Cardinal recommends that Brazilians fight tenaciously for democracy.

In a letter to Brazilian social movements linked to the Church, Ghanaian Catholic Cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in the Vatican, acknowledged that Brazilian democracy has been facing risks and threats and recommended a "peaceful but tenacious struggle" in its defense.

"I know you are living through a critical moment in your country. One fundamental word comes to mind: democracy. It is worthwhile to fight, peacefully but tenaciously, for a full and participatory democracy," says the cardinal in his letter, distributed by the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB).

He wrote to popular movements linked to the Church to praise the meeting held in Mariana that defined actions of solidarity and restoration of the living conditions of the communities affected by the tragedy of the Samarco dam collapse.

He took the opportunity to recall the fundamental tasks set for Catholics in Latin America by Pope Francis at the 2015 meeting in Bolivia: to put the economy at the service of the peoples of the continent, to unite them in the pursuit of Justice and Peace, and to care for Mother Earth.