Day 238 - 22 Apr 96 - Page 18
1 confine them to tiny parcels of land, in a process using
2 intimidation and violence.
3
4 "Loss of their land to ranching has had devastating
5 effects, both culturally and physically for the Indians.
6 Corralled into tiny areas which can no longer sustain their
7 traditional agricultural practices, many are forced to seek
8 work elsewhere for example in the ranching and sugar cane
9 industries. An estimated 4,000 Guarani, ousted from their
10 villages, live on the periphery of towns and roads. Lack
11 of land and livelihood have led to the breakdown of family
12 life, loss of cultural identity and alienation. The tragic
13 response to this is manifested in the abnormally high rates
14 of suicide in the Guarani; in the last decade nearly 200
15 Guarani have committed suicide. In 1995 alone there were
16 54 suicides. The Catholic Missionary Council (CIMI), one
17 of Brazil's leading non-governmental organizations which
18 has worked with indigenous peoples in Brazil for several
19 decades, states that the main cause of the suicides 'has
20 been the invasion of indigenous lands by ranchers. Some
21 communities were completely expelled from their areas. The
22 Indians have made a number of attempts to return and
23 re-occupy their ancestral lands, but without success
24 because of the violence they suffer at the hands of the
25 ranchers and their hitmen, from the police and even with
26 the connivance of the official indigenist organ (FUNAI).'
27 (Povos Indigenas no Mato Grosso do Sul, CIMI/MS, Campo
28 Grande 1993).
29
30 "The examples given in my statement are just some of the
31 many cases of conflict and land theft caused by the cattle
32 ranching industry as a whole in Mato Grosso do Sul. The
33 industry has undoubtedly played a significant role in the
34 reduction in size of Indian lands, the climate of
35 intimidation and violence that prevails in many areas and
36 the consequent social and cultural disintegration of these
37 peoples in Mato Grosso do Sul."
38 A. I should just briefly add that these are just
39 examples. There is a continuing situation of tension and
40 conflict and, as cases go to the courts in Brazil, it takes
41 a long time to resolve and, in some cases, the courts --
42 there are people in the courts who are corrupt or who are
43 in alliance with local politicians or with ranchers. I
44 mean, that is something that has occurred in many parts of
45 Brazil as well.
46
47 So, it is very much an ongoing situation of conflict and
48 continuing cases in the courts. So it is very difficult to
49 pinpoint any one area and say this is just happening in one
50 area because, in fact, it is symptomatic of the whole of
51 the area, particularly the southern bit where the
52 Kaiowa-Guarani Indians live, the southern part of the map.
53 It is very much an ongoing conflict with a lot of violence
54 and many court cases which sometimes can take years to be
55 resolved.
56
57 Q. When you say the southern part of the map ---
58 A. I am referring to -----
59
60 Q. -- which map are you looking at?
