Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Orinoco obituary...


RIP Franklin Brito.

"[his] body became a symbol for all struck by the arrogance of power, for those offended by the arrogance of the rulers".
After falling critically ill last week the Venezuelan farmer died yesterday. He had gone on hunger strike to protest against squatting and seizure of his lands and in protest at the government's land policies. He received no compensation for the land taken nor was it returned even after the government had promised to do so; after breaking the promise the government had him arrested/kidnapped: Amnesty International issued an alert and the Interamerican Comission on Human Rights 'requested protective measures when he was kept captive, isolated and watched as a dangerous criminal'.

"Franklin Brito, who went on a hunger strike to defend his property, was later kidnapped by the Government to hide his truth and never received an answer, died today of a heart attack at the Military Hospital where he had been held against his will."
[Source: The Devil's Excrement]



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