Leomar Bhorback

On the afternoon of April 7, 2016, the Military Police for of Paraná state and security guards from the company Araupel, ambushed rural workers from the Landless Workers Moviment (MST).

A group of around 30 rural workers were heading back to the encampment Dom Tomás Balduíno, in the region of Quedas do Iguaçu, Paraná, when they were surprised by the police accompanied by the security guards of the company. who opened fire against the rural workers.

The military police shot 128 bullets. The rural workers, unarmed, ran towards the forest, trying to save their lives. In this event, Messrs. Vilmar Bordim and Leomar Bhorbak were shot dead and seven other rural workers were seriously injured.

The event is related to the settlement in 2014 of 1500 families forming the MST Dom Tomás Balduíno encampment, in an area en Paraná where the company Araupel, an exporter of pine and eucalyptus, operated. In 2015, the Federal Court of Cascavel declared that the concerned area belonged to the Federal Government and therefore should be destined for agrarian reform.

The MST has been in the region for almost 20 years and has always acted in an organized and peaceful manner, requesting an agrarian reform, claiming that the land should fulfil its social function.


If you would like to provide a personal recollection, please email us at: HRDMemorial@frontlinedefenders.org

Region:Americas

Country:Brazil

Department/Province/State:Parana

Sex1:Male

Age:25

Date of Killing:07/04/2016

Previous Threats:No information

Organisation:Landless Workers Movement - MST

Sector or Type of Rights the HRD Worked On:ESC Rights

Sector Detail:Land Rights

More information:Front Line Defenders

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