Some News On the Struggle on the Land in Brazil
Hereby we publish some news that we found in the newspaper A Nova Democracia.
13 occupations in Pernambuco in the midst of the offensive of the Latifundium
Between the 4th and the 9th of May, the Movement of Rural Landless Workers (MST), accomplished 13 occupations in Pernambuco as part of the campaign “Red April”. The occupations included land of the Usina Santa Teresa and the Usina Nossa Senhora doe Carmo in Zona da Mata, as well as some farms in the Agreste and and the Sertão, adding more the 3,6 thousand peasant families.
Peasants of the MST occupied the farm Barra da Ribeira, in the Agreste, that is more then 20 years without being productive, such as the hacienda Copa Fruit, with the aim to call the government to move to accelerate the bureaucratic procedures. In Riacho das Almas, about 150 families occupied the farm Galdino, property of the former mayor Beto de Tôta. In Limoeiro, 205 families took part of the industrial area that is abandoned more than 10 years, seeking the the expropriation to make it a productive land once again. In Altinho, the peasants have occupied the hacienda Mandioca, denouncing the lack of productivity. The city has a history of struggle, including a violent displacement in 2011 where more then 50 policemen burned down the houses of the families that lived there.
On 10th of April, a tribunal approved the reintegration of the ownership of a part of the occupied farm, what led to tensions with the peasants. A local councilor, Dhiego Serra, expressed its support in favor of the police intervention displacing the peasants “with bullets” and called them “bandits”. This situation remembers the history of repression in this region, when 2018 the police displaced the families of the camp Chico Sales in a violent way, in the same property in which they used real ammunition and destroyed belongings, that way leaving the peasants without home. Nevertheless the police did not dispose any legal document for the reintegration.
Cássia Bechara of the MST, told that during the initial occupation, they been threatened by armed goons and big landlords. Despite the fact that they denounced it to the authorities, no effective measures have been taken.
The 6th of April 250 families have occupied Boi Caju 2, a place with massive occupational history. Also 200 families occupied the hacienda Primavera in Floresta and 110 the hacienda Brasil in Gravatá. The following day, about 300 families took theUsina Nossa Senhora do Carmo in Pombos, that was bankrupt for more then 20 years and has a history of violence and abuse, with at least 10 murders related to its history. The occupations seek to make the struggle for land and the peasants rights more visible.
During the morning of the 15th of April, about 800 peasants of the MST occupied the Usina Santa Teresa in Goiana, that is being owned Companhia Agroindustrial of Goiana (Caig), which owes salaries to more the 9,000 employees. The region concentrates in production of sugarcane and has more then 10 camps on its lands. The Usina, that is famous for its low salaries, violations of workers rights, has a violent history of including an attack in 1998 that ended up in the death of a peasant. In 2008 a popular trial condemned 14 of the 15 accused, 4 of which were Military Police officers, one captain and 9 goons. Even though it closed down in 2017, it re-opened in 2023 without keeping its promises to give 10 hectares for the construction of a space provide food and agricultural products to the cities. Other members, who are partners of the group, have been part of corruption cases regarding public budgets, when they worked as politicians.
Peasants begin a march towards the capital
Hundreds of peasants, organized in the MST, began a march towards Porto Alegre, capital of Rio Grande do Sul, demanding advances in the agrarian reform. More the 400 peasants, including settled and those who live in camps, marched more then 100 km form São Jerônimo.
The MST-RS highlighted in its Instagram that the march is seeking justice and the hand over of land by the State and federal government.. The 10th of April the peasants occupied a Latifundium in Triunfo, but they got displaced by the Police. During the occupation, the denounced the unaccomplishment of the governments to hand over land to the families that got affected by the floodings in 2024.
The march is part of “Red April”, a period of occupations to make pressure on the government. This year the peasants have confronted repression as well by the police as by the paramilitary groups, that have attacked a indigenous and peasants communities in different regions.
