ConflictBarometer_2015

THE AMERICAS
The government's infrastructure policies were a continuous
issue throughout the year. On May 28, COMCIPO declared a
general strike in the city of Potosí in the eponymous department
due to the lack of government's attention to a list of 26
demands mainly concerning infrastructural projects. About
300 members started a 12-day protest march towards La Paz
on June 26, demanding to talk with President Evo Morales
and rejecting the dialogue with Potosí's local government. On
July 10, 1,500 protesters in Potosí peacefully took over the
offices of three mining companies (Manquiri, San Bartolomé,
and San Cristobál) and six people, among them COMCIPO
leader Johnny Llally, entered into a hunger strike. The next
day, protesters in La Paz clashed with the police. The encounter
left two protesters and one police officer injured
when protesters hurled dynamite and the police responded
with tear gas. Meanwhile, in Potosí, about 30,000 people
had been mobilized in order to support COMCIPO's demands.
Throughout the following week, protests intensified with increasing
numbers of protesters in Potosí and La Paz, the city
of Potosí being completely isolated due to road blocks and
lack of communication between COMCIPO's leaders and the
government.
The movement spread to other departments on July 17, when
residents of Potosí blocked the main square of the capital Sucre
and residents of Cochabamba, Cercado province, entered
into hunger strike. A total of 91 tourists were evacuated from
Potosí. The same day, a violent clash between more than
2,000 protesters and the police in La Paz left seven people
injured as a result of the use of tear gas, rubber bullets, and
dynamite. After another failed attempt to dialogue on July
22, protesters attacked a government building in La Paz with
dynamite and rocks, which led to the evacuation of government
officials. A total of 51 persons were arrested. Due to
remaining discrepancies regarding the terms and conditions
of further dialogue, protests continued in spite of the leaders
of COMCIPO returning to Potosí on July 30. On August 3,
the strike, which had paralyzed Potosí for 27 days, was lifted
without the 26 demands having been met. Despite the intense
protests, no further violence occurred throughout the
remainder of the year. lme
BRAZIL (INDIGENOUS GROUPS)
Intensity: 1 | Change: | Start: 1985
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
indigenous groups vs. government
autonomy, resources
The conflict over autonomy, hydroelectric projects, and the
demarcation of indigenous territories between various indigenous
groups and the government de-escalated to a dispute.
On February 2, about 50 Kayapó demonstrated outside the
presidential palace in the capital Brasília to demand the renewal
of the Basic Environmental Plan protecting indigenous
territories. To meet with government officials, they agreed to
lay down bows and arrows.
From April 13 to 17, 1,500 indigenous from 200 tribes
protested in the capital Brasília against the government's proposed
constitutional amendment 215 (PEC 215) that would
shift the power to demarcate indigenous territories from
the National Indian Foundation to the congress. On June 24,
Ademir Kaba, a Munduruku leader, denounced Brazil at the UN
Human Rights Council in Geneva for violating international
law. He criticized the government for constructing the Belo
Monte dam in 2011 without consulting the affected indigenous
communities. During the first World Indigenous Games
in Palmas, Tocantins state, from October 23 to November
1, indigenous people protested against PEC 215 on various
occasions. cpn
BRAZIL (SOCIAL PROTESTS)
Intensity: 3 | Change: | Start: 2013
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
MPL et al. vs. government
system/ideology
The violent crisis over the orientation of the political system
between different protest groups such as the Movimento
Passe Livre (MPL), truck drivers, and teachers, on the one
hand, and the government, on the other hand, continued.
Throughout the year, thousands of people took to the streets
against the government of President Dilma Rousseff. On
March 15, at least 1.5 million people participated in protests
mainly organized by Vem pra Rua, Movimento Brasil Livre,
Revoltados Online, and Cariocas Direitos in 212 cities. According
to the Military Police (PM), about 580,000 persons
protested against corruption in São Paulo, 45,000 in the capital
Brasília, and 25,000 in Río de Janeiro. Additionally, they
demanded the impeachment of President Rousseff and some
of them also called for a military intervention. On April 12,
several thousand protesters marched in 19 states. The third
major nationwide protest took place in 150 cities on August
18, including 135,000 demonstrators in São Paulo. After the
initiation of impeachment proceedings against Rousseff on
December 2, protests continued in all 26 states and Brasília
on December 12. Four days later, tens of thousands protested
against an impeachment across the country.
Besides demonstrations directly targeting the president and
the ruling Worker's Party, various pressure groups expressed
their discontent with socioeconomic policies. On January 9,
about 30,000 people protested in São Paulo against rising
public transport fares. The police ended the demonstration
using tear gas and rubber bullets and arrested more than 50
participants. Following the MPL's call for a second protest,
supported by the Homeless Workers' Movement about 5,000
people again took to the streets of São Paulo on January 20
[→ Brazil (MST, MTST)]. The police dispersed the protesters
with tear gas bombs and arrested nine. In similar protests
three days later, 1,100 police forces arrested four demonstrators
and injured another four, deploying tear gas and
rubber bullets. On February 7, truckers blocked sections on
major highways in nine states, protesting against the rise in
fuel prices. Following more than one month of strike, about
200,000 teachers demanding better salaries and opposing
changes in social security regulations protested in front of
the Legislative Assembly in Curitiba, Paraná state, on April
29. PM arrested 13 people and dispersed the crowd with
tear gas grenades and rubber bullets, injuring 200 teachers.
On November 11, truck drivers in eleven states ended
a three-day strike led by the National Transport Command
after the government had announced to increase penalties
and to forcefully remove vehicles blocking highways. cpn
104