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>Brazil peasants end land truce > > >The movement says pressure pays >Leaders of the landless movement in Brazil have ended a truce with the >government of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, by organising a new wave >of land invasions. >Peasant officials said unproductive farms and government property had been >occupied over the last few days because President Lula had failed to take >any concrete action to carry out land reform since taking up office in >January. >They said the present protests were only the beginning of a bigger campaign >of invasions starting next month. >The wait-and-see period is coming to an end > >Joao Paulo Rodrigues >MST leader >But the Brazilian Agrarian Development Minister, Miguel Rossetto, criticised >the protesters, saying the government was working towards a peaceful process >of land re-distribution. >President Lula's Workers Party has been a traditional ally of the Landless >Rural Workers Movement (MST). Land Invasions Signal End of Brazil Truce >STAN LEHMAN >Associated Press > >SAO PAULO, Brazil - A wave of invasions of farms and government offices in >recent days has abruptly ended a truce between landless farmworkers and >President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, their longtime defender. > >Since Saturday, farmworkers have occupied public and private property in >five Brazilian states, loudly resuming their favored tactic to pressure the >government to speed up agrarian reform. > >"We have waited long enough for the new government to take concrete action >in favor of agrarian reform," Joao Paulo Rodrigues, a leader of the of the >Landless Rural Workers Movement, or MST, said by phone Thursday. "The >wait-and-see period is coming to an end." > >The latest invasions are simply a dress rehearsal for a series of nationwide >of protests in April, Rodrigues said. > >It's an ironic twist for Silva, a former union boss who took office Jan. 1 >as Brazil's first left-wing president in 40 years. His Workers Party has >long championed land reform and the farmworkers' movement. > >Land distribution in Brazil is among the most uneven in the world. Some 90 >percent of the land is owned by just 20 percent of the people, while the >poorest 40 percent of the population holds just 1 percent. > >During his campaign, Silva, better known as Lula, wooed conservative >ranchers and landowners by claiming that only he could control the MST. For >months, the movement refrained from occupying land. > >The peace ended Saturday, when some 1,000 landless farmers occupied a ranch >80 miles west of Sao Paulo. > >The invasion was intended "to show Lula there's an unresolved issue he must >deal with," said Maria Rodrigues, who coordinated the occupation. > >The invasion was peaceful, but ranch owners quickly obtained an eviction >order. MST leaders said they would leave the ranch only if the government >finds another area to settle the squatters. > >On Tuesday, two other properties were occupied in two southern states. On >Wednesday, farmworkers took over the offices of the government's Agrarian >Reform Institute in two midwestern cities. > >Presidential Chief of Staff Jose Dirceu, a former radical who was jailed and >exiled by a previous military regime, urged protesters to "respect the >limits of democracy." > >Silva has not forgotten land reform, the Agrarian Development Ministry said. >In January, the government expropriated 500,000 acres of unproductive land >for redistribution to landless farmers, the ministry said. > >More of the same >The truce was declared on 1 January to coincide with inauguration of the >first left-wing Brazilian president for 40 years. >But last week, farm workers resumed their occupation of public and private >property in five Brazilian states. >The latest took place on Wednesday when about 500 women and 100 children set >up tents at the headquarters of the Agrarian Reform Institute (Incra) in the >Goias state capital Goiania, 200 km (125 miles) from Brasilia. > >Lula is a long-time supporter of the MST >"We have waited long enough for the new government to take concrete action >in favour of agrarian reform," Joao Paulo Rodrigues, an MST leader said. >"The wait-and-see period is coming to an end." >Mr Rodrigues said the invasions were only a prelude for nationwide protests >in April. >President Lula's government has called on the protesters to end their >practice of land seizures. >"It's legitimate to exert pressure, but we do not accept invasions of public >buildings or the occupation of productive rural lands," said Workers Party >president Jose Genoino. >The MST was created in 1985 to keep pressure on the government to speed up >its land reform programme. >They say occupying unproductive farms is the only way to push the government >to carry out land reform in Brazil. >Correspondents say land distribution in Brazil is among the most uneven in >the world, with 20% of the population owning 90% of farmland and the poorest >40% owning just 1% of the land
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