Campesinos block spray equipment

On Jan. 7, some 100 campesinos successfully blocked the spraying of pesticides on soy fields in Ybypé community, Lima district, San Pedro department, Paraguay. Although riot police were mobilized to protect the fumigation tractors, the protesters convinced the officers of their right to resist the spraying, and the police refused to break up the blockade. A public campaign led by the Paraguayan Human Rights Committee (CODEHUPY) has led to popular support for the anti-pesticide movement in San Pedro department, where vast areas of land have come under the control of Brazilian soy-growers, and traditional small peasant holdings have been taken over. (Upside Down World, Jan. 10)

See our last post on Paraguay.

See also our recent special report, "Paraguay: Laboratory for Latin America's New Militarism."