NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #27/NN_1992_27.iso/spool/misc/activism/progress/8444

Text File | 1992-11-17 | 5.3 KB | 132 lines

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From: [e-mail] (Rich Winkel)
Subject: BRAZIL: tales of horror about forced labour
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/** reg.samerica: 199.0 **/
** Topic: IPS:BRASIL-Father Rezende in europe **
** Written  8:32 pm  Nov  9, 1992 by jbinder in cdp:reg.samerica **
From: James Binder <jbinder>
Subject: IPS:BRASIL-Father Rezende in europe

Title: BRAZIL: Priest travels with tales of horror about forced labour

an inter press service feature

by moyra ashford

london, nov 4 (ips) -- the brazilian catholic priest ricardo
rezende does not wear a dog collar when he travels. instead, he
carries a briefcase of colour photographs of the dead and maimed
victims of frontier violence in the eastern amazon.

even during his current trip to europe, thousands of miles from
the parish of rio maria in para state where he has 24-hour police
protection, rezende, 41, retains the watchfulness of a man who has
himself been in the sights of hired gunmen.

with their twisted torsos, ragged peasant's clothing and skin
punctured by multiple bullet wounds, many of the bodies uncannily
recall catholic imagery of the crucifixion.

''when i found ze canuto's body by the roadside, two images
flashed into my mind: of jesus christ and the assassination of che
guevara,'' rezende told ips while on a recent visit to london.

canuto and his brother -- both linked to a rural workers union --
were murdered in 1990. five years earlier, their union leader
father, joao, was also assassinated.

rezende, now in italy where he will once more show his pictures
in the hope of gaining international attention, was in london last
week to receive the 1992 anti-slavery award from the london-based
anti-slavery international.

rezende has dedicated the award to brazil's land martyrs ''who,
in the depth of the night, weave threads of hope and light''.

the award was also a tribute to the catholic-run pastoral land
commission (cpt) which, since 1975, has systematically documented
cases of violence against smallholders and rural workers, forced
labour and debt bondage.

last year the cpt recorded 41 deaths over land disputes and,
earlier this year, in a report published on slavery in brazil, it
counted 4,884 workers in conditions of slavery on 27 farms.

despite amnesty international's adoption of joao canuto's case
three years ago, the initial police inquiry has yet to be
completed. the two police officers identified for killing the sons
disappeared after escaping from jail.

last year, expedito de souza, canuto's successor as head of the
rio maria union was also murdered in a death which rezende
compares to the plot of gabriel garcia marques' novel, 'chronicle
of a death foretold.'(more/ips)

brazil: priest travels with tales of horror about forced labour(2-e)

brazil: priest (2)

''except,'' said rezende, ''this case was worse. in marques,
everyone in the village except the victim knew he was going to
die. in ours, expedito knew, the town knew, the whole country knew -
it was even known internationally. yet it was not prevented.''

another photograph shows the swollen face of 17-year-old ze
perreira, who survived a bullet entering the nape of his neck and
exiting under one eye while escaping from forced labour on an
amazonian ranch.

perreira had gone to seek work in the small town of xinguara.
two days after being offered accommodation in a rooming house, the
owner handed him over to a 'gato', or ranch subcontractor, a
transaction common in the region.

once on the farm, perreira discovered that he would have to buy
food from the 'gato' and would not be allowed to leave until he
had repaid the rooming house expenses. he also learned that two
workers had been killed by the rancher's henchmen.

together with a companion, he left the farm on foot at night in a
bid for freedom.

when the gunmen found them, they killed his companion and, taking
perreira for dead, wrapped the two in plastic sheeting, threw them
in the back of their truck and dumped them by the roadside on a
neighbouring farm.

yet, in the face of continuing impunity for those who order and
execute the crimes in brazil's frontier regions, does
international opinion make any difference?

''i believe so,'' said rezende. ''since u.s. papers reported
expedito's death, the brazilian government has paid more
attention. the present government is sensitive to pressure from
amnesty international and americas watch.''

''for the first time this year there has been some policing in
rio maria and investigations have been carried out. and the world
bank's freeze on financing roads through the amazon has helped
prevent slave labour in forest clearances.''

rezende sees three short term solutions: protecting those under
threat, road blocks at the entrances to ranches contracting slave
labour and enforcing the constitutional right to confiscate the
land of landowners violating labour laws. ultimately, ''the
definitive solution,'' he said, ''is land reform.''
(end/ips/hr/ma/jm/cpg/92)


** End of text from cdp:reg.samerica **