Dear friends of the MST,
We have received many messages of affection, solidarity, and celebration in the face of the victory of the Brazilian People, who on Sunday elected the new President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
It was a historic victory. We managed to defeat not only the government, but also the fascist ideas that in these last 4 years preached hatred, discrimination, and all kinds of lies. During the COVID 19 pandemic, these ideas cost the lives of almost 700,000 Brazilians. According to scientists, more than half of them could have been saved if the government had not denied the vaccine and made fun of the public health situation.
We are sure that this victory will contribute to the social struggle in many countries, especially in Latin America.
Our movement has been deeply involved in these last 4 months, prioritizing political campaigning and food production. We are very happy, because we have elected several parliamentarians and governors committed to the struggle for agrarian reform and agroecology.
Now a new stage will come, also very difficult. The new government needs to organize an EMERGENCY PLAN to help fight poverty, face hunger, unemployment, lack of schools and housing. And that also opens doors for us to discuss a new project for the country.
For our part, there is no news. We will continue to organize popular committees, the struggle and mass mobilizations, as a way for the people to exercise their strength democratically. Historical experiences have shown us that the structural changes necessary to solve the people's problems have always come from the combination of the existence of a government committed to the interests of the people and the nation, with the organization of the people and mass mobilization.
Thank you very much for your solidarity and your internationalist spirit. After all, on this planet, “nobody is a foreigner!”. It is this spirit that forms the basis of the MST's existence and that has contributed so much to our existence.
We will continue to meet in the new trenches, here and in your countries, in the struggle for a more just and egalitarian society.
Greetings,
Cassia Bechara and João Pedro Stedile, MST International Relations Collective