Indigenous Resistance in Brazil against paper pulp producer

Last week, the movement of the landless workers in Brazil made a major stride in taking over land that was held by the largest paper pulp producer, Aracruz.

This is a direct action of people against the government, which was dragging its feet on the land reforms in the country. It is estimated that during Lula's [Brazil's president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva] government, a vast amount of public resources have continued to be passed to transnational companies like Aracruz, which received almost thrice as much as all Brazil's peasants together received in the whole of the year 2005.

In a statement, Ms. Tonin of the MST (Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra), "The realization of land reform isn't just dependent on the government. It is up to the actions of the peasant movements also, which is why from now onwards the tendency is for us to pressure [the government] more forcefully." Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra(MST)is a recipient of of the 'King Baudouin International Development Prize for having restored the dignity of the landless in Brazil.

MST participated in the People's Health Assembly and contributed immensely in the area of land reforms, indegenous knowledge, traditional farming, and campaign planning.