Activists block Brazil railway

Hundreds of Brazilian farmers have blocked a railway owned by mining firm Vale in protest against the construction of a hydroelectric dam which they say will displace thousands of people.

The occupation of the railway facility was carried out by 600 protesters from several activist groups, including Via Campesina and the Landless Rural Workers Movement, known in Brazil as the MST, Companhia Vale do Rio Doce SA said in a statement.

Vale said the action, in Brazil's southern Minas Gerais state, halted transportation of 2,500 passengers a day and 300,000 tonnes of ore.

Vale condemned the action in a statement, saying it "repudiates violence and the constant threats to its patrimony and life of its workers by the MST".

On Saturday, MST activists invaded a Vale-owned forestry and charcoal unit near the company's plant in Carajas - the Amazon area where Vale's biggest iron ore mine is located.

Last October the group, along with Via Campesina, also blocked a railroad near the Carajas plant for couple days, shortly leaving the plant without raw materials.

In Brazil, land considered unproductive can be expropriated by the government for redistribution to the country's poor people.

About 3.5 percent of landowners hold 56 percent of arable land in Brazil, while the poorest 40 percent own only one percent.

In recent years the groups have also turned their attention to targeting large companies and multi-nationals, invading land they consider unproductive in order to pressure the government.