On the afternoon of Tuesday, 10th March  was launched in Brasilia, the Tenth Congress of the CONTAG with the participation of a total of 3145 people, of which 2604 union delegates, as well as consultants, special guests and 27 international observers.

Participants at this event discussed the major policy guidelines of CONTAG and the subject of relations with the CUT. The strategic labor union, in a book of 190 pages and 866 paragraphs are the result of over four hundred meetings - from the beginning of the year - of grassroots organizations and forums for coordination at the municipal, state and regional levels.

These proposals were submitted for deliberation by the delegates grouped according to their interests in eleven thematic commissions on agricultural policy, agrarian policy, environment, rural wage-earners and salaried workers, social policies, training and organization, political and financial sustainability, international relations, rural youth, organization and struggle of rural women workers and seniors from the country.

The organization of the discussion, broad participation of the delegates highlighted the democratic culture of the participants and the willingness of the leadership of CONTAG of further discussion related to the everyday needs of people. The discussion by-paragraph revealed the interest of the delegates to keep the text, delete or modify it. The result is a core document adopted by consensus at which summarizes the strategic directions for the next four years.

The debate tone heats up when the topic of relations CONTAG-CUT. A significant group of delegates raised the disaffiliation of the CUT as it CONTAG has all the elements to maintain the independence of trade unions - as the number of affiliated organizations, structure and economic resources and financial resources - and avoid tensions and confrontations with the member organizations of the new federation of farmers created by the CUT. For its part, the latter defended the unity of workers against big business and political subjects that are already active in the face of the 2010 presidential elections.

Each of the positions was defended by three presentations by leaders in five minutes and immediately the delegates voted personal and secretly for the maintenance of relations or the disaffiliation, gaining the latter position with a difference of 331 votes. This could be an opportunity for division of the organization but was transformed by the action of the leaders in an opportunity for change and organizational strengthening, as we will see in the coming months.

This strategy of inclusion and dialogue was also expressed in the election of the new directive because the different trends of CONTAG previously resolved to support the single list headed by Alberto Broch. The results were unprecedented since the list won 97% of the votes, giving full legitimacy to the new directive and its mandate.

Alberto Broch comes from a family of italian origins of family farmers in Rio Grande do Sul and has served as head of international relations and as vice president of CONTAG. From years ago participating in the Sustainable Earth Alliance on the topics of training of social leaders, food systems and sustainable development.

The new directors are committed to taking forward the new strategy outlined in the Tenth Congress and the proposal of the National Training School of the Contag, ENFOC, which articulates the best contributions of popular education, the theology of liberation, critical marxism, complex thought and contemporary progress of sustainable and solidary territorial development. The ENFOC is training a new union leadership through workshops at national, regional, state level and in trade union groups of studies, GES.

CONTAG is undoubtedly the the most important organization of rural workers in Latin America for several reasons. First by the number of affiliates - more than 4,000 unions, and secondly because of the influence in a population of around 12 million people, third from the budget that manages for its programs and projects, but also by the quality of their advisers. Last but not least important, CONTAG features a new strategy for trade union work through the articulation of rural workers with family farmers, and the inter-relationship between the union work and the contributions of the theoretical and methodological contemporary social sciences.

Fernando Rosero Garcés. Cafolis

Don´t forget to visit Global Café