Tradeunion leaders and workers of Aracruz Celulose, with support of the company, practice acts of violence against the Tupinikim and Guarani Indians

 

More than 1,000 workers, easily liberated from work today by Aracruz Celulose and its out-sourced companies such as Plantar, went this morning around 10am to the harbour of Aracruz with the aim to take out the 300 Tupinikim and Guarani Indians who occupied yesterday the harbour for export of cellulose, with the aim to demand from the Minister of Justice Márcio Thomas Bastos a guarantee that the lands that traditionally belong to them, identified by the Funai since 1994, get demarcated this year, according to his own promises in a meeting with indigenous leaders in February 2006.

 

The Aracruz and outsourced workers, inflated by Davi Gomes (president of the trade union Sintieama, alley of the company) broke the gate of the harbour and entered in the area, practicing agression against the Indians, and also against several supporters of the Indians such as the state member of parliament Cláudio Vereza and one of the coordinators in Espirito Santo of the MST, Ronaldo. The military police at the spot is trying to keep the workers distant from the Indians to prevent more physical aggressions against the Indians.  The situation continues extremely tense.

It is good to remember that yesterday, the workers in the harbour applauded the Indians and the Indians declared yesterday in the press that their movement is not against the workers, on the contrary.

 

Several meetings in Brasília are dealing with the situation. According to several sources, the Minister of Justice is meeting with assistants and might give a pronunciation until the end of the afternoon. At the same time, the Human Person Rights Council (CDDPH), part of the Special Secretary on Human Rights of the Brazilian Republic, is discussing at this very moment the issue in a meeting where Tupinikim leader Paulo de Oliveira is participating.

 

We, supporters of the Tupinikim and Guarani struggle are extremely concerned with a major violent aggression against the Indians at this moment. We want to make an appeal to all of you to help putting pressure on the Brazilian government, so that it urgently demarcates the Tupinikim and Guarani lands. Further delay will only make the conflict continue for more time and worsen it more.

 

At the same time, we hold Aracruz Celulose responsible once again for stimulating and collaborating with acts of violence against the Tupinikim and Guarani indigenous peoples, and throwing workers against other workers (the Indians are also workers!) in order to ‘solve’ the situation. Several leaders of social movements and free trade unions in Espirito Santo declared they have never seen this situation before in history of the workers struggle in our state.

 

Alert against the Green Desert Network, 13 December 2006