Brasilia - On April 17, 1996, a confrontation occurred in Eldorado dos Carajás, in the southern part of the state of Pará, between members of the Landless Rural Worker Movement (Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra) (MST) and the Military Police (Polícia Militar). The conflict that ensued left 19 rural workers dead and 69 injured.

The conflict began when the police decided to remove the MST members who were camped on the PA-150 state highway (Rodovia PA-150), which links the capital, Belém, to the southern part of the state. There were 1,500 landless rural workers camped on the roadside protesting the delay in the demarcation of land for land reform.

Today we will present a series of reports on the tenth anniversary of what has become known as the Massacre of Carajás.

Translation: Allen Bennett