Two days after the murder of an American nun who fought against the deforestation of the Amazon, the Brazilian government decided to renew the licenses to cut down the trees in the rapidly depleting jungles
New York Times and Guardian
Rio de Janeiro
To the astonishment of environmental conservation organizations around the world, the Brazilian government this week renewed licenses for cutting down trees, which were frozen last year as part of the initiative to try and stop the process of deforestation in the jungle areas of the Amazon - which are rapidly depleting. The severe violence used by the loggers' companies and the landowners against the conservation decision was, according to the environmental activists, the main reason for renewing the licenses: in protest of the conservation attempts, the loggers recently blocked major roads in the heart of the jungle, burned buses and threatened to pollute the waterways with chemicals and take over one of the airports in the area. At the height of the organized violence, the Dominican nun Dorothy Stang, 74, who was one of the prominent activists against the deforestation of the rainforest, was murdered in Brazil on Saturday.
Activists of environmental conservation organizations say they are angry at the government's decision, and find it difficult to understand its surrender to the landowners and companies operating in the Amazon. Only about three weeks ago, the inspector of the environment in the state of Para in the Amazon announced that the government "will not give in to blackmail". But after the leaders of the loggers warned that "blood will be spilled" if their demands were not met, and after the towns along the blocked roads put pressure on the government, the officials in Brasilia went back on their decision.
However, even before the government had time to surrender, one of the prominent activities against the deforestation of the Amazon fell victim. The nun Dorothy Stang, an activist for the rainforests and for the rights of local residents who are losing their source of livelihood due to the rapid degradation of the Amazon forests, was shot to death last week in Anapo, a town located about 1,800 km north of Sao Paulo. Government ministers and police officers, who arrived in the eastern Amazon region to investigate the murder, compared the case to the 1988 killing of rainforest activist Shiko Mendesh.
Stang recently received many threats on her life, but despite this she continued her activities. Recently, she met with the Minister of Human Rights, Nilmario Miranda, to report to him about four farmers who received threats on their lives from ranchers and wood dealers. "She was the embodiment of the crusade for the preservation of the rainforests, and worked to transfer the lands to the local residents who really deserved them," says Pastor Robson Lupesh, who worked alongside her.
The president of Brazil, Luis Incio da Silva ("Lula"), ordered an investigation to be opened. "This is an attempt to intimidate the federal government, and force it to stop protecting the living communities in the Amazon," said Lula in a television broadcast. But only two days after the murder, the government announced the sharp turn in its policy. In a statement published yesterday, it was stated that the government "did not give in to pressure or back down from previous decisions it made", and it was noted that the renewal of logging licenses is a "temporary measure" intended to put an end to "the impasse that productive sectors have fallen into" in the Amazon.
Environmental organizations do not believe the government's announcement. "Dorothy died fighting for the Amazon, just like Chico. More people will die if the government does not act," says Paulo Addario, head of Greenpeace in the Amazon. "Surrendering to blackmail is a dangerous precedent, and this is certainly the case here," says Adriana Ramosh, a researcher working for the environment. "It is forbidden for the government to reveal its exhaustion like this."
This is another dispute in a series of disputes between the government and those with interests, which ended in the government's surrender to a civil rebellion, since the rise to power of Lula and his left-affiliated party, two years ago. Ranchers, rice growers and farmers who blocked roads last year to prevent the establishment of an Indian reservation in the northern Amazon, have also succeeded in their fight against the government, and landless farmers regularly invade farms without legal action being taken against them.
Behind the controversy over the cutting of the trees is a more fundamental issue: land ownership in the Amazon. All over the jungle, and especially in the region of Pará state near the city of Novo Progresso, lands belonging to the federal government were illegally seized and then sold without permission. However, according to the regulations passed last year, the government deletes most of the records of the land owners in the area. Those claiming ownership had to present documents for the re-registration of the lands by January 31. But following negotiations with the unruly loggers, the government agreed to postpone the target date.
The loggers are also accused of employing workers under slave conditions, not paying taxes on their profits, and bribing government officials to obtain export licenses. Lula's government said it intends to submit bills this month that would prevent private interests from taking over state lands and selling them.
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