“We are here to denounce the massacre and environmental destruction carried out by German company Thyssen Krupp”, stated fishermen Luis Carlos Da Silva. He has been working in that area of Rio de Janeiro state for fourty years.

And the denounciation campaign to avoid the displacement of eight thousand fisher workers continues. Approximately 150 social organizations from Brazil submitted yesterday a letter to the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro to support the fishermen affected. The letter includes the denounciation of death threats suffered by the fishermen of the region, who organized themselves to stop the iron and steel project.

“We want these threats to be investigated by the relevant authorities. Thyssen Krupp has been breaking several Brazilian laws”, stated Sandra Quintela, from the Institute of Alternative Policies for the Southern Cone to news site Adital.

The groups of fishermen estimate that there are approximately 43 thousand people affected by the activity of the conglomerate Atlantic Iron and Steel Company, made up by the German company and the privatized Vale do Rio Doce Company.

Since the dredging works began in 2006 in Sepetiba bay, fishermen had been affected due to the disappearance of species like meagre, seabass, and shrimp.

The place chosen by the German corporation to build a private port is located where these species spawn, which ensures the reproduction and, as a consequence, the food sovereingty of the region.

Thyssen Krupp project aimed at steel export is financed by the state National Bank of Economic and Social Development (BNDES). The letter in rejection written by the social movements was also submitted to Luciano Coutinho, president of the Bank.