The organization estimates that 2010, the year when Luiz Inacio “Lula” da Silva ended his term in office, witnessed a step backward in the policies aimed at the landless peasants: they are talking about a 44% reduction in the number of settled families and a 72% drop in the number of hectares destined to the agrarian reform, compared to 2009.

“The National Institute of Colonization and Agrarian Reform (INCRA) has become even more ineffective after its budget was cut in almost half compared to 2009”, said the organization in a document published on its website.

The CPT says 2010 was the worst of the eight years that Lula was in office and he is being blamed for not delivering its commitment of implementing stronger policies in this field.

“The situation of the peasants and rural workers is quite serious. The countryside is demanding changes for the citizens, their sustainable development and against the concentration of land and the strengthening of the already powerful Brazilian agribusiness”, the CPT claims.

The budget cuts at the INCRA reflect the fact that the agrarian reform was not a priority for the government and it furthered the advance of the concentration of land, a constant problem in the recent years.

The CPT concludes that in this scenario, the historical dispute in the Brazilian countryside, which has confronted two different projects, has once again favored the most powerful sectors linked to the big land owners.

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