Brazilian environmentalists assassinated
Two prominent environmentalists in Brazil have been murdered within a few days of each other.
Paulo Cesar Vinha, 37, biologist and long-time activist of the Brazilian environmental movement, was assassinated on April 28 in Barra do Jucu, in the municipality of Vila Velha in the state of Espirito Santo, Brazil, where he lived. A former president of his state's Association of Biologists, Vinha was one of the coordinators of the NGO Forum of Espirito Santo.
At dawn on Sunday, May 2, Arnaldo Delcidio Ferreira, leader of the Rural Workers Union of Eldorado do Carajas, a city in the Amazon region, was shot as he lay sleeping at his home. A witness who saw the gunman described him leaving Ferreira's home and walking calmly down the street. The police have not yet made any arrests.
At the time of his death, Paulo Vinha was documenting on film the destruction of the coastal area in the region. He had been leading a broad movement against the indiscriminate extraction of sand by several companies in the great sand dunes and salt marshes of Vila Velha and Guapari, which was causing tremendous damage to the coastal ecosystems.
On the evening of the 28th, a large meeting protesting against the sand removals in Vila Velha was planned. It did not take place. Vinha's body had been found earlier that day on the sands which he fought to defend — with several bullet wounds and signs of a struggle. All of his belongings were found on or near the body, suggesting that robbery was not a motive.
Paulo Vinha was also one of the leaders of the movement opposing the activities of the Aracruz Celulosa, S.A., one of the largest pulp producers in the world.
All day on Sunday, April 25, he had participated in a large meeting in the village of Caieiras Velhas, in the municipality of Aracruz. The meeting was to discuss strategies to ensure that the native Tupiniquim and Guarani peoples could recover dominion over the extensive areas of land where they have lived traditionally. These lands had been occupied by Aracruz Celulosa during the years of military rule in Brazil.
Arnaldo Ferreira was well known for his campaigning against deforestation and against rural violence in the Para region. "Arnaldo was a dedicated rainforest activist", said director of Greenpeace Brazil Rubem Almeida. "It is impossible to describe the loss of yet another man who devoted his life to fighting for human rights and the preservation of the natural environment."
Ferreira worked regularly with Greenpeace Brazil. While the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior was in Belem, the capital of Para, Ferreira participated in a press conference to denounce violence and environmental destruction in south Para. He guided and helped to document the destruction to the Amazon rainforest caused by the mahogany loggers.
In November 1992 he was among a group of rural workers and rubber tappers who accompanied Greenpeace in occupying a sawmill of Maginco Co. on Rio Maria in Para to protest against predatory logging.
"After a second murder, we must call upon the minister of justice in Brazil to take all necessary measures to ensure that those responsible for these crimes are brought before the law", said Paul Gilding, executive director of Greenpeace International. "We hope this is the last in a series of tragic attacks against environmental and human rights activists."