From harelb Mon Jan 11 22:28:06 1993 Date: Mon, 11 Jan 93 19:14:42 EST From: harelb (Harel Barzilai) To: harelb Subject: BRAIL use PUT and/or FTP r Topic 640 News from Brazil 60 newsdesk IGC Networks Headlines Digest 11:55 am Jan 11, 1993 /* Written 9:29 pm Jan 7, 1993 by ax:sejup in igc:ax.agen.eng */ /* ---------- "News from Brazil 60" ---------- */ NEWS FROM BRAZIL supplied by AGEN (Agencia Ecumenica de Noticias) and Servico Espiritano de Justica e Paz. Number 60, January 07, 1993. ================================================================== CHILDREN AND YOUTH - 247 thousand children die in Brazil per year according to Unicef report. A report published by Unicef on December 17 places Brazil in 67th. place on the world scale of infant mortality. The figure for deaths of children of under 5 years is 247 thousand each year. The death rate is the equivalent of 67 infant deaths amongst each 1000 children. The statistics published by Unicef show that Brazil has a higher mortality rate than some of the poorest countries in Latin America. The Latin American country with the lowest infant mortality rate is Cuba which has an average per capita income of U.S. $1170 (the Brazilian average annual per capita income is U.S. $2680). In Cuba the average rate of infant mortality per 1000 children is 13. In Latin America, Colombia (annual average per capita income U.S.$1240) and Chile (U.S. $1940) are in second and third place. Brazil occupies 14th. place on the same scale for Latin America and is thus in a worse position than countries such as El Salvador (annual average per capita income U.S. $1100) and Paraguay (U.S. $1110). Other statistics published in the report help to explain the relatively high Brazilian infant mortality rate. 36% of the Brazilian population has no access to basic sanitation, 115 of children are under-weight at birth, a mere 4% are breast-fed and only 22% of those who start school finish the primary grade. Speaking of the situation of children in Brazil, the report comments "Much yet needs to be done until the measures adopted in favor of the rights of children in Brazil be considered satisfactory. However, constitutional and legal measures which already have taken place are a fundamental basis for progress". - 6 year old prostitutes in Recife. Street children of 6 years of age are already prostitutes in Recife, State of Pernambuco, according to a survey carried out over two years by the Casa de Passagem in that city. Of the 1015 children interviewed during the survey, 447 claimed they earned money through prostitution. The president of the Casa de Passagem, lawyer Ana Vasconcelos, claims that young girls and adolescents comprise 30% of the women involved in prostitution in Recife. The survey also revealed that 81% of such children do not know their father and mother. BOOK REVIEW - Amazon grassroots and ecology struggle described in recently published book. "Jurua: O Rio que Chora" ("Jurua: The River which Cries") In December 1992, the Vozes Publishing-House of Petropolis, Rio de Janeiro published a book with the above title. It was written by Rev. Joao Derickx who as a missionary of the Holy Ghost Congregation has spent many years in the heart of Amazonia. As a book it can be very highly recommended for two reasons: Joao Derickx, a native of Holland with his disciplined training in research and observation presents to us several aspects of the Amazon which no other publication to date managed to portray. Secondly, and this will be of significant interest to those interested in ecology or human rights questions in general, he presents to us a case study of the investment of the Catholic Church in such questions in the Amazon. Joao Derickx throughout the book is a spokesperson for the Amazonian population which is oppressed in many ways. Illiteracy is widespread - 85% of the total population, individuals and communities are frequently prey to the manipulations of the politicians and power seekers, the indigenous communities are by and large totally abandoned by government organs, health problems abound, the environment and consequently the local inhabitants are savagely attacked and the local rubber-tapper population is grossly exploited in the sale of the latex. However, it is clear throughout the book that the author is one who has lived close to the local population and he is able to describe the joys and hopes, the plans and dreams which fortunately are common as well amongst this marginalized population. This is a viewpoint which we do not often receive and is one which makes the book well worth reading. In all of Brazil, the Catholic Church has invested heavily in the formation and growth of grassroots movements in the last twenty years. While this is widely known, little has been documented and published about this work. This is one of the great strengths of this book. It presents well documented case studies for example of the organization of local Church groups in their struggle against local corrupt municipal administrations, of the organization and growth of grassroots movements amongst local communities such as the preservation of the lakes from large fishing boats and the rubber tapper organizations. Other case studies include the work of the Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI) and the Land Pastoral Commission (CPT). There are touching moments in the book when Joao Derickx allows us to glimpse into his inner self and briefly lets us see a personal spirituality which without doubt is a driving force for him in isolated Carauari, in the heart of the Amazon. Well-known Brazilian theologian Leonardo Boff commenting on the book remarks: "The book is a historical reference for the entire (Amazonian) region.... The extraordinary thing about the book is its global and integral aspect. In it there is poetry alongside struggle, there is a delight for nature alongside land conflicts, there is play combined with work. It is an ecological book, because ecology in its most eminent sense is an attitude which combines everything at all points". Editora Vozes may be contacted at the following address: Rua Frei Luis 100, 25689-900 Petropolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The author may be contacted at the following address: Casa Paroquial, Praca Paulino Gomes s/n, 69500-000 Carauari, AM., Brazil. Phone (092) 491-1206. INDIGENOUS PEOPLES - Gold prospectors invade Yanomani territory in mass. According to reports in the "Folha de So Paulo" of December 27 and 28, large numbers of gold prospectors have once again invaded the Yanomani territory in the State of Roraima. According to the administrator of Funai in Manaus (the government organ responsible for the indigenous question), Raimundo Catarino Serejo, "the entire Yanomami area has been occupied by gold- prospectors. The situation is chaotic". The national president of Funai, Sidney Possuelo, affirmed that there are now 11 thousand gold prospectors in the indigenous area of just over 94 thousand square kilometers and in which 9000 indians live in 200 villages. According to the Manaus coordinator of Funai, the landing strips which were destroyed in 1990 by the federal police and army are being used once again. Yanomami leader, Davi Yanomami claims that the Collor government used the demarcation of the area in November 1991 as "political propaganda in the lead-up to Eco-92". Meanwhile, Funai is severely understaffed in the Yanomami territory. In all, it has only 54 there. According to the local coordinator of Funai in Boa Vista, Glenio Alvarez, the entity requires double the number of functionaries. Other problems being faced by Funai include the lack of transport and large debts to local suppliers of food and gasoline. - Yanomami run risk of cholera outbreak. Since mid December fears exist that an outbreak of cholera could hit the Yanomami territory. Two gold prospectors who were working in the region of the Cauaburis river which flows through the Yanomami region were hospitalized with symptoms of the disease. If cholera breaks out amongst the Yanomami it would cause the death of many of this group since all the water used by the indians comes from the rivers and is not treated; besides there is no infrastructure to attend such an outbreak in the region. Approximately 3 thousand indians live in the region of the river Cauaburis. An estimated 2.500 gold prospectors have entered this region in recent months. HUMAN RIGHTS - Memorial to the missing. A monument to the memory of political prisoners who disappeared during the military dictatorship was inaugurated in the cemetery of Perus, Sao Paulo, on December 30 last by the mayoress of Sao Paulo, Luiza Erundina de Souza. It was her last public function as mayoress. The monument, designed by architect Ricardo Ohtake, overlooks the trench where two years ago the mortal remains of 1046 people were found - a macabre grave for the victims of political repression and the death squads as well as for indigents. The inscription on the monument reads "Here the dictators tried to hide the missing political prisoners, the victims of hunger, the victims of the violence of the police state and the death squads and above all, the rights of the poor citizens of Sao Paulo. Let it be known that the crimes against freedom will always be discovered. Luiza Erundina de Souza and the Commission of the Families of the Missing Political Prisoners". - Families of missing may get indemnity. The government of President Itamar Franco is preparing a project to be sent to the National Congress which proposes that the families of the political prisoners who are missing since the military dictatorship be paid indemnity. Sources in Brasilia say that at the moment the project is being discussed by the military ministers. If the project is approved, it will be the first concrete effort on the part of the federal government to redress in some way the crimes committed by the military regime. Meanwhile, the Ministry for Justice is negotiating with the military for permission to open the Armed Forces' archives on those who are missing as a step to facilitate the preparation of the project. RURAL QUESTIONS - Insecticides kill in the interior of Brazil. The widespread and indiscriminate use of insecticides in agriculture is provoking destruction and death in the interior of Brazil. Statistics from the Epidemiological Center of the Secretariat of Health of the State of Parana show that between January and August of 1992, 60 people died and a further 635 were intoxicated by insecticides in that state. A study made by the Catholic Church's Pastoral Commission for Land (CPT) in Mato Grosso concluded that the insecticide and fertilizer industries in Brazil have a turn-over of approximately U.S. $6 billion per year. DDT is the insecticide most commonly used. - Agrarian law in process of voting in National Congress. An agrarian law which will regulate agrarian reform in Brazil is in the process of being voted in the National Congress. The background to this new law is as follows: In 1988, conservative forces within Brazil led by the Democratic Rural Union (UDR) hindered the passing of a popular amendment which had received over a million signatures of support within the country. The law which was passed with the help of the UDR left many loop-holes. In 1989, grassroots movements and entities representing rural workers prepared a proposal for the agrarian law which had been called for by the 1988 Constitution. This proposal was presented in the National Congress by Deputy Antonio Maragon of the Workers' Party (PT) of the State of Rio Grande do Sul. With the election of a number of rural workers to the National Congress in 1991 the question was again taken up by various deputies of the Workers' Party. Because of the pressure coming from the grassroots movements as well as the worsening rural situation and the findings of the parliamentary commission of inquiry about rural violence, agrarian reform was once again discussed in Congress during 1992. The law project presented was approved by the Chamber of Deputies and sent to the Senate where it was approved at the beginning of last September. The proposed law was modified by 22 amendments in the Senate; these amendments will now have to be approved by the Chamber of Deputies. The law proposal which now returns to the Chamber of Deputies is clear on the social function of property. When property does not fulfill such a function, it can be disappropriated according to the law proposal; its disappropriation will depend on the degree of use of the land. The Chamber may only accept or reject the amendments of the Senate; it cannot now create new ones. Afterwards it goes to the President for his signature. The President has the power of total or partial veto; sections vetoed would then return to the National Congress for further consideration. - Decline in milk consumption leads to exportation for first time in Brazil. Until 1991, Brazil was an importer of milk. During 1992 a record milk exportation was recorded from the country; this exportation was due to the fact that 2 billion liters of milk went unused during 1992. This milk was exported to Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Argentine, Peru, Bolivia and in smaller quantities to East African countries. In all, approximately 80 thousand tons of milk powder were exported during the year. The milk was available for exportation due in large part to the fact that the government terminated many of its social programs and milk products which were normally bought for such programs now are available for exportation. The export price per ton was on average U.S. $1.500 which is considered by producers as being below the cost of production. - Social statistics show worsening conditions in Brazil. Recent statistics show that the construction industry dismissed 500 thousand workers between June of 1991 and July of 1992. These dismissals affected indirectly the employment of a further one and a half million workers. During last November, the civil construction sector of Sao Paulo dismissed 48.044 workers. The population of the favelas (shanty towns) of Rio de Janeiro rose from 721.217 inhabitants in 1980 to 961.176 in 1991 according to the Planning Institute of the Municipality (Instituto de Planejamento do Municipio - Iplan) of Rio de Janeiro - an increase of 33.27%. During the same period, the population of the city of Rio de Janeiro increased by 7% from 5.090.700 inhabitants in 1980 to 5.472.967 in 1990. Approximately 30 million Brazilian do not have access to treated water and 93 million (73 million in cities and 25 million rural dwellers) do not have sewerage connections. These precarious sanitary conditions are responsible for 80% of all illnesses and for 65% of all cases of hospitalization of children. ================================================================== The reproduction of our material is permitted as long as the source is cited. Our address is : Caixa Postal 62006, 03196-970 Vila Zelina, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Fax (011) 917-2151. Servico Espiritano's electronic mail-box is SEJUP and Agen's is AGEN; both are on the Alternex network of the APC system. Please let us know if this service is of use to you and send us your comments and suggestions as to how we may improve it. ================================================================== END Conf?