Brasília – It is estimated that some 9 million Brazilian women who live in rural areas do not have any identification documents. With the objective of extending citizenship to those women, the Land Reform Institute (Incra) is launching a campaign to allow them to obtain documents (Programa Nacional de Documentação da Mulher Trabalhadora Rural).

According to the president of Incra, Rolf Hackbart, the campaign has been successful in its attempt to correct a longstanding error. "Women have always been shortchanged by the government, society and the family. Our priority is to get them documents. We will also be doing the same for men," says Hockbart.

Ms Maria de Lourdes, 42, who lives in one of Brazil's poorest regions, the Vale de Jequitinhonha, in Minas Gerais, has worked on the farm for 20 years. She has ten children and never had a document. "Things are getting better," she says. ""I never got documents because it was too far to go to get them. Now I just walked over here [to a local Incra office] and got an ID card, taxpayer identification and a work card - all free of charge."

More information on the document program can be obtained at Incra offices or on a toll-free line at 0800-78-7000.

Agência Brasil
Reporter:Marcela D'Alessandro
Translator: Allen Bennett
10/01/2004