The Landless Rural Workers’ Movement (MST) has escalated actions across Brazil, led by women, to urge President Lula’s government towards agrarian reform. Protests occurred in multiple states, advocating against agribusiness practices and demanding action for nearly 65 landless families. The MST also targets forestry companies, highlighting environmental degradation associated with monocultures. Overall, the actions aim to emphasize women’s roles in agriculture and push for systemic reforms.
The Landless Rural Workers’ Movement (MST) in Brazil orchestrated multiple actions on Thursday, March 13, primarily led by women to urge the government of President Lula to advance agrarian reform initiatives. This mobilization spanned 24 states and coincided with the Landless Women’s Day of Struggle, setting the stage for the upcoming Red April, a significant period for demanding agrarian reform. Occupations occurred in regions such as Bahia and Ceará, targeting lands that violate the social function stipulated in the Brazilian Constitution.
The MST protests aim to raise awareness of various agribusiness-related issues, including the detrimental effects of pesticide use, land appropriation, and violence affecting rural communities. The MST’s official communication asserted their mission to expose those who have historically opposed the people’s interests, advocating for a society rooted in ecological sustainability and socialist principles. Despite recent government actions to expropriate land for the settlement of 12,297 plots, the MST deems these efforts inadequate and insists on immediate resolutions for long-term occupancies of over 10 years by landless families.
Slogans such as “Agribusiness means violence and environmental crimes, women’s struggle stands against the capital” underscore the MST’s focus on tackling the dominance of forestry companies. In Espírito Santo, around a thousand women established an encampment at a Suzano-owned site, emphasizing the adverse effects of eucalyptus monoculture established since the 1960s. Concurrently, more than 250 women in Maranhão obstructed a major highway leading to one of Suzano’s largest factories, protesting the environmental threats posed by agribusiness.
Additional protests occurred in Guaíba, Rio Grande do Sul, where MST members denounced the expansion of harmful monocultures. The MST also filed a Notice of Fact with the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office, backed by various entities, addressing the deregulation of environmental standards and its detrimental social impacts.
In Bahia, approximately 300 families occupied unproductive lands as part of the Landless Women’s Day of Struggle, while in Ceará, over 220 families claimed agribusiness territories. The activists advocate for 2,000 hectares of land aimed at accommodating 200 families and have raised concerns over recently approved aerial pesticide spraying.
Occupations have extended to organizations like the National Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform (Incra), where 800 women in Maceió demanded action regarding peasant women’s issues. While protests in São Paulo prompted discussions about agrarian reform’s visibility, demonstrations in Mato Grosso addressed the assault on environmental policies by recent legislative approvals.
Initiatives in Brazil’s Federal District from March 11 to March 14 included tree planting and community activities, emphasizing the critical role women play in agriculture and promoting agroecological practices.
The ongoing mobilizations led by the Landless Rural Workers’ Movement in Brazil highlight the critical demand for agrarian reform and the role of women in this struggle. Despite government actions to redistribute lands, the MST asserts that such measures are insufficient. The protests not only aim to address land rights but also to expose the environmental misconduct associated with agribusiness. The sustained pressure from the MST underscores the urgency of enacting meaningful reforms that prioritize social equity and ecological health.
Original Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
