Urano Teixeira da Matta Bacellar
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant-General Urano Teixeira da Matta Bacellar (1947 – January 6, 2006) was a Brazilian soldier. He was born in Bagé
in the state of Rio Grande do Sul
. He served for 39 years in the Brazilian Army
and eventually rose to the rank of Lieutenant-General. He was married and had two children.
On September 1, 2005 he was selected to lead the military contingent of MINUSTAH, the UN peacekeeping
force in Haiti
, replacing his fellow Brazilian, Lieutenant-General Augusto Heleno Ribeiro Pereira.
Graduated at the Agulhas Negras Military Academy, he was a decorated officer. Having a great career, he was also a teacher at AMAN. He was nominated to lead the UN mission Minustah in Haiti
.
On January 7, 2006 General Bacellar was found dead, fallen from a chair on the balcony of his hotel room in Port-au-Prince
. State news agency Agência Brasil
said Lt. Gen. Urano Teixeira Da Matta Bacellar was the victim of "a firearms accident". Later that day, UN and Brazilian officials said that he appeared to have shot himself in the head, several days after national elections
had been postponed for a fourth time. Bacellar was also a teacher of geography and of Brazilian Studies in military schools.http://english.ohmynews.com/ArticleView/article_view.asp?menu=A11100&no=268037&rel_no=1&back_url= He was 58 years old.
An autopsy was also performed, to determine the exact cause of death and the calibre of the weapon that killed him. On January 12, 2006, both the UN and the Brazilian government announced suicide as the official cause of death.http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-01/13/content_4045718.htm
On January 2011, Diplomatic cables from 2005 and 2006 released by Wikileaks
in the United States diplomatic cables leak
, revealed that Dominican Republic
President Leonel Fernández
suspected Bacellar had been assassinated by a group of contras led by Guy Philippe
, a former soldier and police chief and an Haitian anti-Aristide "rebel" leader that had been armed by the USA.
The same cables also reveal that the contras
, accordingly to President Fernandez, had the mandate of creating chaos in Haiti and had even killed a Canadian and a Jordanian MINUSTAH member in the past and that the killing could have been a response to Bacellar's reluctancy in using force in Haiti
's shanty town Cité Soleil
regardless pressure from Washington and a pressure campaign by Chamber of Commerce head Reginald Boulos
and André Apaid
, the later a sweatshop
king in Haiti and both main figures in the civic front named Group 184 that played a main role in ousting President Aristide in the 2004 coup.
His position as leader of the military contingent of MINUSTAH was temporarily filled by Chile
an General Eduardo Aldunate Herman. On January 17, 2006, it was announced that Brazilian General Jose Elito Carvalho de Siqueira would be the permanent replacement for Bacellar as the head of the United Nations' Haiti military force.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4624962.stm
His body was returned to Brasília
to burial with full military honours in Rio de Janeiro
.
Bagé
Bagé is a city and a municipality in the south of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. In 2007 its population was 112,550 in a total area of 4,096 km2. It was the tenth largest city in the state in 2007 -Location:...
in the state of Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
. He served for 39 years in the Brazilian Army
Brazilian Army
The Brazilian Army is the land arm of the Brazilian Military. The Brazilian Army has fought in several international conflicts, mostly in South America and during the 19th century, such as the Brazilian War of Independence , Argentina-Brazil War , War of the Farrapos , Platine War , Uruguayan War ...
and eventually rose to the rank of Lieutenant-General. He was married and had two children.
On September 1, 2005 he was selected to lead the military contingent of MINUSTAH, the UN peacekeeping
Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....
force in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, replacing his fellow Brazilian, Lieutenant-General Augusto Heleno Ribeiro Pereira.
Graduated at the Agulhas Negras Military Academy, he was a decorated officer. Having a great career, he was also a teacher at AMAN. He was nominated to lead the UN mission Minustah in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
.
On January 7, 2006 General Bacellar was found dead, fallen from a chair on the balcony of his hotel room in Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
. State news agency Agência Brasil
Agência Brasil
Radiobras or Agência Brasil or ABr is the national broadcaster and a government agency of Brazil. The name is a portmanteau of Radiodifusão Brasil . Radiobras operates several radio stations and TV stations throughout the country. It is also involved in international broadcasting, primarily on...
said Lt. Gen. Urano Teixeira Da Matta Bacellar was the victim of "a firearms accident". Later that day, UN and Brazilian officials said that he appeared to have shot himself in the head, several days after national elections
Haitian elections, 2006
The 2006 elections in Haiti, to replace the interim government of Gérard Latortue put in place after the 2004 Haiti rebellion, were delayed four times after having been originally scheduled for October and November 2005. The elections finally took place on February 7, 2006, with turnout of around 60%...
had been postponed for a fourth time. Bacellar was also a teacher of geography and of Brazilian Studies in military schools.http://english.ohmynews.com/ArticleView/article_view.asp?menu=A11100&no=268037&rel_no=1&back_url= He was 58 years old.
An autopsy was also performed, to determine the exact cause of death and the calibre of the weapon that killed him. On January 12, 2006, both the UN and the Brazilian government announced suicide as the official cause of death.http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-01/13/content_4045718.htm
On January 2011, Diplomatic cables from 2005 and 2006 released by Wikileaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
in the United States diplomatic cables leak
United States diplomatic cables leak
The United States diplomatic cables leak, widely known as Cablegate, began in February 2010 when WikiLeaks—a non-profit organization that publishes submissions from anonymous whistleblowers—began releasing classified cables that had been sent to the U.S. State Department by 274 of its consulates,...
, revealed that Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
President Leonel Fernández
Leonel Fernández
Leonel Antonio Fernández Reyna is a Dominican lawyer, academic, and the current President of the Dominican Republic since 2004. He held the same office from 1996 to 2000...
suspected Bacellar had been assassinated by a group of contras led by Guy Philippe
Guy Philippe
Guy Philippe is a Haitian politician. When Jean-Claude Duvalier was toppled in 1986, he was 17 years old which makes claims that he was an alleged former Tonton Macoute leaderpreposterous. he lead the 2004 Haitian rebellion that ousted Jean-Bertrand Aristide and he was a presidential candidate in...
, a former soldier and police chief and an Haitian anti-Aristide "rebel" leader that had been armed by the USA.
The same cables also reveal that the contras
Contras
The contras is a label given to the various rebel groups opposing Nicaragua's FSLN Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction government following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle's dictatorship...
, accordingly to President Fernandez, had the mandate of creating chaos in Haiti and had even killed a Canadian and a Jordanian MINUSTAH member in the past and that the killing could have been a response to Bacellar's reluctancy in using force in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
's shanty town Cité Soleil
Cité Soleil
Cité Soleil is an extremely impoverished and densely populated commune located in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area in Haiti. Cité Soleil originally developed as a shanty town and grew to an estimated 200,000 to 400,000 residents, the majority of whom live in extreme poverty...
regardless pressure from Washington and a pressure campaign by Chamber of Commerce head Reginald Boulos
Reginald Boulos
Reginald Boulos is the President of the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Haiti, a third generation Lebanese-Haitian, medical doctor, a entrepreneur and businessman, and philanthropist. Dr...
and André Apaid
André Apaid
André Apaid, Junior, the leader of the Group of 184 in Haiti, the civil society movement which forced Jean-Bertrand Aristide from power in 2004 through a coup d'état. He is the head of Alpha Industries, one of the largest assembly factories in Haiti, and of Fondation Nouvelle Haiti, a member of the...
, the later a sweatshop
Sweatshop
Sweatshop is a negatively connoted term for any working environment considered to be unacceptably difficult or dangerous. Sweatshop workers often work long hours for very low pay, regardless of laws mandating overtime pay or a minimum wage. Child labour laws may be violated. Sweatshops may have...
king in Haiti and both main figures in the civic front named Group 184 that played a main role in ousting President Aristide in the 2004 coup.
His position as leader of the military contingent of MINUSTAH was temporarily filled by Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an General Eduardo Aldunate Herman. On January 17, 2006, it was announced that Brazilian General Jose Elito Carvalho de Siqueira would be the permanent replacement for Bacellar as the head of the United Nations' Haiti military force.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4624962.stm
His body was returned to Brasília
Brasília
Brasília is the capital city of Brazil. The name is commonly spelled Brasilia in English. The city and its District are located in the Central-West region of the country, along a plateau known as Planalto Central. It has a population of about 2,557,000 as of the 2008 IBGE estimate, making it the...
to burial with full military honours in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
.