*Big news is that the PMDB (a Social Democrat party with cosmetic distinctions from the ruling PSDB) will not be forming a coalition with the PT. This is the best news I have heard out of Brazil all week. This has been blamed for a halt in the reversal of the Real's fortunes. (The dollar hit a three month low against the real earlier this week.)
*New ministers confirmed today. (I summarized these from the Folha de Sao Paulo and the PT web site):
Cristovam Buarque goes into the Ministry of Education. Recently elected as PT senator for the Federal District of Brasilia. Doctorate in economics from the Univesity of Paris, worked forthe IADB in the 70s; has published 18 books about childhood education.
Jaques Wagner, Minister for Work. Founder of the CUT in Bahia state; president of the union of chemical workers in that state. Opposes GM foods.
Humberto Costa, Minister of Health. Psychiatrist and journalists, been with the PT since the beginning.
Dilma Rousseff - Minister of Mines and Energy. Doctorate in theoretical economics from the University of Campinas; worked as treasurer in Porto Alegre 1986-88. Occupied the Secretary of Mines and Enegry in the Dutra governemnt in Rio Grande do Sul state.
Nilmário Miranda - National Secretary for Human Rights. One of the founders of the PT, postgraduate in Political Sicence. In 1995 he headed the Commission into Political Deaths and Disappearings.
These folks look like proper middle of the road PT guys, instead of the neoliberal trash Lula served up last week.
*Lula has created a Ministry of Cities, which will link the Federal Government directly to the cities. Olivio Dutra, the ex-governor of Rio Grande do Sul, will take charge of it. It seems that this new organ is a federal counterpart to the grass-roots PT strategy of focusing on mayoral and local politics. A sure hit with the NGOs, could be a mixed blessing if it brings the often very radical local PT groupings under the control of the very unradical federal PT.
*The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Economics estimates current unemployment at 11% (I'd say this is a wacky understatement). GDP grew by 0.94% in the last three months of 2002.
Thiago Oppermann
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