MAB members present struggle and resistance experiences at the Thematic Social Forum – Energy

Last Friday, on August 8^th, was the first day of the Thematic Social Forum in Brasilia. During the morning was held the debate – The resistance and struggle of those affected by dams: at Belo Monte – Rio Tapajós – Rio Madeira – Garabi and Panambi organized by the Movement of People Affected by Dams.

Activists of dam affected regions socialized struggle and resistance experiences against hydroelectric projects and in defence of the human rights of the affected families. According to Teresa Maciel Pessoa for years fishers of the Uruguay river suffer of the impacts of the many hydroelectric dams build on the Uruguay basin.

“ To build the Garabi and Panambi hydroelectric dams is the same as declaring once and for all the death of this river. We will continue struggling, we have already occupied the office of the company, we have blocked the International Harbour Porto Xavier and we will hold other mobilizations”, affirmed Teresa.

The experiences presented and the discussion among the participants pointed to the importance of the organization of the families affected and threatened by dams at the regions, because the process existent where the constructions have already started, shows that the legislation by itself, agreements between companies and governments becomes effective only with popular control and struggle.

Organizations members of the Labourers and Peasants Platform for Energy discuss the contradictions of the model of the Brazilian electrical system.

On the afternoon, was held the debate “The energy model and popular alternatives” with the participation of Gustavo Teixeira (FNU – National Federation of Urban Infrastructure Labourers /DIEESE), Cloviomar Cararine (FUP – Petrol Workers Front/DIEESE), José Josivaldo (MAB), and other activists of organizations members of the Labourers and Peasants Platform for Energy (POCE). The activity is part of the Thematic Social Forum on Energy, which was held on August 7^th until the 10^th at the University of Brasilia (UnB).

POCE have on the recent years gathered many workers organizations of the city and of the countryside, seeking for a deep analysis on today’s contradictions of the model of energy production and distribution in Brazil. This model should be confronted, not only on the perspective of science and technology, which are also important, without popular mobilization and presure are incapable to modify its bases which is based on the profit generation for large transnational companies.

According to José Josivaldo, coordinator of MAB, to discuss only a change at the energy sources does not mean to solve the problems at the electric sector which affects the Brazilian population. It’s necessary to reveal it’s real functioning, energy is produced only to supply large electro-intensive industries, which pays subsidized fares and which the speculators have broad freedom to generate extraordinary profits during more than 30 years of lease and the bill continues being passed forward to the residential consumers.

“We can’t permit that the majority of the Brazilian society is taken by this false discourse of shortage, created to promote more and more constructions of dams, which have violated the human rights of affected families”, concluded Josivaldo.