In Part I of our series, we reflected on some of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s personal and political background, as well as his success during two terms as president of Brazil. We also highlighted one of his long-time political rivals, former São Paulo governor Geraldo Alckmin. Alckmin's sudden...
BRAZIL—Over the past few days and weeks, rumors of war, as if global conflict were an inevitable contagion bound to reach Indoamerica (South or Latin America), swirled at an uncanny, feverish pitch. The case for armed conflict has subsided only slightly. An unspoiled, beautiful region known as Essequibo has taken...
Newly elected President Luíz Inácio Lula da Silva remains in hotel accommodation in Brasília, still unable to reside in the Alvorada Palace due to material damage and security concerns. On the 21st of January, Brazilian president, Luíz Inácio Lula da Silva, sacked general Júlio César de Arruda as head of...
Evidence collected by The Intercept revealed that Operation Car Wash, an anti-corruption investigation led by Brazilian Federal Prosecutors and the Federal Police from 2014 to 2021, received support from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The operation had a significant impact on Brazilian politics, including the undermining of the...
With little variation, as it was 60 years ago, Brazil’s military and political elite, as well as its big business sector—namely agribusiness—are not fond of what could remotely be perceived as progressive, left-wing politics. God forbid their country, harboring Portuguese colonial heritage in every nook and cranny, despite failing to...
“This pact exists throughout Brazil. It’s not privileged to Rio de Janeiro. Truth be said, it’s a very organic, structured relationship between Rio de Janeiro politicians, militia groups and the police. How does it function? Militias control growing amounts of territory. Approximately one million to 1.9 million people (in Rio...
Political Intrigue Grows As Brazilian Election Approaches Déjà vu is playing out in Brazil. After protracted media and judicial campaigns against former president Luíz Inácio Lula da Silva, translating into his imprisonment for one-and-a-half years, the effect has been minimal, if any, as far as the 2022 presidential polls are...
“Blindness that affects the other side also affects us.” — Mano Brown The saying goes: Um negócio pra boi dormir.” Literally, the Brazilian aphorism means: (To give) something for the bull to sleep. In practical layman’s terms it pre-figures social interactions where somebody, a group of people or an entity, says...
Inauguration of a Fusion Center of Multinational Intelligence gathering located next to the pristine Iguaçu Falls—a long-held dream of the U.S. Embassy—is a case in point “The U.S. has been a huge partner to Brazil in this project and others as well and we’re taking advantage of the model that...
Flashbacks, possibly nightmares, haunt the ghost of an old empire. In December 2023, 57 years after the sun and Union Jack descended over British Guiana, Britain’s HMS Trent, a Royal Navy patrol vessel, was spotted sailing into a Guyanese harbor. “Nothing that we did in the past or we will...