The number of cases of slave labor in the states of Mato Grosso and Maranhão kept increasing: in the first 7.5 months of this year, reports received by the CPT Campaign Against Slave Labor in the states of Pará, Mato Grosso, Tocantins and Maranhão already totaled 229 cases (involving 7,623 workers), as opposed to 127 cases and 5,089 workers in 2002, for the same period. The rescues made up to the end of September (4,256 workers liberated, 895 by the DRT and 3,361 by the Mobile Group) represent almost double the whole year of 2002 (2,152 liberated), although they are still short of the amount needed, if compared to the total number of requests.

Slave Labor Denunciations Result in New Threats Against CPT Agents, Workers, and Federal Prosecutors.

Fr. Xavier Plassat*

In March 2003, the Federal Government adopted a National Plan for Eradication of Slave Labor, issued by President Lula. The CPT (Pastoral Land Commission) has contributed to it enormously, starting with the National Campaign of Combat Against Slave Labor kicked off in 1997, especially in the states of Pará, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, and Tocantins.

The Plan already started with an intensification of inspections by the Mobile Group and some from the Regional Labor Police (Delegacía Regional do Trabalho, DRT) and by innovative interventions by the Justice of Labor (mobile courts), by the Public Ministry of Labor (fines for moral damages, with dissuasive value) and by the Federal Public Ministry (several requests for imprisonment followed by prison sentences decreed by the Federal Justice). However, the Plan is still far from producing the expected results.

In spite of insufficient information regarding the states of Mato Grosso and Maranhão, the number of referrals keeps growing: in the first 7.5 months of this year, the reports received by the CPT Campaign teams against slave labor, in the states of Pará, Maranhão, Mato Grosso and Tocantins already totaled 229 cases (involving 7,623 workers) in 2003, as opposed to 127 cases and 5,089 worders in 2002, for the same period.

The rescues that have been carried out up to the end of September (4,256 workers freed, 895 by the DRT and 3361 by the Mobile Group) equal almost double the whole year of 2002 (2,152 workers liberated), even though they are still short of what is necessary, compared to the total number of requests. Although the dividing line is often vague, a higher rate of cases (12%) can be described as super-exploitation (informality, extremely precarious work conditions, non-payment), without evidence of additional characteristics of slave labor (restriction of liberty, by violence, pressure or isolation). This may be an indication of change in the standard practices.

Overall, in the complaints taken in 2003, in which Pará continues to be the leader (52% of the cases, 70% of the workers involved: 3,475), the increase in number of cases in Tocantins is impressive (20 cases already, involving 859 workers).

The intensification of inspections has unleashed a strong reaction from suspected ranchers. In March of 2003, they persistent started a defamation campaign against the CPT in southern Pará, especially against Father Henri des Roziers. They also intensifyed the number of death threats in northern Tocantins.

Among the regions with the greatest occurrence of slave labor, the region of Iriri, situated between Iriri and Xingu rivers in southern Pará, is characterized by the striking absence of public services. In a recent inspection - after three years of practical absence of any operation - several ranches were investigated, based on complaints taken by agents of the CPT of Pará and Tocantins. As a result of this work, serious threats were made against workers, CPT agents, as well as the Federal Attorney of Palmas, in Tocantins.

These death threats probably came from a local rancher, Aldimir Nunes Lima, nicknamed "Branquinho", in whose ranch, during the period between June and July 2002, the CPT received news of five suspected deaths of workers who had been lured into the Ananás region (where Branquinho has a house, although he fled from it more than two years ago). These accusations, made at the time by CPT in front of the Special Commission to Combat Slave Labor (SEDH), resulted in a Federal Police operation with 10 arrest warrants, including one for Branquinho (who still remains a fugitive).

Since December 2002, three CPT agents have received death threats (Silvano Lima Rezende, Edmundo Rodrigues Costa, and Fr. Xavier Jean Marie Plassat), besides the Federal Attorney of Palmas, Dr. Mario Lucio de Avelar, and rural worker Jair Matos de Alencar, from Ananas, as detailed below:

In December 2002, we found out a plan against the Attorney General of Palmas, Dr. Mario Lucio de Avelar, and against Fr. Xavier Plassar, coordinator of the CPT National Campaign Against Slave Labor. The document also included "all the rest involved in the campaign", who they called "small fish". Rancher Branquinho would have commented that "he had already taken precautions to wipe out" those people "who caused him so much damage". In mid-May 2003, he "let it be known that he already knew who had denounced him to the Federal Police".

In mid-June, someone told Silvano and Edmundo, CPT agents in Araguaina (Tocantins), to be very careful walking around the city of Ananas (where both live with their families), as some ranchers might be planning something against them, for being considered as "the little priests who inform Fr. Xavier for him to file complaints against slave labor". Between May and June, three inspection operations were carried out in two ranches in Ananas, with more than 150 workers rescued. At the end of June, Silvano was informed his life was in great danger.
In Ananas, rural worker Jair Matos de Alencar, also received death threats. In mid-June, he was approached by Clodoaldo (a gunman and informant for several ranchers, whose name is associated with several crimes by contract) who warned him that "in a few days they will start falling one by one". He showed a 7.65 gun and added that doubts remained as to who had filed the complaints: "otherwise they'd have already been eliminated", At the end of June, Jair, in a bar conversation, heard someone saying: "Over there in Ananas people like Jair, Mario Lucio and Silvano should be already gone. Those three are marked men".
There is also evidence of death threats against the Federal Attorney. During three days, a Fiat Palio vehicle, with dark windows, tailed Dr. Mario Lucio Avelar's car. The following week, on August 7, 2003, two strangers riding a motorcycle stopped the Attorney's car (that was driven by a friend). One of them drew a gun as the other yelled: "No, that's not him!"

On September 24, 2003, as the police siege was closing in around him, rancher Aldimir Lima Nunes turned himself in to the Federal Police in Marabá, and preventive imprisonment was ordered by the Marabá federal judge, where he is still held today.

*Fr. Xavier Plassat is the coordinator of the National Campaign Against Slave Labor for the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT).