Sentence, issued by the Labor Court of Redemption (PA) and released on Friday (29), condemns the automaker to pay R $ 165 million in compensation for submitting workers to bondage for debt
It announced it on Saturday (30) that it will appeal the court ruling that it condemned it for maintaining workers in slavery conditions in the state of Pará, during the 1970s and 1980s. The sentence, issued by the Redemption Labor Court (PA) and released on Friday (29), condemns the automaker to pay R $ 165 million in indemnities for submitting workers to debt, armed surveillance and degrading conditions at Fazenda Vale de Rio Crystalino, located in Santana do Araguaia, between 1974 and 1986. According to experts, this is the largest conviction of the type ever recorded in Brazil.
The farm was acquired by Volkswagen in the 1970s during the military regime, as part of a government -encouraged livestock project, with the aim of developing the Amazon region. In a statement, the automaker stated that her Brazilian branch “will follow her defense in search of justice and legal certainty in the higher instances”. The company also highlighted its history in the country: “With a 72 -year legacy, the company consistently defends the principles of human dignity and strictly fulfills all applicable labor laws and regulations,” he said.
The court decision also requires that Volkswagen publicly recognize its responsibility for the abuses committed and apologize to the victims. The judge responsible for the sentence, Otavio Bruno da Silva Ferreira, said that “the evidence of the case shows that the company Volkswagen do Brasil not only invested in the Vale do Rio Cristalino Company, but also actively participated in its strategic driving, benefiting directly in the illicit exploitation of labor.”
According to him, “official reports, testimonies of workers and documents from public agencies show that the production model adopted included debt, violence and submission to degrading conditions, configuring the core of contemporary slave labor.” The court also pointed out that workers were watched by armed security, lived in precarious housing, and faced lack of adequate food and medical assistance, especially those infected with malaria.
One of the former farm workers, José Pereira, reported in 2022 to the German public broadcaster Ard the abuses suffered: “If anyone tried to escape, the guards would behind and shoot. They beat those who could escape. In the street, they all saw it,” he said. Volkswagen began to reduce its activities on the farm from 1986, gradually ending its operations on site.
*With information from AFP
Posted by Sarah Paula
