Number 447, August 24, 2001.
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In this week's issue:
>NEWS BRIEFS
- Over seven thousand residents threatened by toxic substances in Sao Paulo
- Statistics show Brazil to be more vulnerable to foreign crises
- Brazil prepares document for the U.N.’s Racism Conference
- Brazil breaks patent on AIDS cocktail
>INDIGENOUS ISSUES
- Exclusive Interview
NEWS BRIEFS
- Over seven thousand residents threatened by toxic substances in Sao Paulo
Sao Paulo’s Secretary of Environment announced last week that an area of 160,000 sq. meters is contaminated by 44 toxic substances. Fifty-nine apartment buildings which house 7.5 thousand people are located on the property. The contamination is apparently the result of illegal dumping of industrial waste. The state has halted all construction projects on the land and has prohibited sales of apartments on the site. The government will not order occupants out of their apartments until further testing can be done.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
August 17 & 18, 2001
- Statistics show Brazil to be more vulnerable to foreign crises
According to statistics released by the Brazilian Central Bank, Brazil has become more vulnerable to foreign crises during Fernando Henrique Cardoso’s presidency. Between the years 1995 and 2000, the degree of foreign dependency has exploded. The Central Bank based its findings on 11 indicators of vulnerability. Of these 11 indicators, 10 demonstrated more vulnerability. For example, during these years, the country spent more money on paying external debt, from 3% of the GNP in 1995 to 9.4 % in 2000. The "liquid external debt" (everything the country owes abroad minus the dollar reserves available) grew 18.8 percentage points, standing at the end of 2000 at 39.6% of the GNP. Another indicator is foreign investment: Brazil is one of the countries that most attracts foreign investments, investments that the government depends on to pay on its deficits. If foreigners decide to bringing money in the country, the government will be unable to honor its financial obligations.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
August 20, 2001
- Brazil prepares document for the U.N.’s Racism Conference
A special presidential committee has formulated a document it will take to the U.N.’s Racism Conference to be held in South Africa at the end of this month. The committee is proposing among other things the following:
- Adopting quotas or other affirmative action policies to allow Afro-Brazilians access to public universities..
- Official state recognition of the past enslavement of Africans and indigenous and how that has led to social exclusion of these groups.
- When awarding government contracts, giving preferences to businesses that have high employment percentages of Afro-Brazilians, gays and women.
- Approving the new Indigenous Statute.
- Creating a Code of Conduct for the military operating in indigenous areas, especially a code relating to indigenous women.
- Criminalizing discrimination based on sexual orientation.
- Creation of a foundation or secretariat of the state for GLTTB (Gays, Lesbians, Transvestites, Transsexuals, and Bisexuals).
The controversial document did not have the support of the Ministry of Education over the issue of racial quotas. Also, the official document does not mean that the government will implement the proposals--it is a document which should guide the formation of public policies. However, members of the committee say that it will be difficult for Brazil to defend the document in South Africa if the government does not apply the proposals internally.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
August 22, 2001
- Brazil breaks patent on AIDS cocktail
The Brazilian government announced yesterday that it has decided to break the patent on one of the 12 cocktails, Nelfinavir, for AIDS patients. The decision was made after negotiations broke down with the producer of the medicine, Roche, a Swiss company. It is the first time that Brazil has broken a patent on medicine. Roche said that they were surprised about the decision. Currently, the government spends US$88 million on the medicine per year. Producing Nelfinavir in Brazil will drastically reduce the costs.
Source: Folha de Sao Paulo
August 23, 2001
INDIGENOUS ISSUES
- Exclusive Interview
At a press interview scheduled for the 10th in the afternoon, the book "Outros 500: Construindo uma Nova História" (A Different 500-Year Period: Building a New History) will be launched. Published by the Salesiana publishing house, the book is an important historical document about the resistance of indigenous peoples. It provides new data about the history of indigenous peoples and includes a list of extinct, endangered and reemerged peoples after five centuries of colonization. In this document, Cimi points out how the Brazilian government, which has been reducing the budget earmarked for indigenous populations every year, resists the idea of accepting the existence of indigenous peoples and communities that have not been included in its official list yet.
During the interview, the president of Cimi and his board will expose and reject spying activities carried out by the Army intelligence service. Documents that were disseminated this week by the newspaper Folha de São Paulo clearly show how the military have been spying on the activities of social movements such as the Landless Movement (MST) and of NGOs and churches that have been supporting indigenous peoples in their struggle to have their lands demarcated, which they refer to as "adverse forces." These reports are considered extremely serious, as they shed additional light on information provided by the newspaper Jornal do Brasil late last year in an article reporting the existence of an Air Force report called "Operação Tapete Verde-Querari" (Green Carpet Operation). As in the case of the Air Force, Cimi wants the contents of the documents to be disclosed, so that all applicable legal measures may be taken.
Source: Indianist Missionary Council - Cimi
August 9, 2001
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