Proposal of Agenda: People affected by Dams organise national day of struggle

Next week, thousands people affected by dams will mobilise in several Brazilian cities to claim their rights, to denounce the actual energy model and to support the struggle of workers in the electricity sector. It is the national day of struggle that commemorates the International day of struggle against dams, for rivers, water and life on 14th of March.
 
For the Movement of People Affected by Dams (MAB), the Brazilian energy model, based on energy production by large scale dams, has caused immeasurable damage to the social and environmental communities affected and to the entire working class.
 
“The Brazilian government plans hydro power, grants environmental permits and releases public funds. However, until today the State does not have a policy of treating the affected populations” says Joceli Andrioli, the National Coordination of the MAB.
 
As a result, in each site where dams are built, the construction companies define how how to treat the affected people. “It is them who determine who is or not affected and who should or not be relocated or receive compensation. In the interest of reducing the cost and increase profits, the electricity companies will try to deny the rights of the most affected” adds Joceli.
 
The result is that the construction of dams in Brazil has left a trail of violations. A report by the Council for the Defence of Human Rights, linked to the Human Rights Secretariat of the Presidency, reported 16 types of human rights violations that occur on a recurring basis during the construction of dams. Over one million people have been displaced, thousands of these were landless, homeless, jobless and without income. And with the privatisation of the electricity sector, during the 1990s, the situation worsened.
 
Therefore the Movement of Dam Affected People demands:
 
1. For the rights of those affected:
a) to develop a proper policy of compensation for the losses and prejudices of the affected population, with the right to adequate resettlement, technical assistance, credit, maintenance and infrastructure.
b) to establish a fund for those affected by dams to supply resources to meet the policies of repair and the agenda of the rights of those affected.
c) that immediately will be created a body linked to ELETROBRÁS responsible to treat, care for and implement the policies of repair and treatment of the affected populations, with broad popular participation.
 
2. A ban on dams: we continue fighting against the construction of Belo Monte and other socially unjust and environmentally irresponsible dams.
 
3. No to privatisation of water and energy: we fight for the renewal of concessions in the electricity sector, and against the privatisation of the remaining state run companies. We oppose the privatisation of water, which has occurred in several Brazilian municipalities.
 
4. The price of electricity is a robbery, we claim changes in energy policy to lower fares for all Brazilian households.