In his landmark work, “A Fantasia Organizada”, legendary developmentalist economist Celso Furtado described the modern history of Brazil as a conflict between internationally-backed monetarist economic strategies and efforts to implement a national development policy. As it becomes probable that US-sponsored lawfare attacks will succeed in preventing Luis Inacio “Lula” da Silva, who is leading all […]
In his academic paper, “The uncomfortable truths and double standards of bribery enforcement,” legal scholar Mike Koehler shows how the US government selectively uses the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) to advance its own objectives. According to Koehler uncomfortable truths related to US use of the FCPA include: (i) how the U.S. government actively participated […]
Under the motto, “Another World is Possible” Fórum Magazine was founded by a group of intellectuals and social movement leaders during a democratic assembly at the first World Social Forum in Porto Alegre in 2001. In this article which originally ran in Portuguese on March 6, 2018, Dr. Cláudio Puty writes that it is not […]
On the morning March 2, 2018, a small but determined group of protesters braved the New York rain, sleet and snow to demonstrate outside the Park Avenue headquarters of Americas Society / Council of the Americas (AS/COA). Inside, an event was being held featuring guest speakers from across the region about what AS/COA, publisher of […]
When Luis Inacio Lula da Silva took office in 2003, one of his first moves was to prioritize open source software for the federal government computer systems in order to reduce costs, increase competition, generate jobs and develop the knowledge and intelligence of the country in this area. Although it was never fully adopted by all […]
On Friday, February 23, Federal Police raided the offices of Dr. Rafael Valim, a prominent academic and author of 20 books on legal theory. Although he was not charged with any crime, Police seized documents related to his private law firm. Valim is one of the most vocal critics of Judge/Prosecutor Sergio Moro and his […]
By Elliott Gabriel, MPN. A concerted push is underway in South America that could see one of the world’s largest reserves of fresh water soon fall into the hands of transnational corporations such as Coca-Cola and Nestle. According to reports, talks to privatize the Guarani Aquifer – a vast subterranean water reserve lying beneath Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, […]
On February 17, 2018, Brasil Wire editor Brian Mier was interviewed on Chicago radio station WNUR’s This is Hell Program. The following is a transcript, edited for readability. Chuck Mertz: The US has launched a new kind of war on Latin America and it’s called “lawfare”: using the local legal system to oust unfriendly but […]
The story of how an overlooked Bush-era Foreign Policy edict led to Brazil’s Coup of 2016 and its consolidation in the conviction of Former President Lula. Despite public ignorance, and its root in the media blindspot on this matter, US involvement in Brazil’s Anti-Corruption Operation Lava Jato, which has already resulted in $3bn payout to […]
Contributing editor Brian Mier interviewed for the Real News Network on the publicly admitted role of the United States in Brazil’s controversial Anti-Corruption Operation Lava Jato (Carwash) and the prosecution of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. [qpp]