The Ecologist   Harvesting sweet potatoes at Esperanca MST
encampment near Brasilia. Photo by Christian Aid.   More
articles about Related Articles  Brazil's hidden horrors
February 5th, 2013  by Rachel Baird  Rachel Baird opens our eyes
to the dark side of Brazil, where fighting for your rights, and
the rights of others, can be a battle with fatal consequences.
Reformers have patience, persistence and the knowledge that
dramatic change can happen  When Cicero Guedes was shot dead as
he cycled home late last month, the world got a reminder of
Brazil's hidden horrors. We hear so much about the country's
booming economy, which for a time knocked the UK off its perch
as the world's sixth largest. Then there's the razzmatazz around
Brazil's plans for hosting the next World Cup and Olympics. 
But just beneath the shiny-happy exterior, a powerful few are
getting away with murder, slavery and rampant corruption.
Guedes was a leader in the landless people's movement MST. He
was murdered in the state of Rio de Jan