The Movement of People Affected by Dams (MAB) released an open letter calling for the rejection of the proposal by mining companies Vale and BHP Billiton, presented at the Rio Doce Renegotiation Board.
In the document, the movement demands “a coherent agreement that considers the centrality of the victims and their full reparation, not the speculative and short-term interests of those who have remained unpunished for their crimes for years.” The organization forwarded the document to the federal government and also requested an audience with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
According to MAB, the companies are seeking an agreement estimated at approximately R$100 billion, but the amount, according to the entity, is not enough to guarantee full compensation for all affected families. “They intend to pass on to the federal government the obligation to resolve the unresolved problems,” says the document.
The association estimates that the value related to the Mariana disaster should be at least R$500 billion, when compared to the agreement signed by Vale in the Brumadinho tragedy.
“The amounts discussed in the renegotiation negotiations are completely insufficient to repair individual damages, collective compensation, environmental recovery, nor to include affected areas that were never recognized by the companies. This is the case of southern Bahia and some regions on the coast of Espírito Santo,” they claim.
Those affected argue that they are not participating in the negotiations for the agreement, which, according to the movement, “will be a bad international example given that all negotiations are taking place behind closed doors, coordinated by the Brazilian judiciary, which denies the participation of those affected and keeps the documents confidential.”
The movement also mentions attempts to prevent them from accessing justice in the mining companies’ countries of origin. The Brazilian Mining Institute (Ibram), which represents the country’s largest mining companies, filed a lawsuit where seeks to prevent Brazilian municipalities from filing lawsuits in foreign courts. The entity claims that it is unconstitutional for federative entities to be involved in disputes abroad.
“We are more than 1 million people affected who place their hopes in search of what was denied to us. Do not allow the judiciary, governments and justice institutions to close an agreement that decides the future of thousands of people without even consulting the victims of the process, those affected”, states the document.
When contacted by the press, Vale has not yet commented on the movement’s document.
