Brazil

Brazilian NGOs FASE and IBASE, the National Commission for the Environment of CUT (Brazilian Workers Union), Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, addressed a letter to the Federal Government expressing their doubts about the promise made by President Fernando Henrique Cardozo during his visit to the UK last December, to guarantee the protection of 10% of the Brazilian forests until year 2000. The organizations demand effective measures to protect the Mata Atlantica and the Amazon.

For the first time in Brazilian history the Federal Government has been condemned by the Court to pay a compensation to the Panara -also called Krenhakarore- indigenous people of Mato Grosso because of the damages and deaths suffered as a consequence of interethnic contacts. The Panara were forced to abandon their lands, which were to be crossed by the new highway Cuiaba-Santarem, and reestablished at Xingu National Park. In the period 1973-1976 a total of 186 persons died of influenza, diarrhoea and other illnesses.

The main trade union of Aracruz Celulose (SINTICEL) has a project to monitor the pulpmill's effluents. The union is convinced than the company is tampering the results of the chemical analysis of its effluents, thus subjecting the whole community to health hazards and impacting on the ecosystem. SINTICEL has the technical capacity to establish its own laboratory to carry out the chemical analysis of effluents, but lacks the financial resources to do so.

Fulgencio Manuel da Silva, Brazilian union leader, and leader of dam-affected peoples' movement died in Recife on October 23 after having been shot the night before in Santa Maria da Boa Vista. Fulgencio had received death threats from drug traffickers in the region, for he had waged a crusade in favour of the farmers of the Sao Francisco River valley, and for the cease of the violence at the “caatinga”, the impoverished Northeastern region of the country.

In 1997, the Brazilian government defined its new policy strategy, in coordination with the recently launched “Brazil in Action” plan, regarding investments in infrastructure and new settlement and agricultural frontier in the Amazon region. The initiatives contained in the plan are designed to stimulate the expansion of the Mercosur (Southern Common Market, formed by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay) and to improve conditions for increased exports to the northern hemisphere.

Analysis of NOAA satellite data indicates that burning in the Brazilian Amazon increased 28% between 1996 and 1997. The average number of fires per day increased from 466 to 599. The actual increase for the year may be even greater, since 1997 is drier than 1996 and burning continues. Analysis of the NOAA-12 data under-counts the actual number of fires, so the situation is in reality worse.

The Executive Commission of the Tupinikim and Guarani had met in the village of Comboios on 13 September to evaluate the visit of representatives of FUNAI’s Regional Administration (ADR) and FUNAI’s officials on September 9 and 10. The visitors allegated that ADR was not well-informed about the land matter and also that they had some useful information to support the indigenous struggle.

According to a decision of the Federal Public Ministry and the Court of Justice of Acre State, the swiss NGO Selva Viva is up to be expelled from the Brazilian territory. CIMI and the Union of Indigenous Nations of Acre (Uniao das Nacoes Indigenas do Acre) had denounced Selva Viva in the courts for suspected activities of biopiracy, because of its activities of cataloguing roots, barks and seeds for international laboratories (Ciba-Geigy, Hoechst, Sandoz, Lilly and Johnson & Johnson. Acre is the first Brazilian State that approved a law to protect biodiversity.

Malaysian forestry companies could be given a thirty-year concession in South Africa to establish 300.000 hectares of industrial tree plantations in the Transkei in Eastern Cape province. Such project has raised very difficult and delicate questions given that this is probably South Africa's most impoverished area and plantations are being presented as providing development, jobs and money. Malaysian companies would also receive exclusive rights to develop elite and exclusive tourist resorts in the most pristine areas of coastal forest endemism.

The four big pulp and paper projects in the Brazilian Amazon (Companhia Suzano de Papel e Celulose and CELMAR in Maranhao, Jari Celulose in Para, and Champion in Amapa) are facing important problems from the economic, social and environmental points of view. The anarchic character of the pulp and paper industry has resulted in falls in the prices of market pulp. Rural workers denounce illegal work contracts while peasants protest about the expansion of the lands owned by the companies. Champion bought a total of 448.000 hectares in Amapa.

A report on the activities of Asian logging companies in the Brazilian Amazon, prepared by a special committee of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies will be ready by the end of August. According to Deputy Gilney Viana of Matto Grosso (Workers' Party), two dozen transnational logging companies are working in the Amazon. Those financed by Malaysian and Chinese capitals entered the area in 1995. The Malaysian WTK Group bought 1.400.000 hectares at Carauari Municipality, Amazonia State, in association with the Brazilian company Amaplac that exports plywood.

Even if the Minister of Justice devoted just a few minutes to meet with Indigenous Peoples' delegates and representatives of CIMI on July 15th, they were able to hand him 3800 signatures from 29 countries expressing support to their struggle. A meeting with the undersecretary was arranged for August 12th. In the meantime, Aracruz does not seem to change its attitude towards Indigenous claims.