Newsroom     Agência Brasil

Brasilia – On Saturday, June 18, National Public Security Force (“Força Nacional de Segurança Pública”) agents escorted a group of nine people (four adults and five children) from a model farming community settlement (“assentamento”) in Nova Ipixuna to the city of Marabá in the state of Pará [note: the Força Nacional was created in 2004 during the Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva administration as part of an attempt to deal with security on a national scale, as opposed to the local or regional focus of the Policia Militar. The ranks of the Força Nacional are filled by specially trained members of the Policia Militar and firemen and is subordinated to the Ministry of Justice’s National Secretariat of Public Security].

The model farming community at Nova Ipixuna has been targeted by loggers. The community practices sustainable use of natural forest resources (“extrativista”). Last month, a married couple was assassinated there. The couple, Jose Claudio and Maria do Espirito Santo, made a living mainly by harvesting nuts and were environmental activists who stood up to logging interests.

One of the people in the group escorted by Força Nacional troops was the sister of Jose Claudio, who is also on a death threat list. The escort operation was part of Operation Defense of Life (“Operação Defesa da Vida”), which is intended to combat land conflict assassinations in the states of Pará, Rondônia and Amazonas.

According to the Ministry of Justice, the Pará state Human Rights Center (“Núcleo de Defesa dos Direitos Humanos do Estado do Pará”) will begin to examine the Nova Ipixuna murders today (Monday, June 20). Meanwhile, the Força Nacional will protect other people who have received death threats.

Besides the Força Nacional, Operation Defense of Life is supported by the Federal Police, the Highway Police (“Policia Rodoviária Federal”) and representatives of the federal government: the Secretariat of Human Rights, the Secretaria-Geral da Presidência, and the ministries of Agrarian Development, Defense, Environment, along with representatives of national councils of Justice and government attorneys (“Ministério Público”).

Allen Bennett – translator/editor The News in English

Link - Força Nacional de Segurança escolta extrativistas ameaçados de morte no Pará