To support the Law is not the same as supporting the Government, to support the Government is not the same as supporting Corruption. It is not intellectually honest to say that government supporters, or those who are simply against impeachment, are also in favour of Corruption. Although I’m afraid of the blind hatred towards a […]
As the Economist and the Washington Post cheer-lead for a PMDB takeover of the Brazilian government, it is worth looking at how PMDB mayor Eduardo Paes managed World Cup and Olympic preparation in Rio de Janeiro. PMDB, the direct descendent of the military dictatorship era MDB party, is the largest political party in Brazil. A […]
That Brasil is currently involved in one of its most profound political and economic crises in recent history is no news to anyone paying attention to the country’s reports during the last few months. It is still not clear what will come out of the undergoing investigations involving corruption scandals across the political spectrum and […]
A momentous week in Brasil was also one where the dominant international narrative shifted from widespread depiction of a “Heroic Impartial Anti-Corruption Campaign” (If you question the method you’re defending thieves) & “Spontaneous, Popular, Patriotic Anti-Government Uprising” (If you question mass media incitement & foreign funding you’re denying agency) to one which described that what […]
A última semana foi crucial na cobertura da imprensa internacional sobre a crise política no Brasil. O discurso sobre a “heroica e imparcial campanha contra a corrupção” (afinal de contas, questionar o combate à corrupção é defender ladrões) e em “manifestações espontâneas, populares e patrióticas contra o governo” (falar na convocação feita pela mídia dominante […]
Lula da Silva is placed at the disposal of justice. A police apparatus was set up to coerce the former president to testify under the cross-hairs of the mainstream media, Globo, which supported the 1964 Coup and subsequent dictatorship. Pedro Serrano, professor at PUC-SP and constitutional law scholar notes that this action against Lula is […]
Every so often, the bourgeois political system runs into crisis. The machinery of the state jams; the veils of consent are torn asunder and the tools of power appear disturbingly naked. Brazil is living through one of those moments: it is dreamland for social scientists; a nightmare for everyone else. Dilma Rousseff was elected President […]
It’s been some time since I last waded into the political unrest in Brazil, in part because, in the first few months of the year, other matters had gained increasing focus/importance in Brazil. Certainly, the Zika outbreak brought considerable attention and resources; likewise, the Brazilian economy continued to worsen. Meanwhile, the impeachment process that opposition […]
The news coverage of the demonstrations last Sunday and Friday in much of the media, especially Globo and Globo News, seriously confused journalism with propaganda. Let’s look at some examples: In demonstrations on Sunday (in favour of impeachment), there was live broadcast by these TV channels all day, almost without interruption. The demonstrations on Friday (against […]
During 2012-2013 Brian Mier conducted a study of changes in Rio de Janeiro’s municipal laws related to the World Cup and Olympics. The study was commissioned by the Ford Foundation and overseen by land-rights lawyer Cristiano Muller and the Brazilian NGO Centro para Direitos Economicas e Sociais (CDES). Entitled, Os Megaeventos esportivos na cidade do […]