Brazilian Senate debates dire situation of Guarani Indians

[Meshuga]

I am posting this article since it relates to the other woman who is running for president in Brazil. Marina Silva is a former rubber tapper and a respected environmentalist who left the Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) with frustration. She is running for president as the Green Party candidate.



The article:

Five days after the publication of Survival International’s report on the Guarani to the UN which highlighted the denial of their land rights by the Brazilian government, the Brazilian Senate’s Human Rights Commission this Tuesday met to discuss the serious problems of discrimination and violence which the Guarani face...

...Senator Marina Silva, who called the debate, stated that the increase in the cultivation of soya and sugar cane and the growth of the beef industry are provoking violence against the Guarani and forcing them to leave their ancestral lands.

She added that this upheaval is putting the lives of the Guarani at risk, and that the rates of alcoholism, malnutrition and suicide have increased amongst the Guarani population...

...Public Prosecutor Dr. Marco Antônio Delfino de Almeida emphasized the inhumane treatment to which the Guarani are exposed, stating that ‘The Guarani do not have access to the same services as other citizens. It is an unacceptable case of prejudice… Indigenous issues in the country must be prioritized’.

He added, ‘There is nothing more degrading and humiliating for the indigenous people than to receive basic food baskets. The indigenous people need land to produce food and feed their families. The treatment they receive is a form of violence’...

...Rosana Kaingang, representative of the Association of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB), indicated that ‘If Brazil was democratic, it would not be imprisoning our leaders, violating our rights and sending the Police after us to invade our houses at dawn and to imprison heads of households’.

http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/5696

[protocol rv]

1. Watch "The Mission"

You may wish to buy the DVD of the film, "The Mission"

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091530/plotsummary

[Meshuga]

2. Yes,

I watched The Mission a looong time ago.

[protocol rv]

3. Good film

I cried when I saw it. It really upsets me when I realize there's so little justice in this world. And I'm not religious, so I can't even hope those bastards went to hell.

[naaman fletcher]

4. A powerful movie, very disturbing. nt.