Paraguay: 15th anniversary of the Curuguaty massacre commemorated

teleSUR English

We go to Paraguay, where they commemorate the fifteenth anniversary of the Curuguaty massacre, a violent eviction that was used to overthrow, through a parliamentary coup, the government of then president Fernando Lugo. Our correspondent Osvaldo Zayas tells us the details.

Transcript

00:00We go to Paraguay, where they commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Kuruwati Massacre,

00:05a violent eviction that was used to overthrow, through a parliamentary coup,

00:10the government of then-president Fernando Lugo.

00:12Our correspondent Osvaldo Zayas tells us details.

00:1615, 2012, hundreds of police officers carried out a violent eviction on the public lands of Marina Cue.

00:22Six policemen and 11 farmers died there, several of them executed.

00:26The farmers' death have never been investigated by the justice in Paraguay.

00:34On the day of the massacre, I had six brothers in San Marina Cue.

00:39Two of them were executed.

00:42Because, with Fermin, for example, we talked to him on the phone.

00:47We looked for a way to get him out, but there was no agreement with the police, and they executed him.

00:53Luis was about to cross the wire fence, and they shot him in the middle of the head.

01:01Official state documents stated that the almost 5,000 acres that the farmers were occupying were public

01:06and could be used for farming production.

01:09However, the police moved forward with the eviction.

01:11I was 18 years old at the time.

01:15The struggle we undertook was for a piece of land.

01:18Since the government is committed to hunting over land to every Paraguayan to produce,

01:22and since we knew that these were public lands, we had occupied them.

01:27The peasant deaths were never investigated.

01:29In addition, 11 farmers were convicted without evidence and spent six years in jail.

01:35The court finally annulled the trial.

01:37They regained their freedom, and now they are reoccupying Marina Cue's land.

01:41I was captured during the eviction.

01:43I was taken to jail.

01:44I was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

01:47If the sentence had continued, I would still be in jail.

01:51But thank God we got out.

01:52In the first and second instance, we were convicted.

01:55But in the third instance, we got out without guilt and penalty.

01:58Now we are still in Marina Cue, and we are achieving our goal.

02:01211 families are currently building their community in Marina Cue.

02:06The Association of Family Members and Victims of the Massacre affirmed that for them,

02:11the tragic events of 2012 were staged by powerful groups

02:15to overthrow a democratic government that benefited the majority.

02:18From Uriputa, Department of Canindeyu, Osvaldo Sayas.

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