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| Brazilian
landless workers initiate their own land reform: Report
by Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy |
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The fact
that the success of a programme of land reform needs
the active involvement of the peasantry has been re-validated
by the landless workers movement--Movimento dos Trabalhadores
Rurais Sem-Terra (MST) of Brazil. Despite land reform
legislations that dictated that 'land serve its
social function' and therefore, promised land
to the poor landless, there had not been any real implementation
of such programmes of reform. Land grabbing and the
large extent of absentee landlordism affected adversely
both Brazil's economic development and its rural
poor. Faced with a promise that had not been delivered
upon, the landless workers struggle culminated in an
organized movement in the form of MST, which finally
saw the physical occupation of idle land by the landless
workers. This ultimately compelled the government to
follow up on its promises and legally hand over the
land to the workers. In the process of its struggle
against the powerful wealthy landholders, the MST has
ensured for its members both means of livelihood as
well as a better quality of life by providing education
and health care to them.
Based on a just-released book, the struggle of the MST
and its very convincing victory has been the subject
of a new report by the Food First/Institute for Food
and Development Policy.
To read, go to:
HTML:http://www.foodfirst.org/pubs/backgrdrs/2003/sp03v9n2.html
PDF: http://www.foodfirst.org/pubs/backgrdrs/2003/sp03v9n2.pdf
August 9, 2003. |
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