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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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010989
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01098900.015
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1990-09-17
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WORLD, Page 38World NotesBRAZILA Jungle Slaying
Francisco Mendes Alves Filho knew he was going to be killed.
The Amazon environmentalist had already escaped three attempts on
his life. The fourth, just before Christmas, proved fatal. When
Mendes, 44, stepped from his house in the Brazilian jungle town of
Xapuri to take a shower in his backyard, a single shot cut him
down. Two police guards assigned to protect him were in the house
with Mendes' wife and two of their children.
Mendes had accused two wealthy landowner brothers, Darli and
Alvarino Alves da Silva, of plotting to kill him. Last week Darli's
son, Darci Alves da Silva Perera, 21, confessed to assassinating
Mendes. Police are convinced that Darci is trying to cover up for
his father and uncle and have arrested seven other relatives and
family friends in connection with the crime.
Mendes' death brought to 93 the number of people killed in land
disputes this year in Brazil. Human-rights groups claim that gunmen
hired by local landowners are to blame. Many victims, including
lawyers, priests and union leaders like Mendes, had been resisting
efforts by some landowners to turn large tracts of jungle into
profitable grazing land.