human Rights' Campaign Against Impunity. Human rights groups from all over Sao Paulo will gather to discuss the campaign, planned to start soon. There is good reason for choosing this theme. The final report of the Military Police inquiry into the events of that fatal day in October, published last week, concluded that "there was no massacre" in the prison and not one single person was found responsible. The state government act, as if nothing out of the ordinary happened on that day. However, the reports from civil society entities are still to be seen and they state, without a doubt, that there was a premeditated massacre in the prison, bearing almost on genocide.

The other seven regions of the Movement for Human Rights are also in the process of choosing the most alarming cases of impunity in their areas, to be used in the campaign.

CHURCHES

- CNBB seeks just agrarian reform law from President Itamar.

The National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB) sent a telegram to President Itamar Franco, concerning the project for Agrarian Reform, approved by parliament and which is at present on the president's desk, awaiting his sanction. Signed by the president of the CNBB, d. Luciano Mendes de Almeida, the vice-president, d. Serafim Fernandes de Araujo and the secretary general, d. Celso Quiroz, the telegram states: "At the moment in which the President of the Republic receives the project of Agrarian Reform, we would like to express the wishes of the Brazilian people in having, at last, a just law, making the equitable distribution of land, which guarantees work and a dignified life for the greatest number of Brazilians".

Meanwhile, entities directly linked to the land question in Brazil, continue to pressurize the President, Itamar Franco, to veto 7 articles of the project passed by parliament, in order to guarantee that a minimum of Agrarian Reform be possible. Several well-organized groups support this campaign: The Churches' Pastoral for Land (CPT), the Movement of Landless Rural Workers (MST), the National Federation of Agricultural Workers (CONTAG) and the Rural Department of the Sole Central Congress of Trade Unions (CUT).

- Landowners use drugs on rural workers in Paraiba.

The Health Department of Paraiba has just confirmed accusations made by state deputy, Simao Almeida, of the Communist Party of Brazil (PC do B), about landowners using the drug Artane (which causes hallucinations), on rural workers in Paraiba. The landowners use the drug to shake off hunger and fatigue in their workers. Last month, the police in Paraiba arrested a man called, Francisco Ananias Xavier, who was carrying 300 bottles of the medicine, which he said he was going to sell to the landowners. Made from atropine and scapolamine, the Artane affects the central nervous system and provokes hallucinations. Simao Almeida discovered that the workers were obliged to take two Artane tablets a day. In this way the hunger was warded off and they could "produce" more on the plantations.

CHURCHES

- Neo Nazism in Brazil worries Anglican bishops.

In a pastoral letter just published, in Porto Alegre, eleven bishops of the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil state that the recent manifestations, in Sao Paulo and other capitals in the south, of neo-nazism against negros, jews and people from the northeast, are very worrying. "Racial, social and other kinds of discrimination contradict the gospels, the teaching of the Apostles and our faith in God, Who created all in His image and likeness", say the bishops.

They continue by affirming that "1993 should be a year for learning", that in 1992, the country "resolved a vital problem for its' institutions - corruption - by legal means, maintaining democracy intact". They add, however, that "democracy needs constant vigilance and apprenticeship in order to be preserved" and that the plebiscite marked for the 21st. of April next, concerning the system and form of government, will be "an excellent opportunity for such an apprenticeship".

The Anglican bishops say they are equally worried about the situation of the Indians, whose lands, demarcated or not, "continue to be invaded by land grabbers, and mining prospectors". Based on the premise that "the goodness of God is the source of life", the bishops emphasize that "this is sufficient to give us courage to repudiate vigorously, the degrading manifestations against individuals because of their race, social status or culture and work for the construction of a society where there is a welcome for those who are different and respect for diversity".

- A new church is founded in Rio de Janeiro every working day.

With each new work day, a new pentecostal church is founded in the State of Rio de Janeiro, especially in the metropolitan region of the capital, the city of Rio. Of the 710 new churches founded within the last three years, 91.26% are pentecostal. They are not, however linked to the historical or traditional Protestant Churches.

This conclusion was made by the Institute for Religious Studies (ISER), in the Evangelical Institutional Census, which has just been published in conjunction with the Evangelical Association of Brazil. Coordinated by ISER's Research group, the survey shows that there are 4000 evangelical institutions in the greater Rio Region. Another phenomenon revealed by the survey is the "Brazilianess" of these new churches. In 52 new denominations analyzed, 30 were created in the State of Rio, 9 in other states and only 13 were founded abroad.

- CNBB in the Amazon produces radio programs on plebiscite.

A series of 17 radio programs on the question of the system and form of government, subject of the plebiscite to be held on April 21st., has just been produced by the North 2 Region of the National Conference of the Bishops of Brazil. Each program lasts 3 minutes. The CNBB are worried about the lack of information on the subject and the short time available to have a national debate on a question of such importance. The CNBB says that it is not so much concerned with the outcome of the plebiscite (either parliamentary or presidential system), but, rather, that the people be aware of the choices and their implications.

- Presbyterians debate the advance of charismatic groups.

The advance of charismatic movements within the Independent Presbyterian Church (IPI) in Brazil, will be debated among other themes, at the 13th General Council of the Church, which will be held between February 15 and 19, in Sao Sebastiao, Sao Paulo. Representatives from the 42 regional areas will take part. Founded in 1903, in Sao Paulo, the IPI has approximately 80 thousand members in Brazil. Pastor Abival Pires da Silveira will preside the Council.

URBAN QUESTIONS

-Social temperature rises in southeast.

A new wave of urban, collective violence, with widespread looting and clashes between the population and the police is worrying authorities in the Southeastern states of Brazil, especially in Sao Paulo and Parana. The principal cause of these outbreaks of violence is the critical social situation of lower-income families faced with galloping inflation.

One of the signs that the social temperature is at boiling point is the present conflicts between street vendors and the city authorities in Sao Paulo and Campinas. Court employees in Sao Paulo also clashed with the police last Wednesday, in the center of the city. They are on strike for better wages. The middle classes are rapidly becoming poorer. The cost of living in Sao Paulo, for those earning between one and 30 minimum salaries (that is between US$ 72 and US$ 720 per month), went up by 32.9% in the month of January alone, according to the figures of the Inter-union Department of Statistics for Socio-Economic Studies (Diesse). This was 10% more than the rise in December of 92. The yearly inflation rate in the country is approximately 1.200%.

- Center of Sao Paulo has almost 5 thousand beggars.

Around 5 thousand beggars survive on the streets in the center of Sao Paulo, according to estimates made by the Archdiocese's Pastoral for Housing and the Center for Human Rights. The numbers are imprecise, because of the constant flow of people forced to live under bridges and in public areas, due to unemployment, low wages and lack of housing.

WOMEN'S QUESTIONS

- Feminists from abroad meet against violence.

Feminists from Germany, Portugal, Belgium and Canada, will take part at the 1st. National Meeting of Grassroots Entities Concerned about Violence against Women, which will be held in Praia Grande, Sao Paulo, from the 4th to the 7th of March. According to one of the leaders of the Union of Women of Sao Paulo, Maria Amelia de Almeida Teles, one of the coordinators of the meeting, everyday, in Brazil, four women are murdered, in the same kind of circumstances that involved the murder of Daniela Perez, an actress from rede Globo TV. Last year, a special Parliamentary Inquiry into violence against women concluded that each year, one thousand women are killed, in Brazil, by their husbands or boyfriends. Research done by the Coletivo de Mulheres Negras, shows that, in the Santos region alone, 118 women were assassinated by their partners, between the months of of October and December of 1992. At the meeting, more than 300 women from all over Brazil will discuss measures to combat this wave of violence.

- Swiss wedding lures Brazilian women.

The lure of a wedding in Switzerland, is an easy road to slavery for Brazilian women, says the Information Center for Women from the Third World, based in Zurich, in a document prepared for the Continental Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, on adult and child prostitution, to be held in Sao Paulo, from the 15th. to the 19th of this month. According to the document, specialized agencies advertise Brazilian women in German and Swiss newspapers. The choice is made from photo albums and the clients pay a fixed price and also the travel expenses of the candidate. Once in Europe, the first three months, on a legal tourist visa, are dedicated to an experimental period. If the marriage is made, the women get a permanent visa. If not, they end up in a very difficult situation, faced with trying to live and work in Europe, with no legal documents and no support. Rarely their families in Brazil know anything about their real situation in Switzerland. In May 1991, a Brazilian, Cristina Thurnerr Goncalves de Lima, was murdered by her Swiss husband. Through contact with NGO's in the countries of origin, the Center for Information in Zurich are trying to help women understand the real situation they would face, if they accept the invitation of such marriage agencies.

TRADE UNIONS

- Medeiros tries for third term.

The president of the Metal Workers Union of Sao Paulo, Luiz Antonio de Medeiros, who also runs the country's second largest Congress of Trade Unions, Forca Sindical, (the largest is CUT), has already registered his candidature, seeking a third term, as union president. The election will be held between the 8th and the 10th of March.

Two other groups are disputing the election. The General Congress of Trade Unions, led by Ubiraci Dantes de Oliveira, ex-general secretary of the Union, expelled by Medeiros two years ago and the other is the Central Congress of Trade Unions, which might be led by the actual president of the State Federation of Metal Workers, linked to CUT, Carlos Alberto Grana. CUT's candidate will probably be decided at a meeting of metal workers to be held this Sunday, at the union of Bank Employees' headquarters. The effort to end Medeiros' leadership in Sao Paulo, has a long history. The opposition has always been divided on the question of the program for the union and this has always favored Medeiros.

Ex-ally of impeached president Fernando Collor, Medeiros was on various occasions tipped to be minister for Labor. During the recent elections for the mayor of Sao Paulo, he supported Paulo Maluf, of the right-wing PDS. One of the ideas of CUT to defeat Medeiros is the possible formation of a second metal workers union for Sao Paulo. But Medeiros continues to hold many trumph cards: the actual directory of the union have developed a very efficient assistentialist policy, especially for retired metal workers (who form a substantial number of those who vote in the election) and plan to transform the actual union headquarters into a center for medical assistance. The new headquarters, called the Palacio dos Trabalhadors, is a luxurious and sophisticated building, constructed by Medeiros in the center of Sao Paulo, with money from the federal government and from German trade unions.

- Metal workers to elect new unified directory in April.

Next April, the first directory of the new Unified Union of Metal Workers of the ABC region of Greater Sao Paulo, the principal industrial zone of Brazil, will be elected. The new trade union will be the principal labor base of the Sole Central Congress of Trade Unions (CUT) - with 144 thousand metal workers - from Santo Andre, Sao Bernardo do Campo, Diadema, Maua, Ribeirao Pires and Rio Grande da Serra.

A team of 34 union leaders from Sao Bernardo and 30 from Santo Andre were approved by CUT to run for election, as a unified front. Another Metal Workers Union, from Sao Caetano (the C of ABC), - linked to the Forca Sindical (the second largest congress of trade unions, led by Luiz Antonio de Medeiros), refused to accept the unification. They represent 18 thousand workers.

NATIONAL POLITICS

- President Itamar analyses plan against hunger.

The president, Itamar Franco, told his Ministers in the economic and social areas, to examine with urgency, the Plan against Hunger, prepared by the parallel government of the Workers Party (PT), presented to him on February 09 by the president of the party, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva. The Federal Government's own numbers show that 25% of the Brazilian population are affected directly with chronic hunger (that's 33.5 million people). The Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE), says that 43.1% of Brazilian children between the ages of 0 and 5 years, live in a state of extreme and permanent poverty. Last year, research carried out by the University of Bahia, found that 1.5 million of Salvador's 2.5 million inhabitants, live in the same state of absolute poverty. In Maceio, capital of Alagaos - a state dominated by a few powerful families - 26% of the children die before they reach the age of twelve months, victims of hunger and poverty related diseases.

Sociologist, Herbert de Souza, Betinho, winner of the 1992 National Human Rights Award, may coordinate the National Program to combat Hunger. The program, presented to the president, Itamar Franco, by the Workers Party, is being studied at present. Betinho's name heads the list given to Itamar by Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, president of the Workers Party.

GRASSROOTS QUESTIONS

- New book on the Amazon describes grassroots and ecological struggles and methods of organization.

"Jurua: O Rio que Chora" (Jurua: The River which Cries") is the title of a book recently published by Edicoes Vozes, Petropolis, Rio de Janeiro. It author is Joao Derickx. The following is a translated extract (pages 58 - 62) and deals with one of the very many serious ecological and social problems outlined and well documented in the book:

Predatory fishing a serious threat to Amazonian communities.

The Amazonian population have suffered for the last few years from an increasing violence against their traditional methods of sustenance. Fish which is their principal source of food runs the risk of disappearing or at best becoming so scarce that it will be an item of luxury and will be available only to the richer segments of the population.

Having literally destroyed the lakes nearer the capital of the state (Manaus) by predatory and indiscriminate fishing, the larger fishing boats have begun to invade more and more the tributaries of the Amazon in search of their lucrative merchandise. Such boats are numerous and large - on average they can carry 80 tons of fish and more recently they have begun to invade many of the lakes in the Amazonian region.

These boats use nets which in the majority of cases are large than those allowed by law. Such large fine nets when used in the rivers and lakes drawn in fish of all sizes and types. The destruction and waste involved are incalculable. Absurd facts happen - for example at the mouth of the river Xerua, an affluent of the river Jurua there are fishing boats present throughout the year. The jaraqui (kind of fish) are conserved under refrigeration. When the shoals of matrinchao (another kind of fish) appear which have a greater commercial value, tons of jaraqui are thrown into the river to leave room for the matrinchao in the freezers. Thus with the waste the water is also polluted; this water is used by those who live along the river.

1.Other forms of predatory fishing are the following :-

(a) The use of bombs: The Tefe lake for example is constantly attacked by fishermen who use this criminal method. Those who live along the river are constantly denouncing this method but the authorities do nothing.

(b) In recent years Colombian boats are invading the river Japura. They catch principally paraiba but during the last three years the criminal fishing of young aruana is also taking place. This fish produces an average of 150 young fish and during a certain period protects the small fish in its mouth. The method used by the Colombians is to capture and kill the mother fish in order to get the young fish. These are then taken to La Pedrera where they are exported by plane.

(c) Another way of disrespecting nature is industrial fishing which is carried out even when the fish are spawning.

The communities defend themselves as best they can usually without the support of the majority of the authorities and organs involved in the question. Since the Constitution states that the rivers and lakes belong to the Federation, the fishing boats feel at ease to invade the rivers and lakes at any time of the year, including during the spawning period. Some of the riverside communities succeeded in organizing themselves and managed to have laws passed in their municipalities to preserve the lakes. This is an arm which could be better used.

2. The defense of the "daily bread".

Because of this situation of destruction and suffering the consequences in the form of hunger already affect some of the river-side regions and many communities are awakening to the problem. Thus in recent years an authentic grassroots movement has grown up to defend nature,especially the lakes. This movement is unfortunately unknown to many of the ecological groups.

The Prelacy of Tefe played a pioneer role in the work to organize the river-side population to defend the fish. The well beloved Brother Falco who died in 1988, was the coordinator of the pastoral team which visited frequently the rivers of the region. Falco had a profound knowledge of the life-style of the people and encouraged the formation of Fishing Committees to oppose the invasion of the big fishing boats. The law proposal for fishing in the Amazon which unfortunately was not adopted when the Federal and State Constitutions were recently rewritten was the result of his tireless work with the river-side population.

3. Can what God made be obliterated?

As the result of many meetings, journeys and courses the organization of the river-side population advanced. The facts related on such occasions are always shocking, especially those related by older person present concerning the disappearance of so many kinds of fish and the difference in the size of fish of a number of years ago and today.

When such facts are outlined many of the local people are thus helped in abandoning an ideology which is very strong in the region namely "what God made cannot be obliterated". At the moment, the river-side dweller would reflect in another way - "perhaps it will not be obliterated, but the situation is becoming more and more difficult .... and tomorrow what will our children eat?

Having noted the consequences of the lack of an adequate fishing policy for the Amazon and also of a supervision on the part of the competent organs, the Fishing Committees set about to have some lakes preserved. In the Amazonian river system there are not only 45 thousand kilometers of river but also thousands of lakes of all sizes. Normally the communities choose the nearby lakes for preservation.

1. A maintenance lake: This is a lake reserved for the food supply of the families who live nearby. From such a lake the local families can take the fish necessary for their food but only with simple fishing instruments.

2. Breeding lake: This lake is as sacred as a sanctuary. There nobody may fish, not even the families who live nearby. It is a lake where the fish breed, grow and multiply and such fish will later populate other rivers and lakes.

But just as all grassroots movements have their problems, the struggle to preserve the lakes is not easy. It demands much sacrifice, interest, courage and organization. The fishing boats when they discover the existence of such lakes do all in their power to steal the fish.

4. The weak in the struggle against the invasion of the lakes.

Sometimes the invasion happens with the support of a local person who has not been involved in the grassroots movement and wishes to get some money from this. On other occasions, when the owner of the fishing boats get to know of a need of the community, they seek to gain the sympathy of the president of the association or another person in a leadership position and "rent" the lake for such items as a generator or an outboard motor. And sometimes the defense of the lake is poorly organized. When the community finds out about the invasion, the fishing boat is already a long way away.

5. "Hinderances" (empate) against the invasions.

In order to maintain the preservation of the lakes, many communities maintain a kind of duty roster. Each night a group watches the entry to the lake. At time an obstacle is built at the mouth of the lake to prevent the entry of a fishing boat.

The confrontation with the fishing boats happens in a number of ways:

Firstly, the community warns the invaders and tries to gain their sympathy by explaining the importance of the preservation which will bring benefits to all even to those involved in commercial fishing.

When the invasion takes place on a second occasion, the community threatens to call IBAMA (the government organ responsible for forestry and fishing) or the river police. However, in most cases the fishing boats are not worried about such threats. In such circumstances, the community has other problems such as the long distances and the high cost of travel involved to seek out these organs.

It has sometimes happened that the more organized and courageous communities have faced up to the invaders in a more firm way confiscating their equipment, canoes and fish. There were cases in which communities closed the mouth of the lake with trees and thus either prohibited the entry of the boats or left them imprisoned within the lakes.

6. A study document for the river-side population.

In recent years, the Land Pastoral Commission (CPT) accompanied and encouraged the struggle to defend the fish. It organized several regional meetings. Its bulletin called "Paneiro" gives information and lists denouncements. At the moment, two people are surveying commercial fishing in the Amazon as well as the method of preservation of the lakes. In December of 1991, members of the CPT also published a study document which advises local communities about the preservation of the lakes and rivers.

IBAMA has a mere 44 functionaries in the State of Amazonia; this would not be the equivalent of one functionary per municipality. On the other hand, there are thousands of river-side dwellers who are more than willing to struggle for the defense of the environment and its survival.

Editora Vozes may be contacted at the following address:

Rua Frei Luis 100,

25689-900 Petropolis,

Rio de Janeiro,

Brazil.

The author may be contacted at the following address:

Casa Paroquial,

Praca Paulino Gomes s/n,

69500-000 Carauari,

AM., Brazil.

Phone(092)491-1206.

The reproduction of this material is permitted as long as the source is cited.