Brasil Observer # 24 - English Version by Brasil Observer

B R A S I L O B S E R V E R LONDON EDITION

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ISSN 2055-4826

FEBRUARY/2015

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BRUNO DIAS / ESTÚDIO RUFUS (WWW.RUFUS.ART.BR)

L A R E GEN N O I T ELEC THE BRAZILIAN VOTE IN THE UK

ART FROM PERNAMBUCO Embassy of Brazil in London presents new exhibition DIVULGATION

MISSING THE SUMMER A tour through Jericoacoara’s beach to forget winter DIVULGATION

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

SUMMARY 4 6 8 10 12 14 18 21 24 26 30

IN FOCUS Seleçao returns to London

LONDON EDITION Is a monthly publication of ANAGU UK UN LIMITED founded by:

GUEST COLUMNIST Alexandre de Freitas Barbosa on China and Latin America PROFILE Valnei Nunes: war through a lens

ANA TOLEDO Operational Director ana@brasilobserver.co.uk

BRAZIL GLOBAL Brazilians with British citizenship prepare to vote in May’s general election

GUILHERME REIS Editorial Director guilherme@brasilobserver.co.uk

BR-UK CONNECTION UK ambassador to Brazil speaks about the Olympic Games

ROBERTA SCHWAMBACH Financial Director roberta@brasilobserver.co.uk

BRASILIANCE Brazil faces fiscal adjustment on economy | Petrobras and its biggest challenge ever CONECTANDO From Cuba, a point of view on the rapprochement with the US

ENGLISH EDITOR Kate Rintoul Kate@brasilobserver.co.uk Shaun Cumming shaun@investwrite.co.uk

GUIDE Art from Pernambuco at the Embassy of Brazil in London

LAYOUT AND GRAPHIC DESIGN Jean Peixe peixe@brasilobserver.co.uk

CULTURAL TIPS COLUMNISTS

CONTRIBUTORS Alec Herron, Alexandre de Freitas Barbosa, Bianca Brunow, Christian Taylor, Franko Figueiredo, Gabriela Lobianco, Juan Gabriel Gordín, Leticia Faddul, Marielle Machado, Michael Landon, Nathália Braga, Ricardo Somera, Rômulo Seitenfus, Rosa Bittencourt, Wagner de Alcântara Aragão

TRAVEL

PRINTER St Clements press (1988 ) Ltd, Stratford, London mohammed.faqir@stclementspress.com 10.000 copies DISTRIBUTION Emblem Group Ltd.

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brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

IN FOCUS

SELEÇAO RETURNS TO LONDON The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) confirmed in January that the Brazilian National Team, also known as Seleçao, will face Chile in a friendly game to be held on 29 March at the Emirates Stadium – home of Arsenal - in London. This will be Brazil’s second match of the year, right after the clash against France on 26 March at the Stade de France, in Paris. With a 60,000 capacity, the Emirates Stadium hosted five Seleçao matches during coach Dunga’s first term, between 2006 and 2010. Brazil faced Scotland at the stadium in 2011 (led by Mano Menezes, the Brazilian squad won that friendly 2-0). The last time Brazil played in the British capital was in 2013 against Russia at Stamford Bridge – that game ended 1-1. Under the new management of Dunga, this is the second match against a South American rival on neutral ground. Before facing Chile in London, Brazil beat Argentina in Beijing 2-0. The game against Chile will kick off at 3pm. Brazil and Chile faced each other in the World Cup in 2014, when the Brazilian team needed penalties to advance to the quarter-finals. Members of Arsenal’s loyalty programs have priority to purchase the tickets. Sales began on 6 February - priced between £15 and £30.

AGENDA g

20|21 February Seventh Conference of the ABEP (Brazilian Association of Post-Graduate Students and Researchers in the UK) is focused on the internationalization of Brazilian science and the pathways for economic development. The event takes place at the Imperial College in London – tickets between £15 and £35.

23 February Professor Jaime Ginzburg, the new Rio Branco Chair of International Relations, in the King’s Brazil Institute, led the debate on culture and violence, comparing contemporary Brazilian and British films at Somerset House. The event is free, but those hoping to go must register.

24 February Peter Birle, Director of the Research Division and the Research and Publications Department of the Ibero-American Institute and adjunct professor at the Free University of Berlin, will present a seminar on Brazil’s role in Latin America. The public talk will be held at the King’s College’s Strand building. Just show up.

26 February The Institute of Latin American Studies the University of London’s School of Advanced Study will discuss ten years of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) - £15.

I have always found Brazil a fabulous country [...] the most surprising aspect for me was the Candomblé (Afro-Brazilian religion) in Salvador, a city that is very revealing about what Brazil is Michael Palin, on the time he spent in Brazil recording for the BBC, during the ‘Brazilian Diaries’ event held by the Institute of Latin American Studies of the University of London’s School of Advanced Study.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

The Latin America Business Forum is a platform that aims to strengthen the ties between the UK and Latin America by fostering the debate of key topics that make a difference in innovation, business, economics, government and society. The Forum brings together key players and influencers, thinkers and doers that contribute to preparing Latin America to take the leap to a developed economy. Five keynote speakers and twelve panelists will share with us their vision about the future of Latin America.

Latin America Business Forum at London Business School Economic Development in Latin America: Challenges for the Next Decade •

A Tale of Two Latin Americas: Finding the right balance to achieve equitable growth

•

Entrepreneurship: How can it play a larger role in Latin America’s development

•

Competitiveness in Latin America: How to close the gap with the developed world

Friday, 27 February 2015 at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, next to London Business School

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

GUEST COLUMNIST

CHINA AND LATIN AMERICA: SOUTH-SOUTH PARTNERSHIP? Beijing has set out its policy for the continent, but Latin American countries’ reaction is fragmented and not purposeful By Alexandre de Freitas Barbosa g

Alexandre de Freitas Barbosa is a lecturer of Economic History and Brazilian Economy at Brazilian Studies Institute (Instituto de Estudos Brasileiros) at University of São Paulo (USP) and integrates the Reflexion Group about International Relations (GR-RI, in Portuguese)

The China-CELAC Forum (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) was widely reported about in the Brazilian press because it was the first international trip of the new Brazilian Chancellor, Mauro Vieira. Equator and Venezuela sent their Presidents with “plates in their hands,” in a context of falling oil prices. 1994 was a starting point in its international progress. The China Development Bank (CDB) and the China Ex-Im Bank were created. In 1998, China began a policy of Going Global, encouraging the internationalization of state enterprises, acting in line with the development banks and supporting foreign trade. In 2000, the China-Africa Forum was launched, when the Great Peoples’ Hall extended its red carpet for a procession of African leaders (48 in total). In 2004, Hu Jintao went on a South American tour, while countries in the region competed among themselves for Chinese investment. In 2008, the Chinese government released “China’s policy for Latin America and Caribbean” in the wake of the boom of commodities and expansion of trade between the two regions. In 2012, Wen Jiabao, then Prime Minister of China, made a historical speech at ECLAC (United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean). After mentioning the “Latin American civilization, as result of historical development and exchange with various civilizations of the world”, he affirmed China’s peaceful diplomatic rise: economic, technological and cultural partnership with “other” developing regions - integrating action with the goal of creating a “multipolar order” in geopolitics. He offered a Cooperation Fund for China-ALC and provided special credit from his Development Bank. Now it’s the turn of President Xi Jinping to continue this agenda – a new kind of capitalist economy set up at least 20 years ago. Here, the economic policies and foreign policies are combined in a geopolitical strategy to work in various areas of the world. At a meeting on 8 and 9 January 2015, the Cooperation Plan between China and CELAC was defined for the 20152019 period, and the Beijing Declaration was signed. In addition to the growth of trade forecast, as well as Chinese investments in Latin America, the Beijing government has offered 6000 scholarships for members of CELAC, and also invited thousand of political leaders to visit China and pledged to organize Mandarin

courses in elementary and high schools in the area. On the issue of investments, the focus is infrastructure, where China has developed “large capacity in the areas of production, technology and equipment”. The objective is to contribute to the development of Latin America, “instead of just promoting trade of natural resources and energy from one country to the other”. And what can we say about the Latin American countries? The impression is that they act as extras rendered to a route defined across the Pacific. The CELAC, inaugurated in Venezuela in 2011, was quickly recognized by the Chinese government. In a 2012 speech, ECLAC was the only entity from the region to be mentioned. Three years later, the China-CELAC Forum - which brings together all Latin American countries, including Cuba, and serves as a counterpoint to the OAS (Organization of American States) - was created. It fulfils the role of establishing a “partnership” with Latin America, the details of which are set at the bilateral level, i.e., between individual countries and China. It is a pragmatic cooperation. Instead of easily condemning it as a new form of imperialism, it is worth remembering that - unlike the US China does not offer a closed package to Latin America. It signs a treaty of free trade with anyone, as in the case of Chile, Peru and Costa Rica. In Venezuela and Ecuador, it cooperates via “loans-for-oil”. In Brazil, the bilateral cooperation is developing under the Sino-Brazilian Commission of High Level Cooperation and Coordination (Cosban), besides the agreements signed in the BRICS Forums. With Mexico, the relationship is tense because of the anti-dumping measures imposed by the country to Chinese imports. Would it be the case of asking whether this fragmentation is due to China’s desire to “divide to rule”, or if it is the very mirror of Latin American integration, where countries have different standards of international insertion without an effective integration perspective for the region? Data on the economic relations between China and Latin America is revealing. Between 2001 and 2013, bilateral trade multiplied 22 times. When looking at the trade balances by product type, over the period, the result leaves no room for doubt: the Latin American surplus in

commodities jumped from $2.3 billion to $62.6 billion, while the deficit with China in manufactured goods reached $130.7 billion dollars in 2013, against $7.5 billion in 2001. In terms of Chinese foreign direct investment, they still are not very significant (because the data is underestimated) but are growing rapidly after 2010, especially in oil, energy, mining, infrastructure and even in manufacturing industries. The most striking, however, is in respect of loans in 2010: China claims to loan a higher amount to the region than the total invested by the World Bank, IDB and Eximbank of the United States. In short, China already has its policy for the region and knows very well what it wants and what they can offer to Latin America. On the other hand, the question is whether Latin America exists in geopolitical and economic terms, to the point of knowing what they want and how to negotiate with China. This is because the region has responded to the movements of Chinese diplomacy in a fragmented way - each country has (at most) their own agenda - and little purpose. From the Brazilian point of view, the agenda with China, in addition to the multilateral dimension - the country was elevated to the status of “global strategic partner” for the Asian power in 2012 has two other dimensions: regional and domestic. Despite the trade surplus with China, Brazil has been displaced, in Latin American market, for Chinese manufactured goods, and sees the supply chains shrinking domestically. Like the Chinese, we need to combine economic policy to foreign policy. Signing free trade agreements with developed countries - now on the agenda of the government through the new Minister of Finance, Joaquim Levy, among others - is a shot in the foot. It means asphyxiating the internal market and losing the potential of Latin American integration. The Brazilian foreign policy - structured by Itamaraty in dialogue with other branches of government and civil society -, if it is not subject to the logic of passive integration, should be able to think of China as an important partner in multilateral forums. This, without neglecting the challenges that the economy, as well as the pattern of external insertion represents for nations with diversified industry and tradition in being a protagonist in regional and global scene.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

PROFILE

VALNEI NUNES WAR THROUGH A LENS

Brazilian filmmaker recalls the days he spent on Turkey’s Syrian border covering armed conflicts in the region and reveals that “the involvement is inevitable” By Rômulo Seitenfus

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

Part of the largest humanitarian crisis of our time is taking place between the cities of Kobane and Suruç. In September 2014, Kobane located in northern Syria, bordering Turkey, became a strategic focus for the jihadist group Islamic State – which has further aggravated the situation in the region that was already ravaged by civil war between rebels and soldiers of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, which began in 2011. Across the border in Turkey, Suruc has become the destination of thousands of refugees, mainly Syrians of Kurdish ethnicity who have been left stateless during the last four years. It was in this war zone that the Brazilian filmmaker and photographer Valnei Nunes spent about a month between September and October last year, witnessing the mobilisation of Islamic state, the resistance from the Kurds and the US Army and the consequent exodus of thousands of citizens in search of safety. Along with the reporter Sergio Utsch, he produced a series of reports for the Brazilian broadcaster SBT, and now some of his photographs and footage have been presented in the exhibition Displaced, which opened on 27 January in the The Defector’s Weld Gallery in London. The show portrays the plight of Syrian refugees. According to the UN Agency for Refugees, nearly half of the Syrian population have been forced to flee their homes because of the violence and more than 3 million refugees have left other countries in the region. “The involvement is inevitable,” Valnei Nunes confessed in an exclusive interview with Brasil Observer. By the time this text was written, Kurdish fighters had beaten jihadists in Kobane. And the exhibition now heads to Frankfurt, Germany, in order to reach as many people and collect donations for the victims of war. Part of the only Brazilian news crew in Kobane, Nunes has a degree in Film and Video, but has always been linked to human rights, depicting indigenous issues and denouncing the poor treatment of mental health public services in Brazil. In this interview, he tells us about his time reporting the conflict and it’s effects on the Syrian people.

At what point did you realise the size of the conflict? I had done difficult international coverage before, but did not expect such gravity. On the fifth day the situation was considered the greatest humanitarian tragedy in the history of UN refugee agency. The situation only worsened and the journey was just beginning. Was there any difficulties during your time there?

VALNEI NUNES

There were many. Around the city of Suruç, the meetings between the Kurdish militia and the Turkish army became increasingly tense. In one of the protests, we were two meters from the police when suddenly the Turkish army launched an attack against all who were around. Journalists, photographers and the Kurdish militia were dispersed by the effect of tear gas. We got into the car and started an immediate return toward Suruç. Along the way the road was blocked by tanks and militants; we could not move and decided to wait in the middle of the road, at a distance from the conflict. I tried to film a man praying in the middle of the attacks when suddenly I heard a vacuum and an explosion behind me; it was a mortar fallen less than 200 meters from our car - we were the target. All indications have been the Turkish army, but the city of Kobane and the Islamic State were right there, all against all, and the threat was coming from all sides. Kurds accuse the Turkish of financing the Islamic State. Turkey, who have imprisoned the Kurdish leader of the Workers Party (PKK), Abdullah Ocalan for more than 15 years, considers the Kurds a territorial threat. On the way back from the first protest, I felt a progressive pain in the left shoulder. The next morning I could barely hold the camera lens. I had dislocated my left shoulder. I had eight days of coverage; there was no time to go to hospital. The next day, I was seen by one of those miraculous oracles of the Middle East. It was a Kurdish old woman who twisted my body, prayed and kissed me; then stuck two stickers on my shoulder that burned my skin. The treatment was successful treatment, I improved in two days. Even with a dislocated shoulder, I continued to film and photograph but it was difficult. Did you have some kind of protection? No. The international press that was there felt threatened; there was no way of knowing where the attack would come from. I remember that even a car from the BBC, with a great staff, was violently attacked by the Turkish army. It was a chaotic situation. How did you cope in this situation? At some point did you find yourself emotionally involved with the refugees?

There was a child in particular, about four years old, who was living in one of the shops that were being used to house refugees. I remember I had a tangerine in my pocket and as started to peel it, it came and bit my arm, he was starving. I started to take food from the hotel where I was staying to give to the kids this store. I remember the refugees were all very hungry. The image of refugees arriving at the border was of biblical proportions: thousands of hungry, dusty and dehydrated people. In one of the mosques that served as accommodation for refugees, a teenage girl, Muna, who was 15, had been burnt all over her body and had to wait 10 days for medical treatment. Even in terrible situations, there can be poignancy and even beauty in the images captured. What are your most memorable photo memories? There was a time when I went to a square where the UN truck used to distribute the only meal of the day for families. A crowd of children jammed into the queue. I got in the truck and by the window, near a huge pot of meat, a group of children of all ages were pushing with empty buckets in hand to get a better place in line. Many of those children were collecting food for between 15 to 20 people in their extended family each day. That square which I called the “Garden of Refugees”, where I showed dozens of colourful clothes of Kurdish women scattered among the bushes, I saw an unforgettable beauty, despite the sad situation. What led you to put on this exhibition? First the need for people from other places to know the history of the the Kurds, who have been most affected by the war. They are the largest ethnic group on the planet without a recognised state, they live in different regions of the Middle East and, although they are Muslims, women are respected, the veil is not required, and both the man and the woman have the same rights. The other is the need for donations for families who are in a situation of abandonment. I remember there was not enough tents for all who came, whole families slept leaning against the walls of the camps awaiting housing. In the exhibition, 20% of sales of works will go to refugees in the region. Do you want to continue covering conflict zones? I think I do a good job in extreme situations. While there are conflicts going on, the responsibility of the communicator will always be the expression of force required to report the reality composing a critical and unpretentious look. I must return to the field this year with another project that is in progress.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

BRAZIL GLOBAL DIVULGATION

Old-fashioned: no voting machine like in Brazil

TO THE POLLS IN THE UK Brazilians with British citizenship prepare to exercise their right to vote in May’s general election; fierce debate on immigration has little effect on the Brazilian community

2015 begins with a political atmosphere in the UK. The general election of 7 May means that a new British Parliament will soon be elected and, from it, a new government will be formed and indicate who will be the Prime Minister until 2020. Given the discussion on how this new government will look like – probably formed by a coalition, as none of the two major parties (Conservative and Labour) seems able to win an overall majority of the 650 seats in the House of Commons – most of Brazilians living in the UK follow the progress of debates without direct power

By Guilherme Reis

to interfere. But there are those who may exercise their right to vote. Anyone who is over 18 and was born in a Commonwealth country or the Republic of Ireland and now has residency in the UK is eligible to vote in the UK’s general election. People who were born overseas but have become British citizens also qualify. The large number of people who have arrived in the UK from EU countries in the past decade cannot vote unless they have already acquired British citizenship. No one knows for sure how many naturalized Brazilian will attend to

the polls in May, as the vote in the UK is not an obligation and there are no statistics on the number of people who fit this profile. But according to information obtained by the Brasil Observer with the Home Office, between 1990 and 2013 about 10,500 Brazilians were naturalized or registered as British citizens. This does not mean that everyone is entitled to vote, because many of them may not live in the UK anymore, but it is the most relevant indicator available. Anyway, it is a small part of the size of the Brazilian community in Britain. An estimate by the Embas-

sy of Brazil in London points out that 137,000 Brazilians live in the UK. For the Casa do Brasil association, which provides a range of services to the Brazilian community, the actual number may be much higher: about 300,000. The determining factor for the number of Brazilians living in the country is underestimated is that many have dual nationality and enter the UK using passport of European countries, so they are not counted as Brazilians. Another factor that contributes to this is those who might be here illegally.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

VOTE’S EXERCISE

IMMIGRATION DEBATE All voters heard by Brasil Observer were contrary to the anti-immigration discourse that took over the British news because of the rise of UKIP, a far-right party which advocates, among other things, the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union. This is a debate that Brazilians, as part of an immigrant community, have to follow even without the right to vote.

Migrant electorate will be crucial, study shows DIVULGATION

Brasil Observer spoke with eight Brazilians who, as British citizens, prepare to vote in May. On average, these voters are 48 years old, live in the UK for 15 years and already voted at least twice in the country – whether local or national election. Four of them said they had not yet defined who to vote for; two declared vote in the Labour Party; Green and Liberal Democrat had the preference of one respondent each. Unlike Brazil, where there is a direct vote for president, Brits vote to elect Members of Parliament. The UK is divided into 650 electoral districts, and in the general election the candidate who receives a majority of votes in each goes to the House of Commons. To form a majority government, a party must win in 326 districts. If there is no absolute majority, two or more parties should join to form a coalition government, like the current one, with the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties. There is also the possibility of forming a minority government, and if there is no agreement between the parties the Parliament is dissolved again for a new general election. The prime minister is the leader of the party that won most of the seats, or the leader of the largest party in a coalition. Based on surveys of voting intentions, the next will probably be current Prime Minister David Cameron (Conservative) or Ed Miliband (Labour). “Both in Brazil and here, I try to vote taking into account what I consider best for the country at the time the election is held, based on the information available,” said the journalist Maria Eduarda Lafetá Johnston, voting in Sutton and Cheam district, represented by the Liberal Democrat Paul Burstow. For Maria Eduarda, “the economy is one of my priorities, but also social programs, schools and hospitals.” Luiz Carlos Chagas, cultural project manager at the Embassy of Brazil in London, votes in the district of Greenwich and Woolwich, which since 1997 is represented by the Labour Member of Parliament Nick Raysnford. “I take into account the policy proposals that have direct relevance to the area I live in London, and the possible benefits for workers, whether they are immigrants or not,” said Luiz Carlos. For the couple Ivanclei de Oliveira and Luciane Freitas da Silva Oliveira, who vote for Birmingham Edgbaston, represented by Labour’s Gisela Stuart, the candidate values of life have decisive weight, and position on immigration. “Foreign vote became a weapon and a good group to be conquered by politicians,” said Ivanclei.

That’s the opinion of the counsellor of intern policy at the Embassy of Brazil in London, Jão Marcos Paes Leme, who ensures, however, that “the debate on immigration has little effect on the Brazilian community in the UK.” According to Paes Leme, the British authorities don’t have a specific purpose for controlling the entry of Brazilians. “The biggest problem for the UK - if it really is a problem - is that as a member of the European Union it should welcome any citizen of the block. There is nothing to stop a citizen of the European Union to move here. This puts pressure on the country’s infrastructure, transport, social benefits, etc. And generates a domestic debate. The main parties respond differently to this pressure. Some say clearly, as liberals, this is a good thing for the economy. But this concern is primarily with European citizens, so that there is a debate to leave the European Union. But even the most radical say even to leave the European Union, those who are already here have nothing to fear,” he said. Executive director of London Help 4U, Francine Mendonça has a similar opinion. “Many British bother with the immigrant vote and also with foreigners generally. But there are many Brits who also appreciate the vote of foreigners, because the foreigners who are building a different England, with more flavours, cultures and colours. I don’t think the immigration debate will lead the UK to take a different action in relation to the entry visa for Brazilians”, she said. The facts show that the vast majority of Brazilians arrive in the UK with a good standing – whether it is with documents required to enter as a tourist (up to six months) or with any specific British visa. From 2003 to 2013, the number of Brazilian tourists who came to the UK grew 360%. In 2013, the last year recorded by Visit Britain, 257,000 tourists from Brazil visited England, Scotland and Wales. These travellers have left 277 million pounds. Brazil is 23rd in number of tourists and 20th in the ranking of visitors who spend more. According to the Embassy of Brazil in London, from July 2013 to June 2014, there were 932 refusals of Brazilians in the UK when they are refused entry and sent back to Brazil. This number is less than half that recorded in 2010, when 2,110 were rejected. Regarding the deportations, there was a decrease of 765 in 2010 to 190 in 2014. Regarding British visas for Brazilians, almost 100% is study visa, according to the Home Office. From October 2013 to September 2014, 2,316 visas were issued, an increase of 42% over the previous year. Of these, 2,232 were for students, an increase of 70% over the same period between 2012 and 2013. As a result, Brazil is second place in the ranking of countries for which it was granted the highest number of student visas by the UK. First was China, with 2,286. This increased happened, in large part, by the success of the Brazilian federal government program Science Without Borders - the UK is the second most popular destination, just behind the US.

Among the countries of origin of migrants’ voters in the UK, the first two are India (615,000) and Pakistan 431,000)

A research paper co-authored by the University of Manchester and Migrants Rights Network says that the migrant electorate will be a crucial constituency in the 2015 election. The briefing provides the latest analysis of migrant voters in England and Wales, and considers their potential impact at the next election. It finds that around one voter in every ten eligible to vote in 2015 will be a migrant voter, and many more will be the children of migrants. At least 70 marginal seats in 2015 could have significant cohorts of migrant voters, and this group could prove decisive in a small number of seats. The paper advocates a measured message on immigration in the run-up to 2015, in order to avoid alienation of migrant voters into the future.

Key findings: g

Almost 4 million people in England and Wales who were born overseas will be eligible to vote in May, compared with just under 3.5 million at the 2010 general election.

Two seats – East Ham and Brent North – are predicted to be the first constituencies with a majority of the eligible electorate born abroad. In a further 25 seats they will constitute more than a third of the electorate and at least a quarter in another 50 seats.

Most of these voters are highly concentrated in inner-city seats in London and the West Midlands and could hold the balance of power in several marginals.

The voters come from former Commonwealth countries or the Republic of Ireland, or have become British citizens after living in the UK for five or more years.

For more information visit www.migrantsrights.org.uk.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

BR-UK CONNECTION

‘RIO WILL HOST FANTASTIC OLYMPICS’, SAYS BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO BRAZIL In an interview with the official website of Rio 2016, Alex Ellis discussed the legacy of London 2012 and emphasizes partnerships created by the Brazilian and British governments

What were the country’s expectations in 2012? When London was named host city in 2005, many people cheered and celebrated the news. On the other hand, there were also negative reactions and comparisons with other host cities. Some sectors of society, especially the British press, said that London couldn’t overcome Beijing, but in the end those assumptions were wrong. There was inevitably a lot of anxiety, including about transportation, in the final stretch of preparations before the official opening. It is normal and understandable. Was that initial view transformed after the Games? Despite nerves before the event, the whole country saw and joined in the success of the Games. It is impossible to deny that they were beneficial to the city, population, trade and for the UK as a whole. The Games were memorable, and people recognise that. The Paralympic Games had great attendance in all events. Was that surprising?

Vinicius and Tom: mascots of Rio 2016. Tickets for the Games are available on www.rio2016.com

In a way it was, since all box office records so far were broken. About 2.7 million tickets were sold, with most events sold out. We also broke all records related to television broadcast and the effects on social media. However, what surprised me the most was not the box-office success, but rather the impact that the Paralympic Games had in British people’s perception of persons with disabilities. Could you mention an example? One survey by the British Paralympic Association (BPA) revealed that the Paralympic Games have had a profound effect in children from all over the United Kingdom: about seven out of ten children surveyed said that the Games have changed the way they saw people with disabilities. This is a great achievement, and shows how a sporting event can be transformative for society. In that sense, an agreement was made in 2011 between the UK Government, the Brazilian Paralympic Committee and the Brazilian Ministry of Sport so that our young Paralympic athletes and Brazilian counterparts could compete together. In September last year, Brazilian athletes joined in on the Sainsbury’s School Games in England. In November, a British Paralympic athlete delegation joined the Brazilian Paralympic School Games. We were the only foreign delegation. What other legacies have been perceived as being left by the Games in the city and in the country? We have several areas where the London Games legacy is being explored, including economic growth - London

proved that yes, host cities can grow economically. The Games yielded 14.2 billion pounds in investments and partnerships in the UK and reached their target in two years. The initial goal was to reach 11 billion pounds in investment in four years. Another aspect was the opportunity to use the Olympic and Paralympic spirit to unite communities around the belief that sport can bring people together to improve society. We relied on volunteers within the arenas, the Game Makers (photo), but also on the streets helping tourists, with the Team London Ambassadors. Volunteer work, which had been decreasing since 2005, was strongly encouraged and grew 40% after the Games. In relation to tourism, how have the Games influenced new people visiting to the city? Tourism in London, which was already high, was not underestimated, and received great attention from the beginning of planning. The results were excellent: in 2013, London had an increase of 1.3 million international tourists, hitting a record and surpassing Paris for the first time as the most visited city in the world. Some areas of the city were revitalised for the competitions. How has that affected the reality of local communities? Both for Glasgow 2014 and for the London 2012 Games, a legacy plan was designed to explore the use of the Olympic facilities by the local community, assisting in the development of young athletes, encouraging vocational training and educa-

DIVULGATION

Having hosted the Olympic Games twice before (1908 and 1948), London was again chosen to host the 2012 Games. Before the event, one of the claims was that the British capital would never be able to surpass the level of organisation of the Beijing Games in 2008. However, the challenges were overcome, and the city became the first in the world to host the event three times. The advantages gained for the population continue to add up. From the revitalisation of abandoned areas to increases in tourism (London surpassed Paris for the first time in 2013 as the most visited city in the world) the legacies from the Olympic and Paralympic Games are many and varied. For the UK ambassador to Brazil, Alex Ellis, some of the most important achievements have to do with the mentality of the population: volunteer work, for example, grew by 40% after the event. In addition, society’s general view towards people with disabilities was also positively affected. In an interview with Brazilian government’s official portal for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the British ambassador commented on many of the legacies generated by the world’s biggest sporting event. And he made a bold statement: “Rio will host fantastic Olympics.” Here’s what else he had to say.

By Ana Cláudia Felizola

tional activities, and providing one more area for leisure and sports practice for local communities. Especially in East London, where the Olympic Park was built, the results were excellent (photo below). To name a few improvements: 3,000 trees planted, removal of more than 15 tons of garbage from rivers, canals and parks, more than 7,000 m² of new gardens, and more than 50 abandoned sites revitalised. This change in the quality of spaces that were previously unattractive helped other sectors, such as tourism, infrastructure and health. In addition, 2,800 apartments used as accommodation for athletes in the London Olympics in 2012 were converted into residential apartments. How do you see Rio de Janeiro’s preparations? I was extremely impressed with the success of the organisation for the World Cup. In the end, Brazil showed that it can host mega events with excellence. The Rio Games have everything to be a complete success, and British athletes are very excited about what we have seen of the city in our visits so far. I’m convinced Rio will host fantastic Olympics. The views in the Olympic areas are of incomparable beauty. No host city can compete with Rio in that regard. London Olympics medallists like Pete Reed (rowing), Luke Patience (sailing) and Tom Daley (diving) have all been in Rio for technical visits, and all were marvelled at its beauty. What experiences can London convey to Rio de Janeiro? We have a great partnership with the Brazilian government, the Rio state government, the city of Rio and the Rio 2016 Organising Committee to collaborate for the Rio Games. Since 2009, more than 40 UK and Brazil government departments have engaged in exchanges related to the Olympics, with at least 160 internal and external missions, workshops, seminars and events. In 2012, the Brazilian government, in partnership with us, created the “Government Observer Program of the 2012 London Olympics”, under which 300 participants went to London in order to study and analyse all actions taken. After the Games, we officially passed the baton to Brazil and are in constant dialogue about the Olympic and Paralympic, for which the London organisers have shared their experience with the organisers of the 2016 Games. There has never been a closer partnership between governments of both countries and their host cities as there is now.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

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brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

BRASILIANCE

TIME FOR FISCAL ADJUSTMENT Ignoring the failure of austerity in Europe, Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff decided to follow the same path and announced spending cuts of her own in an attempt to ease pressure on the Brazilian stock market displeasing most of the people who recently re-elected her in the process

In her inaugural address for her second term as president of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff said there would be “no step back” in relation to social achievements of the past 12 years – the first four from her own government and the previous eight from former president Lula. The statement was in line with her campaign promise, when she said workers’ rights would not be affected in her new government. Less than 20 days into the new administration, however, Rousseff categorically contradicted this statement. If she continues on this track, the campaign promise will also go down the drain rapidly. On 19 January, Brazil’s new Finance Minister, Joaquim Levy, announced a series of measures in order to increase revenue and cut Union expenses. The so-called “fiscal adjustment” was expected since the end of December, when – to the amazement of those who believed a second Dilma government would be more progressive – the president confirmed conservative Levy’s position in office. The measures include increasing the tax burden on personal credit and products such as fuel, cosmetics and imported goods in general. These measures are added to others taken in late 2014, which made the concessions of social benefits such as unemployment insurance, salary bonuses, sick pay and death pension more difficult. The package has also a provisional measure signed by Rousseff that increased by 4.5% the limit for exemption of income tax – lower than the annual inflation rate of 6.41% recorded in 2014 (Congress had approved a 6.5% correction, but the president vetoed). The Central Bank put the icing on the cake by raising interest rates to 12.25%, the highest since July 2011. With the measures set out in January, the federal government expects to raise 20.6 billion reais in tax collection in 2015. With the restriction on benefits announced in December, it is estimated that 18 billion reais will be cut from Union spending. As minister Joaquim Levy aims to reach 60 billion reais of savings, there are still 22 billion reais to axe. Judging from Levy’s actions, this

By Wagner de Alcântara Aragão

government’s grip on the public accounts will focus on measures that mainly affect employees and middleclass income, as well as the productive sector. Millionaires and the financial markets, however, will be spared. For the financial markets, the package is a good indication that Rousseff ’s government will be more committed to fiscal responsibility in the second term. The measures taken so far aim at a primary surplus target of 1.2% of Brazil’s GDP in 2015. Primary surplus is what the government saves for the payment of interest on debt – formed basically by government securities sold in the financial market.

SIZE OF THE HOLE Brazil’s public sector – federal, state and municipal governments and state companies – registered a primary deficit of 32.5 billion reais in 2014. In 2013, there was a surplus of 91.306 billion reais. It was the first time since the start of the series of the Central Bank, in December 2001, that the public sector ended the year with a deficit. The Central Government – National Treasury, Social Security and Central Bank – ended 2014 with a primary deficit of 17.2 billion reais. It was also the first time that the primary result was a deficit since the beginning of the current series, which began in 1997. Thus, the amended primary surplus target for 2014, which was 10.1 billion reais (the original target of 80.7 billion reais was reduced due to the drop in revenues and increased spending), was not achieved. The data refers to the primary deficit because it is the difference between income and non-interest expenses, excluding income and expenses with interest. With a deficit, the government lacks money to pay debt interest, whose expenditures reached 311.4 billion reais in 2014 (6.07% of GDP), compared to 248.9 billion reais (5.14% of GDP) in 2013. The nominal deficit formed by the primary balance plus interest expenses, reached 343.9 billion reais last year (6.7% of GDP). For the deputy head of the Economic Department of the Central Bank, Fernando Rocha, lower eco-

nomic activity and the consequent drop in tax revenues contributed to the negative results as well as the exemptions granted to specific sectors of the economy by President Dilma. “In 2013, we had growth of 2.5% of GDP. In 2014, we do not know, but the result will be significantly lower. This results from lower tax revenues. Another factor is the exemptions, estimated at just over 100 billion reais. Finally, the growth of expenditure on investments,” Fernando Rocha said. No one argues that Brazil really needs an adjustment. The cutbacks alone, however, do not guarantee that there will be a return of economic growth. What the government expects now is to regain market confidence and awaken the “animal spirit” of the private sector to re-invest and consequently heat Brazilian production – as increased public investment does not seem to be an option.

reach workers and help families who cannot afford to pay for basic services. To afford it, he indicated he may propose to raise taxes of the wealthiest families in the country. In this sense, and given the uneven economic reality in Brazil, despite recent advances, Brazil could put in place a tax on the wealthy – a mechanism predicted in the 1988 Constitution, but never regulated by Congress. According to “Tax on large fortunes” published by economist Amir Khair in 2003, a 1% tax on wealth declared to the tax system by individuals and companies would provided tax revenue of 1.89% of GDP, at least. Other measure would be to correct tax distortions. One example is the payment of 27.5% of income tax both for those receiving a monthly salary of 4,080 reais and by those paid 408,000 reais a month, according to the table of income ranges in practise nowadays.

CONTRAFLOW

REPERCUSSION

Examples from outside Brazil justify questioning the effectiveness of these measures. The fiscal adjustment that Dilma Rousseff ’s government will put into practice has been adopted by the eurozone since 2009, when the effects of the global economic crisis erupted a year before. Since then, the European economy has alternated between recession and stagnation, with high unemployment (especially among young people) and outbreaks of social unrest – marked, in some countries, by xenophobic attitudes of people who blame immigrants for the financial crises. The consequences of European austerity come to the point that monetary authorities begin to worry. The European Central Bank announced easing measures in order to increase economic activity and reverse the ongoing deflation process. From the US came another demonstration of how Brazil’s new economic team seems to stand against the flow. In the traditional Union of the State speech, President Barack Obama defended the introduction of government measures to stimulate job creation and universal rights such as health and social security. Obama spoke of lowering taxes that

The adjustment plan is reported in the mainstream media as a necessary badness. The major television and radio stations in the country and the websites of the largest commercial newspapers, which are usually critical when it comes to “populist” measures, do not criticise the consequences of the government fiscal adjustment. From the opposition, which has the PSDB (Social Democrats) as the principal voice, the criticism is more focused in the absence of measures to diminish Union spending. One of the party’s senators, Alvaro Dias, spoke on the need for “administrative reform”. The left wing opposition condemned the sacrifice imposed by the package to employees. Luciana Genro, Psol’s (Socialism and Freedom) candidate in the elections, said that “even Obama” defended enlarge taxes on the rich to relieve the poor. The unions – almost all of them supported Dilma Rousseff in the runoff of 2014 elections – rejected the measures and marked mobilizations for the end of January and February. In a statement, they condemned the restriction of granting social security benefits.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

The adjustment concept is the same in Europe and Latin America Face of the adjustment. Brazil’s Finance Minister, Joaquim Levy, attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, in January. At the time, the British NGO Oxfam warned: by 2016, 1% of the world population’s wealth will be higher than the remaining 99%. Don’t you have anything else to say, minister?

High profits for multinational and national corporations, low wages and cuts to public investment for the middle classes. This is the logic of fiscal adjustment in Brazil and austerity in Europe, in the opinion of Nildo Ouriques, Professor of Economics and International Relations at the Brazilian Federal University of Santa Catarina and President of Latin American Studies Institute. Speaking to the Brasil Observer, he says we are in a new phase: “It’s the end of illusions”. g

Is there any difference between the “Fiscal Adjustment” in Brazil and the “Austerity” in Europe? Brazil is at risk of suffering the same consequences from European austerity? The adjustment concept is the same in Europe and Latin America. This is basically a class war against the people, because this policy ensures super-profits for multinational and national companies, and low wages and investment cuts in health and education for the poor and the impoverished middle class. Latin Americans have life, politics and economy controlled by financial policy since always; that’s why foreign debt - and the now the internal too - is always priority for governments (left or right). The European periphery is now learning a law that for us is almost bronze: over-exploitation of workers is the foundation of the political economy. This framework will enable Brazilians and Greeks (Italian and Spanish as well) to know that the struggle is international.

MORITZ HAGER/ WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM

Is the fiscal adjustment policy in Brazil really inevitable? What is the origin of this imbalance and how to fix it? In Brazil, as in the rest of Latin America and parts of Europe, the mainstream media have manufactured the public opinion in accordance with the interests of bankers. Thus, the majority accepted the “theory” that we are facing a fiscal crisis. Such a thing does not exist. What exists is a financial crisis of the state that was purposely indebted to then apply the fiscal adjustment. Over the past four years Greece has received approximately 220 billion euros and paid 330. The debt, however, has not stopped growing. It is the debt automatism. The only way out is to conduct an audit as Ecuador did and simply cancel – because of the illegal nature of its contracts - most of the public debt that benefit almost exclusively bankers. Has the unemployment rate decreased in Greece? No, it is rising up. So there is no fiscal adjustment that eliminates the financial crisis of the state. The cause of Greece is important

for all of us in Latin America. In Brazil, President Dilma Rousseff had other options. But instead she promotes a pact of classes that favours primarily exporters, multinationals and especially bankers. Last year, 44% of Brazil’s budget was allocated to the payment of interest on domestic and external debt. It’s very similar to a country at war, when half of the budget is for defence. Here, on the contrary, when they take 7 billion reais of education, the government says it is to generate revenues to “honour” the payment of debt, which does not diminish but grows. Of course, there are alternatives: tax increases for the rich, for exporters, etc. Soy exports are tax free. I paid 27.5% of my teacher’s salary, while mineral exporters paid up to 4%. Without a debt audit, no government can honour its election speech. g

Do you believe that the rise of anti-austerity movements in Europe can boost similar movements in Brazil? Yes of course. Here we have a long tradition of social movements. In Europe and the US, they are more or less recent because the majority of the population believe in the great mass parties. In Spain, the PSOE; in Greece, the POSOK; and in Italy, the Socialist and Communist parties. But the crisis has consumed their credibility, because every new election, after defending the workers and the people before the vote, they accepted the IMF program on the first day in office. Their credibility is over and some parties disappeared. It was great. It’s the end of illusions. We are now living a phase of new parties. In Brazil, the PT (Workers Party) is very similar to the PSDB (Social Democrats) and the PMDB (Democratic Movement), both traditional parties. The PT was once a party of struggle and combat, but is currently the main party of the ruling class. In this sense we repeat the PCI tragedy in Italy and the PSOE in Spain. The people’s response has been quick and we wait to see if the Greek government maintains its firm position.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

PETROBRAS AT THE CROSSROADS Plagued by corruption, Brazil’s largest company faces a challenge to continue an engine of development

Brazil’s state-owned oil giant Petrobras is experiencing the most serious crisis in its history. The progress of the ‘Lava Jato’ (Car Wash) operation and allegations of corruption in Brazil and abroad have delayed payments to suppliers, hindered the signing of amendments and put at risk the production targets of Brazil’s largest company, which accounts for about 10% of GDP and 5% of tax revenues. Added to these uncertainties is pressure being applied by economic groups, which want to change oil production rules in the pre-salt area – like the sharing system and the rules of domestic production. The impact of the Federal Police’s operations and the on going investi-

By Roberto Rockmann

gations in the United States and Europe regarding the company are still uncertain, but once the storm has passed, Petrobras will continue to be the main Brazilian company with a promising portfolio of projects, after making one of the largest oil discoveries in the world. The weight of the state company in the economy is brutal. In 2000, the oil sector, where Petrobras is the main force with more than 90% of its businesses in the area, accounted for 3% of GDP. Now it accounts for 13% and could reach 20% in 2020. Petrobras spends about 100 billion reais per year in acquisition of equipment and goods. According to Dieese data, in 2013 the company spent an average of 383 million reais daily

purchasing equipment. Today, Petrobras is involved in a series of investigations in Brazil and abroad, regarding suspicions of state resource deviations for political parties and overpricing of contracts and privilege for construction companies. The main authority of the US capital market is investigating Petrobras, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The Netherlands’ justice system is also eyeing a denunciation of SBM, a company that rented platforms to Petrobras. In Brazil, the Federal Public Ministry and the Federal Police have been hearing former directors of the company and contractors to identify embezzlement of money by political parties and private executives.

IMPACTS The consequences of Lava Jato are unknown. One of the problems that the case brings is the fact that Petrobras entered 2015 without having publishing third quarter 2014 results due to lack of an estimate of how much money was diverted from the company because of corruption. Even the figures presented in late January – 3 billion reais profit –, unaudited, are uncertain, and gives reason to the financial market to be harder on Petrobras. Without audited numbers, the state company cannot issue debt securities in Brazil or abroad to finance its large investment plans. The impasse affects the ability of Petrobras to make investments – and the supply chain around it is also

TÂNIA REGO/AGÊNCIA BRASIL

VALTER CAMPANATO/AGÊNCIA BRASIL

Crimes investigated by the ‘Lava Jato’ (Car Wash) Operation have identified more than 2 billion reais in suspect money in relation to Petrobras. This is one of the biggest problems to be faced by the new president of the company, Aldemir Bendine, announced in the beginning of February as Maria das Graças Foster’s replacement, who recently resigned.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

effected. In late June, Petrobras had cash of 66.4 billion reais. The funds could cover the 23 billion reais in debt maturing until the middle of next year and pay investments for two quarters (it invests about 20 billion reais every three months). The lack of an audited balance has weight on the more than 80,000 Petrobras employees. In January, the Sindipetro representatives in Bahia organized a demonstration against the corruption, in defence of the dignity of Petrobras. For the general coordinator, Deyvid Bacelar, one cannot confuse the actions of a handful of corrupt people with the whole company, or with the technical capacity of the company. An example of the possible impacts on employment is in the marine industry, which was to receive US$ 100 billion in investments between 2012 and 2020 as Petrobras plans to double its production until early next decade. Of 2,500 jobs in the early 2000s, the sector employs more than 80,000 people today and could double that number. The business is on alert. “No one in the company is signing amendments and major contracts are stopped, which creates great fear, because Petrobras accounts for 10% of Brazil’s investments and about more than 10% of GDP, which is a lot”, says a vice president of one of the

five largest constructors in Brazil. About 5,000 outsourced employees in construction relating to the state company are now threatened with losing their jobs in February. In the estimates of some consultants, a cut of 10% in the oil business plan can take from 0.1 to 0.5 percentage points of Brazil’s GDP. These threats make the large construction companies, which have in Petrobras an essential client, press the government and unions to show the impact that this investigation may have on the economy.

ANOTHER LEVEL Despite the uncertainty, the horizon in the medium and long term is positive. The discovery of pre-salt oil, in 2006, changed the operating level of Petrobras, which estimates to reach the next decade with an output of 4 million barrels a day, twice what it produces today – in 2014, the total production of oil and gas in Brazil grew 6% against 2013. The advance will be with the pre-salt area, which accounts for 22% of current production, but in 2018 could reach 52%. There will be 19 new production facilities in the Santos Basin by the end of the year. The expectation is that Petrobras’s oil production exclusively from the pre-salt area will exceed 1 million barrels per day by

2017. Between 2014 and 2018, the company plans to invest more than US$200 billion, which is the largest investment program for an oil company in the world. Published recently, a report of the oil and gas company BP shows Brazil’s share of world energy will grow until 2035. Brazil will become a major oil world power, which will make it an energy exporter and the largest producer in the sector in South America. Because of this wealth discovered in Brazil, the government changed the rules to oil exploration and production in pre-salt area in 2010, at the end of President Lula’s term. The sharing system was introduced, in which the Union is guaranteed part of the revenue, and Petrobras will hold at least 30% of the fields to be granted in the pre-salt area. There are also local rules for purchase of equipment manufactured in Brazil. Media and economic groups have criticized these ideas, advocating greater opening for other companies to participate in the operation.

OPPORTUNITIES An investment cycle, powered by the pre-salt exploration, can be used for the Brazilian economy against de-industrialization, says the director of the Economics Institute of the State University of Campi-

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nas (Unicamp), Fernando Sarti. Between 1990 and 2009, public investments in Brazil accounted for about 20% of national GDP, a very small number in comparison, for example, with China – up 40%. “We have opportunities and there will be demand, but will it be with domestic or foreign industries?” asks Sarti. “The question is not just about exchange rates, and the competition will be fierce because China and developed countries such as Germany and the United States will seek markets for their goods. What needs to be done is to use this demand in a strategic way, which may contribute to the consolidation of production chains generating more wealth here”. For the director, creating innovation and wealth in Brazil depends on a more active role of the state. Through industrial policy, the government can increase opportunities in competitive sectors with differentiated solutions created by Brazilian and multinational companies doing business in Brazil. “This can open perspective for local suppliers and greater insertion in value chains. The leader is Petrobras, with a longer-term dimension and ability to participate in a more active industrial policy. The local content policy is essential”. g

Article originally published by Revista do Brasil magazine

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

CONECTANDO

Cuba

NEIGHBOURS’ DIFFICULT UNDERSTANDING Rapprochement between Cuba and the US generates euphoria on the Caribbean island, but Cubans should not be deceived By Juan Gabriel Gordín – from Holguín, Cuba g

On the pages of history, December 17, 2014 will be remembered as the day United States’ policy towards Cuba took an unexpected turn away from old intentions of defeating the Cuban revolutionary process. In exercise of his powers, President Barack Obama has changed the strategy pursued for more than 55 years by our northern neighbours. Never has a United States’ president publicly acknowledged that the policy adopted against Cuba was

wrong. Never has an American representative had spoken out against the blockade, calling it a failed strategy. Carter and Clinton did it, but only after leaving the White House. Behind this seemingly sudden movement, however, there is a hidden truth: Americans hold on to their intentions to intervene in Cuban decisions and limit the sovereignty of the Caribbean country. As President Obama himself said in an interview, “If we engage, we

have the opportunity to influence the course of events at a time when there’s going to be some generational change in that country”. At the same time, Cuban President Raul Castro warned, “We can’t pretend that by improving ties with the Unites States, Cuba will renounce the ideas for which it has fought for more than a century”. The statements shows that the bases of the bilateral conflict are still alive, although both have opened

the possibility of negotiation, which could happen in the next Summit of the Americas in Panama in April. With the resumption of diplomatic relations, Cuba and the United States took the first step on a long road to standardization, and to open a loophole in the world’s new political map. Nevertheless, there are still some important issues to be solved, such as the economic blockade that persisted for five decades on the island. President Bara-

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

BRUNO GALVÃO

ck Obama cannot change the laws of Congress, but seems willing to use the prerogatives of the executive branch to move forward. The problem is that this path can be stopped by the next United States’ president to be elected in 2016. While maintaining the embargo, economic exchanges will have to wait the approval of Congress in Washington. Besides being the main obstacle, the American Congress will question the legality of each

presidential action towards Cuba. Still, optimism is visible in Cuban streets because most of people believe that the lifting of the blockade is the solution to the major economic problems that hinder the development of the island. For Bernardo Aguilera, an engineer who lives in Holguín, “the country’s economic situation today is critical; wages are very low and job options, scarce”. He continued: “It is inconceivable that in a modern society there is such an

inverted pyramid, whereby a churro seller can earn more than a doctor. The ‘brain escape’ is growing every day, as well as the number of university graduates who choose to work on their own.” For this reason the United States marked policy is to encourage the private sector with injection of money and resources. What the White House seems not to know, however, is that the Cuban government welcomes any policy to promote the

non-state sector, which in 2014 generated US$ 86 million in taxes to the Cuban state. The growth of private workers and private cooperatives is one of the priorities of economic reform that has been put in place by President Raul Castro since 2011. Mario Cordero, who is self-employed, sees the situation as “the definitive opening for investments”.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

REPRODUCTION

For him, it is “an opportunity to give oxygen to the economy, which is stifled and needed transformations in all sectors.” With the new measures adopted by the Obama administration, the gradual growth of visitors means that Cuba will need to be better prepared to receive them. Many agree that the island is not prepared to receive the likely flood of tourists, who spend a lot of money and are more demanding. This means Cuba will be forced to greatly improve the services provided. Since January, there is no spending limit to American tourists visiting the island of Cuba; now they can even use debit and credit cards. In addition, airlines and US travel agencies can now organize package tours to Cuba and hire insurance enterprises. The limit to send money to Cuba rose from US$500 to US$2,000 per quarter. For an amount not exceeding US$400, the American tourists may bring products back to their country (for tobacco and rum, the limit is US$100). The telecommunications sector may invest in infrastructure and sell to Cuban state services companies, software, devices and equipment. Financial institutions may also open accounts in Cuban banks for transactions that are allowed between the two countries. Because of these actions, there’s a new climate of hope. The rapprochement between Cuba and the United States is a recurring theme in every corner of the country, which has generated great expectations, especially for the enthusiastic, sometimes naive, that tend to confuse certain subjects. Many people think that this approach is the solution of all Cubans problems. Others applaud the decision of both governments to put aside their differences and negotiate for the common good of the two nations. The issue has generated a lot of anxiety. Some hope that change will make all the difference, while the reality is that negotiations will be long. The director to the United States at Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Josefina Vidal, said, “we don’t have short-term solutions.” One of the sensitive issues is the Cuban Adjustment Act, known as “wet foot, dry foot”. Existing since 1966, this policy provides that

Cuba wouldn’t place at the negotiating table internal issues that would affect its national sovereignty

Cubans who reach United States soil can stay, but those intercepted at sea, even a few meters from the shore, are returned to the country of origin. Cuba wants an end to this measure – which encourages illegal exit and which has caused the death of thousands of people – but the US seems reluctant. Among Cubans, however, opinions are divided, because the law protects those who venture in search of the “American dream”. Maritza Duran sees it as an opportunity to find his daughter, who is a doctor who abandoned his mission in Venezuela to live in the United

States. “For many years I have tried to meet with my daughter, but the United States government denied my visa. Therefore, the only way to see her is enjoying the benefits of the Cuban Adjustment Act, because in Cuba my daughter cannot go back,” said Duran. In the petition the Cuban government reiterates the need for normalization of migration between the two countries, because it is not in anyone’s interest for the illegal traffic by sea to continue, or illegal entry to the United States by other countries. Even with the restoration of rela-

This article was produced by Juan Gabriel Gordín, a student of Universidad de Holguín’s communications course, in partnership with the CONECTANDO Project, developed by Brasil Observer with Brazilian, European and Latin American universities. To participate and have your article published in this newspaper, write to conectando@brasilobserver.co.uk

tions, we cannot expect changes in the objectives that have marked the policy between the two countries for decades. The world’s mainstream media feed the confusion that as part of this process; Cuba would place at the negotiating table internal issues that would affect its national sovereignty. This of course is not going to happen. The year 2015 may be historic for Cuba and the United States by the intention to normalize bilateral relations. The island, however, must follow cautiously, remaining aware that clocks can just as easily fall back

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

B R A S I L S E R V E R

THE EMBASSY OF BRAZIL, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH RAINHART GALLERY, PRESENTS THE WORKS OF 17 ARTISTS SPANNING FOUR DECADES OF CULTURAL PRODUCTION IN BRAZIL’S NORTHEASTERN STATE OF PERNAMBUCO >> PAGES 22 & 23

RODRIGO BRAGA

ART FROM PERNAMBUCO

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

GUIDE

BRAZIL’S NORTH EASTERN EXPERIMENTALISM ARRIVES IN LONDON Through narratives which are both particular and universal, an exhibition of the works of Pernambuco’s artists shows us a way of seeing the world, says the curator of the exhibition, Beth da Matta By Beth da Matta g

ART FROM PERNAMBUCO When: Until 28 February – Tuesday to Saturday, 11am-6pm Where: Sala Brasil – 14-16 Cockspur Street (SW1Y 5BL) Entrance: Free Info: www.culturalbrazil.org

Beth da Matta is curator of the exhibition and director of Aloísio Magalhães Modern Art Museum in Recife, capital of Pernambuco g

The state of Pernambuco in northeast Brazil has long been known as a territory rich in cultural and artistic production. Emblematic names have been engraved in memory and are part of the history of experimentalism in the making of art and in the production of critical and literary works reflecting Brazil and the northeast region. Creators such as Ariano Suassuna, Cícero Dias, Vicente do Rego Monteiro, Francisco Brennand, Gilberto Freyre, João Cabral de Melo Neto, Clarice Lispector and Chico Science have and continue to contribute – to the region’s distinctive character and culture. Several visual artists from Pernambuco have risen to national and international prominence, their work displaying the heritage and the novelty of a Brazil exploding with creativity, and attracting the critical and popular acclaim thanks to their diverse poetic forms. In the mid-1990s, Pernambucan artistic production, principally films, music and visual arts, expanded beyond regional themes, driven by cultural and economic globalisation and by research and technological developments. As artists moved beyond the state capital of Recife, as did the focus of their work, the city also welcomed the arrival of artists and critics from elsewhere in Brazil and from abroad. The dynamics of arts are changing. The increased circulation of work through important art fairs, biennales and international exhibitions has given greater visibility to some of Pernambuco’s artistic production, in diverse, ephemeral and fragmentary ways. The repertories, methods and materials of those artists act as an amplifier for the region, simultaneously making it both local and international. We discover ramifications, echoes and reverberations of their productions in other countries, contributing to a local and international re-imagining of what Brazil, the northeast and the sertão could be. The journey of these designers and artists is now being presented in Art from Pernambuco an exhibition organised by the Embassy of Brazil in London that entices us to discover their way of

representing themselves and their world. Through boldness and originality in the use of materials and the themes addressed, the featured artists reveal an experimental attitude toward the artistic medium. The exhibition aims to present important visual artists and various forms of art produced in Pernambuco, and at the same time to initiate a debate about the multiplicity of this production and of these artists.

DIFFERENT GENERATIONS The exhibition brings together 17 artists from Pernambuco, spanning four generations, and incorporating a wide range of mediums. Daniel Santiago, Eudes Mota and Paulo Bruscky represent the artistic experimentation of the 1970s. Sebastião Pedrosa, a professor of art theory at the Federal University in Pernambuco for almost three decades, delves into other media. Gil Vicente and Renato Valle, who were very young in the 1970s, started with paintings and then moved on to drawings and engravings during the following decades. From the 1980s onward, Marcelo Silveira, Márcio Almeida, Oriana Duarte, Paulo Meira and José Paulo, heirs to the conceptual generation before them, explored the boundaries of language, media, and semantic fields of the artistic medium itself, producing cracks and ruptures in the tradition of Pernambuco’s visual arts. And finally we discover an outline of post-millennium artistic production through the actions and attitudes of Lourival Cuquinha, Rodrigo Braga’s look at the body and the natural world, through the constructed mythology of Bruno Vilela and Armanda Melo, and the graphic experimentation of Kilian Glasner and Jeims Duarte. In speaking about themselves and about Recife the artists simultaneously communicate global themes. So a world we all inhabit is related to us by artists from Pernambuco, through narratives which are both particular and universal. It is a world of hybridity, of mixture, of temporal flows - a world which produces very diverse and different cultural practices that are as familiar as they are different.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

DIVULGATION

Paulo Bruscky vaccinates people against boredom during the opening day of the exhibition at the Embassy of Brazil

‘Cortiço do Recife’, by Jeims Duarte

‘Game Over’, by Kilian Glasner

‘Mealheiro’, by Renato Valle (left)

‘Round’, by Amanda Melo

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

CULTURAL TIPS

DIVULGATION

CARNIVAL

Made in Brasil

Made in Brasil Carnival When: 12 – 17 February Where: 12 Inverness Street (NW1 7HJ) Tickets: Free Info: www.madeinbrasil.co.uk

Guanabara Guanabara Carnival When: 11 – 17 February Where: Parker Street (WC2B 5PW) Tickets: £0 – £12 Info: www.guanabara.co.uk

In the heart of Camden Town, bar and restaurant Made in Brasil is a place for those who want to taste the Brazilian flavour in London. During Carnival, the Brazilian volume gets cranked up. For six days, the establishment promises a packed schedule of special offers, treats and free events. All washed down with lots of music, of course, with carnival dancers, DJs and live performances. Among the highlights are the London School of Samba, who will perform on the Saturday, musician Andre Luz, who opens the celebrations and Mario Bakuna, who plays on the Monday.

Bar and restaurant Guanabara’s annual carnival celebrations have become a highlight of London’s nightlife scene and this year includes special programming from 11 to 17 February. The first night will be dedicated to the circus, with performances by Brazilian, Latin-American and British artists. On the 12 February, a Carnival parade by the London School of Samba, will take to the streets of Covent Garden at 6.30pm, bound for Guanabara in Holborn. In the following days, there will be a masked ball, forró with Zeu Azevedo, micareta from Bahia and samba, among other attractions.

Movimientos Mardi Gras Love Carnival When: 13 February Where: The Bussey Building, 133 Rye Lane (SE15 4UJ) Tickets: £5 Advance / £7 on the door Info: www.movimientos.org.uk Karnival Tropical When: 14 February Where: Bedroom Bar, 62 Rivington Street (EC2A 3AY) Tickets: Free before 11pm / £5 after Info: www.movimientos.org.uk

One of the most active organisations in the production of Latin American cultural events in the UK, Movimientos is hosting two parties for the celebration of Carnival in the British capital. On Friday 13 February the ‘Mardi Gras Love Carnival’, a celebration promises to connect the cities of New Orleans and Rio de Janeiro – with the bands Voodoo Love Orchestra and 7Suns, and DJs Farrapo, Cal Jader, Madmax and Kalinka. On Saturday 14 it is the turn of ‘Karnival Tropical’, with two floors of sounds from the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa – with DJs Farrapo, Larry SKG, Cal Jader, Rukaiya Russell, Iamrisha and Madera Verde.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

BOOKS Lost Samba: Memories of Brazil, Richard Klein Where to find: http://goo.gl/UWdbjR

Richard Klein was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1962 – two years before the military coup and the same year that the Rolling Stones and the Beatles recorded their first singles and Brazil won its second World Cup. Klein’s British-Jewish parents, who had moved to a booming Rio de Janeiro in the wake of World War II, would soon prosper however they never, fully adapted to their new land. But Klein would grow up loving football and rock n’ roll in equal measure.

In fact, this is the heart of the story: the author’s journey of discovery of the land of his birth, as well as adventuring into the brave new world of rock culture in the 70s and 80s, all under the sinister shadow of the military dictatorship that ruled Brazil during this time. Lost Samba is part memoir, part document of the birth of the new Brazil – a fascinating first-person account of a dark, but exciting, period for the country.

Diary of a Slave, Rô Mierling

Where to find: http://goo.gl/mHb87g

“I write about the daily life of a girl kidnapped for sexual purposes. The book is fictional, but at the same time a protest against the inhumane way that many of our girls are treated, reduced to pieces of meat, injuring the closest point in their souls,” says the author of Diary of a Slave, Rô Mierling. This is the pseudonym of Rosana Erbe

de Freitas, from Brazil’s southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, who has worked as a researcher, writer and literary reviewer for more than ten years. The book is available for free on the internet in both English and Portuguese.

ALBUMS Outsiders Insiders, Emily Saunders Where to find: www.emilysaunders.co.uk

Singer-songwriter Emily Saunders released his first album in 2011, Cotton Skies, revealing her passion for Brazilian rhythms. Now she presents Outsiders Insiders, featuring nine tracks combining spirited grooves, driving bass lines, sultry jazz ballads, reflections of 60’s soul jazz and a playfulness that reflect her love of rhythm. Her new recording includes two Brazilian tunes. Opening the album is the stand-out track Residing, an upbeat Baião tune with a London twist that invokes sunshine and an invitation to dance.

Feitiço Caboclo, Dona Onete

Where to find: www.maisumdiscos.com

A vibrant blend of folklore from Brazil’s Northern State of Pará, carimbó, boi bumba, Caribbean salsa, brega and samba, all rooted in the cultures of the Brazilian interior, Feitiço Cabloco is the debut album from Amazonian septuagenarian songstress Dona Onete. Brought to the UK last year by the independent label Mais Um Discos, the album of Dona Onete is a certain energy injection, a call to orixás and a way to warm the soul in the European cold.

“Desde 1992 servindo a Comunidade Brasileira”

Mudança segura e personalizada! Horário de Atendimento: Segunda a Sexta das 08:00h às 19:00h Sábados das 09:00h às 12:00h Escritórios em Portugal e Espanha: E-mail: info@packandgo.co.uk

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Mudança Doméstica e Internacional

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Armazenagem e Empacotamento

Serviço Especializado para Antiguidades

Serviço Porta a Porta para qualquer lugar do Brasil

20 anos

Aniversário em 2012 – Vamos celebrar! Garantia do melhor preço. Entre em contato conosco para mais detalhes.

www.packandgo.co.uk 31/08/2012 23:05

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

COLUMNISTS

FRANKO FIGUEIREDO

THEATRE BEYOND THE BORDERS When Brazilian artists create work, must it always carry the recognisable ‘Brazil stamp’?

Last year we saw a few Brazilian theatre productions on the British stage. This included Companhia Mundana’s adaptation of The Duel by Anton Chekhov and My Uncle’s Shoes by Companhia do Meu Tio at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival; a series of short plays featuring playwrights Newton Moreno and Jô Bilac presented by Theatre 503; StoneCrabs’ production Kitchen, a new play by Gael Le Cornec, and the capoeira-inspired show Play Low and Long Haul. All explored a variety of themes, authors, aesthetics, but all featured Brazilian artists, some living in the UK and some not and the common ground that critics and programmers considered them all quintessentially “Brazilian”. I am often criticised for not spending more time creating ‘Brazilian’ theatre, which makes me ask ‘What is Brazilian theatre?’ Does it describe plays written by Brazilians? Plays with Brazilian themes? Plays about Brazilians? Or a combination of all these things? I have directed plays by Brazilian writers, others by British ones which cover Brazilian themes or about Brazilians – but, interestingly enough, very few have actually been recognised as Brazilian work and the fact that I am a director from Brazil, doesn’t seem to be enough to classify the work as Brazilian. As a theatre director born in Brazil, am I not, by default, creating Brazilian work? Or must I revert myself to the use of the Brazilian popular and folkloric references or collaborate exclusively with Brazilian playwrights in order to be considered an ‘authentic’ Brazilian director? There have been wonderful discussions about my work and how I merge techniques from various cultures on stage. I used Butoh [a form of Japanese dance] techniques when I directed Waltz #6 by Nelson Rodrigues (2005) and for my production of Asphalt Kiss, also by Rodrigues (2012) I made use of German expressionism. Asphalt Kiss also included Brazilian music by Caetano Veloso and Nana Caymmi but despite this at a post-show discussion, I found myself being questioned as to why I hadn’t supposedly use Brazilian music. Someone else asked why I insisted on using an international cast with various accents in my productions and another described my work as ‘world performance’. Personally, I was flattered by the different expectations and opinions from different audience members. I know of other Brazilian directors who also use similar methods to crea-

te their work. Theatre director André Pink, for instance, is known for using Commedia Dell’arte techniques when creating some of his work. Brazil is home to such a blended culture and as such, it gives me the freedom to embrace other heritages and theatre techniques. For instance, Bahia (the Brazilian state where I am from), has a large community of people of West African heritage, which in turn has influenced lots of the cultural aspects of Brazil. This subconsciously influenced my productions of Queen Pokou by Dean Atta and The Burial by Nigerian playwright Bola Agbaje in 2013. I have also collaborated with a Japanese company when we developed The Damask Drum by Mishima, we used Brazilian music, Japanese movement and worked with an international cast that included Brazilians. However, these productions were not considered to be ‘Brazilian’. When I staged the works of Brazilian playwrights like Nelson Rodrigues, Antonio Bivar, Plinio Marcos, Augusto Boal and Leilah Assunção in London, both as a producer and director, the recognition of Brazilian Theatre quickly came pouring in. There is no denying that Brazilian theatre is a hybrid form, despite the many cultural movements, which tried to rescue the ‘Brazilian’ Identity such as Nova Dramaturgia Brasileira. And I feel that there is much more to gain than lose from this ingrained multiculturalism found in our historical background. By working with an international cast I am trying to break forms and conventions. By telling stories, either Brazilian or non-Brazilian, we are sharing knowledge and discoveries. The choices I make stem not from nationality but from a search for humanism. I want to create theatre that tells stories and engages people at every level – not just in their minds but in their emotions, values and imaginations. If we want to be the drivers of real change we must learn to tell, and listen to, a new set of stories about the world we want to create. My work is a hybrid. I am a Brazilian artist who uses aesthetics to create work that is visually exciting and challenging. I am interested in stories of the diaspora created by world artists like myself. As a Brazilian living away from home, I am interested in creating theatre beyond borders: global theatre made local. Does that take the Brazil out of my work?

Franko Figueiredo is artistic director and associate producer of StoneCrabs Theatre Company

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

COLUMNISTS

KATE RINTOUL

THE UGLY REALITY OF GENTRIFICATION We welcomed some of the changes in Brixton, but little could we know the monster we helped create

If you were to poll people in the streets of London and ask them what they loved about the city, the chances are most would mention it’s vibrant multiculturalism. For centuries London has welcomed waves of foreigners from the Romans to Afro Caribbean communities and of course the Brazilians, who have sought out a life here and who have equally made London a fantastic place to be. Just like in the old English story of Dick Whittington who travelled to London to make his fortune after he heard the city’s streets were paved with gold, thousands of people, including many from other parts of the UK have come to live and love in the city. Our streets might not really be paved with gold, but thanks to all our foreigners they are lined with cultural centres, fantastic restaurants and small specialty shops that serve their community but that we all enjoy. In the past, this rich melting pot of cultures could be best enjoyed in Brixton where you could eat jerk chicken, dance the night away in Latin American nightclubs and buy great imported products in one of it’s many markets. I was lucky enough to call Brixton home for five years during which time, I met some incredible people from all over the world. Thanks to the area’s history of race riots and a perceived level of crime, we were left to enjoy everything Brixton offered but that has all changed now with the rapid and unapologetic gentrification of the area. Of course at first, we didn’t mind, we loved the early days of Brixton village when you could pick up a few cans of Red Stripe and saunter around the BYOB little pop up restaurants and vintage shops. We even welcomed some of the changes, especially as at first they were community orientated, reasonably accessible for everyone and in keeping with the area’s dynamism. Little could we know the monster we helped create. Quirky independent restaurants have been upstaged with a growing number of chains and shamelessly exclusive businesses catering for the rich. The area’s property prices have soared astronomically and armies of developers have moved in, sometimes buying up whole streets and smothering them in the same bland neutral shades and pushing the area’s lower income communities out.

Of course there are still good things to be found in Brixton and of course the influx of people with money to spend has in some ways helped small local businesses. One of these success stories has to be A & C Continental Grocers on Atlantic Road, the Portuguese deli and grocers who has been in the same family for decades. It was great to see the shop voted as the city’s best deli a few years ago and also to see them so busy however this week they were served with a nasty reminder of the downside of gentrification. Network Rail, the UK’s biggest landlord, who owns most of the arches and buildings in the heart of Brixton have issued their tenants, who include A&C and O Talho Portuguese Butchers, an eviction notice. Network Rail have ordered for these businesses to vacate within 6 months, offering just £1000 towards relocation costs so they can “renovate” the arches and no doubt increase the rents so only large chains can afford them further draining Brixton of its culture. Shops like these not only give people a chance to recreate the flavours of home, they also serve as important informal cultural centres where people can come together. It would be so sad to see them lost and for Brixton to become just another generic soulless high street. Luckily the same community spirit and love that Brixton seems to evoke in people has already been put into action. The story has already been picked up by Channel 4 news and a petition is gaining momentum, but having once been a tenant of Network Rail I fear it won’t be enough. I used to work in a cafe further up this road and saw how the organisation would dimly ‘sit on’ empty properties in good locations and wait for the prices in the area to rise. Rather than thinking about what could be good or useful for the community, or the social economy by renting out their empty shops to small businesses they are only interested in their own profits. I don’t think there’s any going back for Brixton now, the estate agents and chain restaurants are there to stay but hopefully we could at least remind people to appreciate the unique culture that made the area such a wonderful place to be.

To sign the petition visit http://bit.ly/notonetworkrail

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

SHAUN CUMMING

CORINTHIANS VERSUS CORINTHIAN CASUALS The match itself was a bizarre, but the exchange of football between the UK and Brazil must be applauded

TTo see more of my travels from around Brazil, please find me on instagram under the username @shaunalex

Something I never thought I’d see: a game of football between Brazilian giants Corinthians and English amateur side Corinthian Casuals. As it happens, on a weekend I was in São Paulo for a family event (Saturday 24 January), this exact fixture was taking place in the city, and I was invited. Along with some friends and the British Consul General, Corinthians invited us to their brand new Arena Corinthians stadium, specially constructed for the World Cup – ominously, perhaps, the same location where England’s World Cup ended thanks to two Luis Suarez goals. The two clubs have a unique history together. Corinthian Casuals toured Brazil a very long time ago, back in the day of Charlie Miller, and the locals who saw their style were inspired by watching them to start their very own Corinthians team in São Paulo. Because of this, they have a strong footballing partnership that has lasted until today. Over the week before the game,

Corinthians welcomed the Casuals warmly, with ticket sales going towards paying for the amateur side’s trip. The Casuals are used to playing in front of around 50 people, so the 25,000 crowd would have been a shock for the players most of whom have full-time jobs. The game was also broadcast live on national TV. While in Brazil the Casuals’ players were treated like celebrities, appearing in numerous TV interview and conducting shirt signings. Never in my life have I seen dazzlingly spectacular purple and pink colours of the Corinthians Casuals shirt in the UK. However, in the days leading up to the match in São Paulo I saw the shirt on no less than four occasions on the metro and in the streets. The Corinthians fans are very proud of their connection to the Casuals, and treated them like heroes throughout the week. The match itself was a bizzare encounter. Casuals more than held their own, with Corinthians being comi-

cally poor in front of goal. Were they being kind or were they genuinely firing blanks? Casuals’ goalkeeper Danny Bracken was the busiest man on the park. The Casuals did well to keep the scoreline level until late in the second half, and also made some genuinely impressive runs down both flanks, but it was the final touch they were missing and failed to test Casio. The scoreline ended 3-0 to Corinthians. And, just like when the teams last met in 1988 when Socrates famously swapped teams to play for the Casuals for part of the match, two players from each side swapped shirts for the final 5 minutes in this encounter as well. To conclude, this partnership between the two clubs must be applauded. The big victory here is in the exchange and partnership of football between the UK and Brazil. British/ Brazilian Charlie Miller, who founded football in Brazil, was doubtless looking down with a smile. His legacy blossoms today in Brazil - the greatest footballing nation in the world.

SPEED HANDING KNITTING 1 day £30.00 - Include all the materials 21/02 Saturday 2 to 6pm 28/02 Saturday 2 to 6pm KNITTING BEGINNER (includes children) 1 day £30.00 - Include all the materials 07/03 Saturday 2 to 6pm

The area around London’s Queensway station has a particular Brazilian vibe. While this might not come as a surprise to any Brazilians who have been living in the city for a long time as it is almost certain they have visited the area, or at least heard about it. If your new to London or other people looking to get a little bite of Brazilian life, make sure you visit. The fact is that any Brazilian missing the homeland will find there an environment to feel at home. And the name of this place could not be better: Casa Brasil (Home Brazil, literally), celebrates in February it’s 26th Anniversary leading Latin American products to the table of Brazilians living in Europe. To mark the date, Casa Brasil is innovating with an dedicated space facing art, encouraging the culture and enabling Brazilian artists to disseminate their work. Every other month you may see different works that will occupy the site. This month, until the 27th of February, is the turn of Sandra Rocha Griffiths, who’s work is coloring the store.

NEWSPAPER HANDWORK 2 days £50.00 - Include all the materials 10/03 and 17/03 – Tuesday 4-8pm 14/03 and 21/03 – Saturday 2-6pm EASTER HANDWORK 1 day £30.00 - Include all materials EASTER/BUNNY BOX 07/03 Saturday 2 to 6pm FABRIC BUNNY 26/03 Thursday 4 to 8pm 28/03 Saturday 2 to 6pm BUNNY basket (for children) 28/03 Saturday 2 to 6pm BABY’S £ 30.00 Includes all the material

In addition to the exhibition, Casa Brasil also announced craft workshops, so you can also develop your own skills. With a programme that runs until April, you can learn how to do a scarf, baby shoes and even Easter decoration!

BABY BOOT Knitting 14/04 Tuesday 4 to 8pm

To feel closer to home, pay a visit to Casa Brasil at the heart of Queensway Market. Enjoy the novelties and the commemorative discount of 26% in most of the products! For more information go to www.facebook.com/casabrasillondres or www.casabrasillondres.co.uk

BABY TRAINERS knitting 21/04 Tuesday 4 to 8pm

BABY BOOT Croche 18/04 Saturday 2 to 6pm

* Entries can be made by phone (020 7792 2931) or directly at Casa Brasil, in a minimum advance time of a week to prepare the material. * Payment upon registration for the purchase of material. * All courses can be taken as individual lessons for £15.00/hour.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

TRAVEL

JERICOACOARA: JUST OUT OF REACH ENOUGH Accessible only by jeep, Jericoacoara is an unspoilt paradise with exhilarating experiences and laid back nightlife By Christian Taylor (@xian_taylor)

CLAUDIA REGINA (FLICKR.COM/CLAUDIAREGINA_CC)

Hidden away in the north-eastern Brazilian state of Ceará is Jericoacoara, a kitesurfer’s paradise and a lively, cosmopolitan oasis. Here the streets are paved with sand, the waters are crystal clear and it’s warm all year round. You don’t have to be a kitesurfing enthusiast to find Jericoacoara’s high wind speeds exhilarating - a walk to the top of the dunes at sunset is a fantastic experience for all. From here you can feel the wind whipping past you, and you can see the sands shifting beneath your feet. This naturally-occurring dune is ideally located on the edge of both the village and the sea. Each day, hundreds of people make their way to the top to watch the sun sink into the ocean. It’s a simple ritual that provides for a moment of reflection at the end of each day. Small customs like these help Jericoacoara retain its authentic village feel and sense of community, in spite of its increasing popularity as a holiday destination. Some might say Jericoacoara’s location is both a blessing and a curse. Jeri is a five hour journey from Fortaleza, the final hour being off-road and requiring either a 4x4 or a bumpy journey in a jardineira (open-air bus). Depending on the season and your vehicle of choice it can be a loud, wet, windy trip, but the rugged journey is an exciting one. Suspense builds as you make your way through simple towns and villages, before eventually speeding along the shores of nearby Preá beach with the strong sea breeze behind you and the waves almost lapping at your wheels. It’s Jeri’s relative isolation that has protected it from being completely swallowed up by mass tourism - somehow it feels just out of reach enough. Buggies and quad-bike tours are readily available from the town square, offering to whisk you away to nearby dunes and lagoons for a day. Jeri’s sandy streets mean you won’t need shoes - a pair of Havaianas will do just fine. If you get an opportunity, try to experience the dunes on horseback - their hooves are surprisingly efficient at negotiating the soft sand, and the absence of engine noise leaves you feeling on top of the world. During the day, Jeri is all about boutique shopping, laid-back bars, restaurants and of course, windsports. At night the town transforms and the streets fill with people. The lack of street lights only add to the enchantment, with the glow from the bars, the moon and the occasional firefly to show you the way. The sound of Samba and sensation of cool breezes drift through the streets as locals sell handcrafted jewellery and clothes, or barbecue street food. Blurring the line between indoors and outdoors is something Brazil does so well, and with ideal weather all year round, Jeri makes the most of the outdoor lifestyle. In many bars and restaurants you’ll be sitting beneath trees or under the stars. Sometimes you’ll find floors made of sand, or a giant tree growing in the centre of the room. One such place is Na Casa Dela, which offers tasty, creative food served in their colourful, candlelit garden. Jeri’s sands don’t stop at the front door at Sabor da Terra, a restaurant serving generous portions of hearty meals. Caravana serves vegetarian meals outdoors and has a quaint Volkswagen Combi Van parked in the garden, which makes for an interesting talking point. Naturalmente is right on the beach and serves crêpes and açaí bowls using surfboards as table-tops. Creativity, charm and attention to detail are watchwords in this town.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

WHERE TO STAY

Vila Kalango offers the effortless, rustic charm that Jericoacoara is famous for, but with a touch of class. Unlike a number of its big hotel rivals, Vila Kalango provides a five star experience while retaining its authenticity. The timber bungalows and stilt-houses with thatched roofs are both humble and luxurious, with high ceilings, air-conditioning and personal, handcrafted details. Knotted pieces of timber are given a second life as bathroom shelves, holding fluffy white towels and passionfruit scented soaps, while handmade lamps and cushions add to the cosy atmosphere. Outside, inviting hammocks await in the shade. The complex offers 24 rooms in total, built around lush, tranquil gardens. From the welcoming reception area, wooden decking snakes a path over lush green grass, around coconut and cashew trees, past the massage rooms and comfy day beds, down to the outdoor beach bar and the striking red swimming pool. From here you can lay on a sun lounger or take a swim while enjoying the spectacular views of the sunset dune and Jericoacoara beach. Breakfast is a glorious start to each day: freshly squeezed fruit juices, strong coffee, tasty cakes and bread, as well as eggs and crêpes made to order. The restaurant’s open design allows the strong Jericoacoara breeze to flow through, and its high vantage point gives a great view over the beach as horses, motorbikes and dune buggies pass by, and kite surfers twist and fly through the air.

RANCHO DO PEIXE (ranchodopeixe.com.br) from R$ 350 (£86) per night, double occupancy with breakfast and wi-fi included. Located on nearby Preá beach, Rancho do Peixe offers a private, tranquil retreat from the hustle and bustle of Jeri. Consisting of 22 bungalows in total, 14 of which directly face the beach, the complex shares its owners with Vila Kalango and a shuttle e bus travels between the two premises numerous times each day. Spending some time at both hotels gives you two totally different experiences and is highly recommended. While Vila Kalango feels intimate and cosy, Rancho do Peixe feels pleasantly desolate. The sea can be seen from just about any part of the property, and sand and palm trees appear to stretch out for miles on either side. Guests can relax in the bar or the pool, on daybeds and in hammocks beneath the trees, or they can wander down to the beach bar. At night, the bar becomes a pizzeria, serving some of the most delicious pizza you’ll ever find, at very reasonable prices. There is no better way to end the day than to relax with a tasty meal as the sounds of the wind and waves wash over you. Afterwards, you can relax in a hammock outside your bungalow and marvel at the spectacular night sky. The bungalows are charming and offer plenty of privacy, as well as premium bedding, high ceilings, handmade decorative touches and a mini bar. These two hotels, in fact, the Jericoacoara and Preá regions in general - offer the perfect balance between luxury and simplicity. It’s this combination that makes a visit to this part of the world so memorable. After you leave, you’ll ache to return.

PHOTOS: SUPPLIED BY EGROUP

VILA KALANGO (vilakalango.com.br) from R$ 410 (£100) per night, double occupancy with breakfast and wi-fi included.

brasilobserver.co.uk | February 2015

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