Dorothy Stang

Dorothy Mae Stang (born June 7, 1931 in Dayton , Ohio , United States , † February 12, 2005 in Anapu , State of Pará , Brazil ) was a Brazilian Catholic nun and environmental activist of American origin. She was murdered in 2005 on behalf of Brazilian landowners.

Life

Dorothy Stang belonged to the order of the “Soeurs de Notre Dame de Namur” ( School Sisters of Our Lady of Namur ). She lived in Brazil for over 30 years. There she campaigned decisively against the deforestation of the rainforests and for the rights of the landless, especially in the still underdeveloped north and northeast of the country, which are difficult to control by the judiciary. Because of her commitment, she was exposed to numerous hostilities and received repeated death threats. In 2003 Dorothy Stang gave up her US citizenship due to the Iraq war and took on Brazilian citizenship .

Stang was walking to a meeting in the Amazon jungle on February 12, 2005, when she was killed with six close-range shots. A short time later, the 27-year-old Rayfran das Neves Sales and two other men were arrested as perpetrators.

Criminal trials against the perpetrators

The 36-year-old landowner and sawmill owner Vitalmiro Bastos de Moura, who is said to have paid the perpetrators the equivalent of 15,000 euros for the act, was sentenced to 30 years in prison on May 15, 2007 in Belém . Stang's brother David, who was present at the judgment, said, "Justice has been done." The verdict was annulled by a jury at the end of 2007, but the trial was reopened on April 7, 2009 by the Pará court. It decided to re-arrest Vitalmiro Moura, but his defense lawyer appealed the decision. A new trial has been called. On April 22, 2009, the Brazilian Supreme Court released Vitalmiro Moura pending final decision.

Roniery Lopes, who was supposed to testify in the fraud trial against Regivaldo Galvão, was shot dead in November 2009 shortly before his planned testimony. Regivaldo Galvão was later convicted as another commissioner of the murder of Dorothy Stang.

Grave of Dorothy Mae Stang

On February 4, 2010, the Supreme Court canceled Vitalmiro Moura's release. Moura was arrested on February 7th after voluntarily surrendering to the police. On April 12, 2010, a court sentenced him again to 30 years in prison. On May 1, 2010, Regivaldo Galvão was also found guilty of ordering the murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Work, honors

Environmentalists hope that the worldwide attention that Dorothy Stang's death generated will help more people stand up for the preservation of the tropical rainforest and for the rights of the poorest of the poor. Like the rubber tapper Chico Mendes , who was murdered in 1988, she became a symbolic figure whose influence extends beyond her death.

On December 13, 2006, she was posthumously awarded the Brazilian Human Rights Prize. In 2008 she was posthumously awarded the United Nations Human Rights Prize.

Web links

• Sermon by Bishop Erwin Kräutler on the death of Sister Dorothy Mae Stang
• Interview with those on the occasion of the death of Dorothy Stang (English, MP3; 8.4 MB)
• Article from the Rainforest Report

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The conviction of Regivaldo Galvão (Portuguese) , O Globo (Brazil). May 1, 2010. 
2. ↑ United Nations Human Rights Prize 2008. United Nations Human Rights, December 2008, accessed December 30, 2008 .