Unnoticed violence affects Paraguayan campesino communities.

tent in Pariri ocupation In the middle of August 2007 another house got burned down in the peasant community of Pariri. In a plot where earlier in May already 3 more houses got destroyed. The recuperation of lands and the conflicts this causes reveal the nature of illegal soy expansion.

On February 26th an occupation was brought forth of 14 hectares of soy monoculture in this community. About 20 young people together with peasant organization MAP decided to try to reclaim a part of their community that over the last decade has been covered for more than half with soy monocultures.

Various intimidations from the hand of the district´s attorneys office and the national police have followed this occupation. A short overview of the facts :
-April 2007 : during a national meeting of the MAP organized in Pariri a member who was transporting people to the meeting got detained. He is released later on the day with a fine of 300.000 Gs, which is more than what a campesino earns in one month.
-May 2007 : the members decide to try to reclaim more land in the community belonging to another Brazilian soy producer, claming that they also are illegally transferred public lands.
- In the same month a group of police justifying their actions with a document of the supposed land title, destroy and burn 3 houses constructed by the occupants.
- Juni 2007 : kidnapping and disappearance of campesino, activist and occupant Perfecto Irala. After national and international denounce by MAP, the police notifies human rights coalition CODEHUPY that he was taken to the regional prison in Coronel Oviedo. More pressure and legal actions give him back his liberty but with restriction of movement. This means he has to travel to the town of Vaqueria to sign his presence once every month.
His son has a search of capture and had to hide. The MAP is trying to find resources to start a legal process for alternative measures.
- Under harsh winter conditions the original occupation continues. The 5 families remaining, planted crops for self subsistence like maize, cassava and more.
- July 2007 : After a lot of international pressure and legal and long and time consuming administrative way the MAP succeeded that an official would travel to the community to perform a new measurement of the plots, which would give them the possibility to reclaim the plots who were badly destined and illegally transferred. Unfortunately until now the Indert is trying to postpone the functionaries travel to the community.

These intimidations and brutalities committed by state officials are daily reality for a lot of campesino occupation and colonies in Paraguay. Campesino movements who are trying to protect their community from the expansion of monoculture export crops like soy.