Brazil's first semester reports second-highest rural conflicts
In the first half of 2023, rural conflicts hit their second-highest point in a decade, with only the first six months of 2020 surpassing this figure. This data was published this week by the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT), an organ of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB), linked to the Catholic Church.
In total, 973 rural conflicts were reported in 2023, marking an 8 percent increase over the 900 conflicts during the same period in 2022.
According to the CPT report, land disputes dominated in 2023 (791), with rural slave-like labor (102) and water-related conflicts (80) following closely. Approximately 527,000 people were involved in these conflicts in the first half of the year, marking a 2 percent decrease compared to 2022.
Concerning land-related violence, indigenous peoples and their communities are the hardest-hit, accounting for 38.2 percent of cases, followed by landless rural workers (19.2%), squatters (14.1%), and quilombolas (12.2%).
Reduction in fatalities
During the first half of 2023, the CPT noted a significant decline in fatalities compared to the previous year, with 14 deaths in 2023, down from 29 in 2022, marking a 51.7 percent decrease. The report highlights that approximately 80 percent of these cases occurred in the Legal Amazon region (11), making it the most violent rural area in Brazil. Roughly half of the deaths resulted from pesticide contamination.
Indigenous peoples suffered the highest toll with six deaths, trailed by landless workers (5), squatters (1), quilombolas (1), and civil servants (1). There was a decrease in death threats, dropping from 78 in 2022 to 56 in 2023, as well as attempted murders, declining from 49 to 30 in the same period.
Slave-like labor
The CPT report reveals that the first half of 2023 witnessed a notable rise in cases of rural slave-like labor, reaching 102 (a 20% increase compared to the same period in 2022). Additionally, the number of people rescued from this condition surged to 1,408, marking a 43.9 percent increase in the same comparison. These figures represent the highest levels in the past decade.
Sugarcane cultivation had the highest number of rescues (532), followed by permanent crops (331), both of which are associated with agribusiness. Mining (104), deforestation (63), charcoal production (51), and livestock (46) also contributed to these figures.
Types of conflict
In the first half of 2023, 878 families lost their homes, 1,524 lost their crops, and 2,909 lost their belongings. Additionally, 554 families faced forced eviction, while 1,091 were judicially removed from their land. The period also witnessed 143 cases of pistolage, 85 incidents of land grabbing, and 185 instances of land invasion.
The CPT reported a reduction in water conflicts during the first half of 2023, dropping from 130 to 80. However, this decline in recorded incidents does not diminish the impact of projects that directly affect communities dependent on water for their survival. Indigenous peoples were the most affected at 32.5 percent, followed by quilombolas (23.75%), fishermen (15%), squatters (6.25%), and riverine communities (6.25%), as stated in the report.
Women victims
Violence against women in rural areas rose from 94 cases in 2022 to 107 in 2023, marking a 13.8 percent increase. A distressing incident was the rape of 30 Yanomami indigenous teenagers by illegal miners in February.
Women experienced various forms of harm, including intimidation (20 cases), death threats (16 cases), physical aggression (6 cases), legal persecution (5 cases), and instances of private imprisonment (5 cases).
