Paraguayans protest “Moonie” land control

One of the biggest problems in the impoverished country of Paraguay is the concentration of land in the hands of a few. (According to the BBC, less than "2% of landowners are said to control 70% of the arable land.”) It is therefore no surprise that land reform is a hot topic in the landlocked state and often the reason for frequent demonstrations.

Last week, about 2000 protestors blocked the national highway and called for the distribution of land owned by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church. The protest led to a brief yet massive bottleneck on the road connecting the capital city of Asuncion to the rest of Paraguay. The demonstrators- mostly peasants from the western part of the country- demanded to meet with President Fernando Lugo or else they would march into Asuncion.

The land in question- about 128,000 acres- had been expropriated in 2005 for residents of Puerto Casado yet a high court two years later ordered the return of that land to a firm owned by Moon. That company pledged to give a little over half that land to the peasants, yet the protestors claimed that the land is sparse and would divide their community.

The land claimed by the demonstrators is a drop in the bucket compared to the vast land holdings controlled by Moon:

The Unification Church owns more than 600,000 hectares (1.48 million acres) in northern Paraguay, near other holdings in Brazil.

The cult acquired the land in 2000 for an environmental and tourism project…

The Unification Church, founded in 1954 by Moon, has been accused of human rights violations and questionable financial dealings in several countries.

The church has extensive property holdings around the world, including businesses and land.

Image- ultimahora.com
Online Sources- ultimahora.com, univision.com, LAHT, BBC News, IPS

The Bushes, the Moonies, and Paraguay

The younger brother of George W. Bush traveled to Paraguay yesterday [image] in order to attend a leadership seminar and meet with President Nicanor Duarte. Neil Bush’s visit may not seem like much except that it could raise eyebrows over the Bush's interest in the landlocked South American country.

Back in 2006, rumors surfaced that the Bush family purchased a 100,000 acre ranch in an area near the border with Bolivia and Brazil. At around the same time First Daughter Jenna Bush traveled to Paraguay as part of a UNICEF program though no news conferences or interviews were planned.

Returning to Neil Bush, he spoke at the seminar as part of a delegation from the Universal Peace Federation, a group associated with Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Moon is the controversial leader of the Unification Church and according to the Associated Press he holds plenty of influence in Paraguay:

A leading Paraguayan newspaper, ABC Color, reported Friday that Bush spoke at the leadership seminar about instilling a "culture of service" and better uniting individuals and organizations behind objectives that serve peace and the common good…

Groups allied with Moon publish a newspaper, operate businesses and have large land holdings in Paraguay, South America's second-poorest country.

Yesterday was not the first time Bush had taken part of an event associated to Moon; in 2005, he was a "VIP guest" for parts of Moon’s speaking tour in Asia. Moreover, there had been speculation that Moon owns nearly 1.5 million acres of land near where Bush's alleged acquisition was made.

So what do you think about this? Is it a big deal worth considering or really much ado about nothing?

Sources (English)- AlterNet, Associated Press, International Herald Tribune, Wikipedia, Wonkette

Sources (Spanish)- La Nacion

Image- seattlepi.com