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Brazil-The Military in the Amazon The Military Mission since 1988





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The Amazon region occupies more than half of Brazil's territory. In 1985 the army announced the Northern Corridor (Calha Norte) project, in an attempt to establish better control of Brazil's interests in the Amazon. The project has consisted of building a series of outposts along the Brazilian border with Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. Some of these outposts have been established. Calha Norte is therefore more than a military project. Its goals are to provide effective control of the border, improve the local infrastructure, and promote economic development of the region.

The army has increased the number of posts near the border from eight to nineteen. The posts are placed under five Special Frontier Battalions, with headquarters from west to east in Tabatinga, Rio Branco, São Gabriel da Cachoeira, Boa Vista, and Macapá. In addition, the army has been transferring battalions from the South and Southeast to the Amazon: the Seventeenth Motorized Infantry Battalion from Cruz Alta to the Seventeenth Jungle Infantry Battalion; the Sixty-first Motorized Infantry Battalion in Santo Angelo to the Sixty-first Jungle Infantry Battalion; and the Sixty-first Engineering and Construction Battalion at Cruzeiro do Sul to Rio Branco. The First Brigade in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro State, was moved to Tefé, Amazonas, except for one infantry battalion. Lastly, the army was planning to open two new garrisons in the Rio Negro region, at Tunui and Asuno do Içana.

Some Brazilian officers have warned against "foreign intervention" in the region. In July 1991, Army General Antenor de Santa Cruz Abreu, then chief of the Amazon Region Military Command (Comando Militar da Amazônia--CMA), threatened that the army would "transform the Amazon into a new Vietnam" if developed countries continued to "internationalize" the region. The vitriol subsided partially in January 1992, when General Santa Cruz Abreu was replaced by General Carlos Anníbal Pacheco, who dispelled some of the concerns about the "internationalization" of the Amazon.

In 1993 the Brazilian press reported on United States-Guyana military exercises near the Brazil-Guyana border. The proximity of the exercise to the Brazilian border provoked an angry response from many high-ranking Brazilian officers and government officials. United States joint exercises were also held with Colombia and Suriname, to the consternation of the Brazilians. In a show of force on October 4, 1994, the armed forces were involved in Operation Surumu, the largest combined and joint maneuvers ever carried out in the Amazon. The exercises were held north of the city of Boa Vista in the state of Roraima, over an area of 34,900 square kilometers. They included the participation of eight countries in a war against Cratenia, an imaginary enemy. The exercises involved 5,000 soldiers, thirty-seven aircraft, four ships, and two hospital ships. The army had the largest contingent with 3,000 men. The air force dropped 700 parachutists into the jungle and was involved in transporting most of the troops, many by civilian aircraft. The navy provided logistical support, using riverine patrol boats. The joint nature of the maneuvers indicated that whereas the army would continue to take the lead in the Amazon, the other two services (especially the air force) also would be involved.

However, such massive operations are specially staged affairs, giving an impression of military power that is not reflected in the day-to-day reality. The commanding general of the First Jungle Brigade, headquartered in Boa Vista, oversees two infantry battalions, whose units are spread from the Guyana border to that with Colombia. One battalion headquarters is located in Boa Vista, the other in São Gabriel da Cachoeira. The general does not have his own aircraft, and he must request transport from Manaus if he wishes to inspect his troops. Headquarters maintains contact with the units via radio. The first battalion maintains five Special Border Platoons (Pelotões Especiais de Fronteira--PEFs) at Bom Fim and Normandia on the Guyana side, at Pacarema (also called BV-8, for the eighth marker on the Brazil-Venezuelan line), Surucucu, and Auaris facing Venezuela. The second battalion at São Gabriel da Cachoeira has PEFs at Maturaca (near Pico da Neblina) and Cucui on the Venezuela border, and three more looking toward Colombia at Matapi, Uaupés, and Iauaretê.

The platoons consist of about seventy soldiers, corporals, and sergeants, and five officers, the most senior of whom is usually a lieutenant. Many of the soldiers are recruited locally. In Roraima many of the soldiers are Macuxí and Wapishana Indians.

In late 1993, the armed forces received presidential approval for the Amazon Region Surveillance System (Sistema de Vigilância da Amazônia--Sivam). Sivam will consist of a large network of radar, communication systems, and data processing centers and should assist the government in air traffic control and its efforts to curb deforestation (photos | news) and drug trafficking. The control centers of Sivam will be in Manaus, Belém, Porto Velho, and Brasília. It will take at least eight years to install the system, at a cost of US$1.55 billion. Sivam will include five Embraer EMB-120 Brasílias carrying Ericsson Radar Electronics Erieye airborne early warning and control system. Sivam is part of a larger plan called the Amazon Region Protection System (Sistema de Proteção da Amazônia--Sipam). The purpose of Sipam is to provide a more sophisticated infrastructure for policing the Amazon.

The Sivam case was particularly controversial in 1994 and 1995 and involved Brasília, Paris, and Washington. In June 1994, two days after then United States Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown visited Brasília, President Itamar Franco decided to award the Sivam contract to a consortium led by Raytheon (United States), instead of to a group led by Thomson CSF (France). In December 1994, when many legislators already had left Brasília for the Christmas holidays, Brazil's Senate approved the financing of Sivam. A Brazilian senator reportedly received US$7 million to expedite congressional approval. In February 1995, the New York Times reported that the United States Central Intelligence Agency had discovered that Thomson CSF paid bribes to Brazilian officials. French diplomats countered that it was the United States that bribed Brazilian officials, paying US$30 million to obtain the contract. France charged the United States with industrial espionage and expelled five staff members from the United States Embassy in Paris.

In March 1995, Raytheon's Brazilian partner, Automation and Control Systems Engineering (Engenharia de Sistemas de Contrôle e Automação--ESCA), which was hired to manage Sivam and to develop the system's control software, was removed from the project because of fraud in social security contributions in Brazil. In its place, the Brazilian government proposed a team of Ministry of Aeronautics experts. However, wiretapping and alleged influence-peddling created the most serious crisis for the Cardoso administration in its first year in office, and threatened the very future of the Sivam project.

At least two dozen Brazilian government organizations deal with the Amazon, in addition to many nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from both Brazil and abroad. The vast array of organizations reflects the many interests in the Amazon, which include concerns with national security, indigenous peoples, economic development, the environment, and drug trafficking. These interests often clash. In an attempt to coordinate Brazil's Amazon policies, President Franco created the Ministry of Environment and the Legal Amazon on August 18, 1993 (later renamed Ministry of Environment, Hydraulic Resources, and the Legal Amazon), and placed Rubens Ricúpero at the helm. Ricúpero, the chief negotiator of the 1977 Amazonian Cooperation Treaty, was brought from the post of ambassador in Washington.

President Collor established the Yanomami Indigenous Park, encompassing 9.5 million hectares of territory adjacent to Venezuela. The reservation is home to 25,000 members of the Yanomami tribe, 10,000 of whom live on the Brazilian side of the reserve. The 600 gold prospectors who lived on or near Yanomami land and ignored the extensive reservation were expelled. In 1992 President Collor demarcated the territory, and in the following year mining revenues dropped considerably.

The problems associated with competing interests in the Amazon became apparent in August 1993, when at least sixteen Yanomami Indians were massacred near the Brazil-Venezuela border. Twenty-three illegal gold prospectors were arrested and charged with the slayings. They were later acquitted, after investigations allegedly indicated that the Indians had died in conflict with other Indians.

The governors of Roraima, Amazonas, and Pará states have called for the reduction in the area of the reservations. According to one poll, 51 percent of Brazil's legislators agreed with that position. Many officers within the armed forces have also expressed their discontent with the size of the reservations. A common argument is that there are few Yanomami per square kilometer allotted to them.

In early 1994, there was a broad consensus in Brazil on the need to expand the military presence along the border. Such a presence was supported by Ministers Ricúpero and Flores. Brazilians have expressed concerns about sovereignty, particularly the encroachment by the United States and others via drug interdiction and environmentalism. Despite such consensus, however, only limited funding has been available to the Ministry of Environment, Hydraulic Resources, and the Legal Amazon, and the constant clash of interests has impeded a coordinated policy.

Data as of April 1997

Article 142 of the 1988 federal constitution states that "The armed forces, which consist of the navy, the army, and the air force, are permanent and normal national institutions organized on the basis of hierarchy and discipline under the supreme authority of the president of the republic." It adds that "Their purpose is to defend the fatherland, guarantee the constitutionally established powers and, on the initiative of any of said powers, law and order." Significantly, the 1988 constitution fails to include the clause that the military only be obedient to the executive "within the limits of the law." Thus, the armed forces have been placed more firmly under presidential control. According to Complementary Law No. 69 of July 23, 1991, the army's mission is also to cooperate in the national development and in civil defense.

According to Article 84 of the 1988 constitution, the president has the exclusive authority to appoint and dismiss the ministers of state, decree a state of emergency or state of siege, serve as supreme commander of the armed forces, promote their general officers, and appoint them to posts. The president may also declare war "in the event of foreign aggression and when authorized by the National Congress." He also presides over the National Defense Council.

There has been little debate in Brazil's civil society regarding the role of the armed forces. José Murilo de Carvalho, a political scientist, has called for such a debate, arguing that it is necessary to define the tasks of the armed forces before addressing issues of defense expenditures. Civilians, however, have not taken the initiative in defining those tasks.

The military has been seeking a new role, primarily to justify even its meager budget. The armed forces have seemed increasingly irrelevant, given the lack of an external threat (Brazil is involved in a common market, joint ventures, and nuclear cooperation with Argentina, its former rival); the lack of an internal threat (no political group in Brazil is calling for the use of violence to overthrow the government); and the demise of communism. In addition to a peacekeeping role, some of the potential new roles for the military include broader participation in the Amazon, involvement in the counter-drug war, and civic action. In late 1994 and 1995, the armed forces were involved intermittently in providing public security in Rio de Janeiro. On May 18, 1995, Governor Marcello Alencar appointed hard-line retired General Nilton Cerqueira, who was elected federal deputy in 1994, as state secretary of public security; General Cerqueira was well known as commander of the Rio de Janeiro DOI-CODI in the 1970s.

The Military in the Amazon

The Amazon region occupies more than half of Brazil's territory. In 1985 the army announced the Northern Corridor (Calha Norte) project, in an attempt to establish better control of Brazil's interests in the Amazon. The project has consisted of building a series of outposts along the Brazilian border with Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. Some of these outposts have been established. Calha Norte is therefore more than a military project. Its goals are to provide effective control of the border, improve the local infrastructure, and promote economic development of the region.

The army has increased the number of posts near the border from eight to nineteen. The posts are placed under five Special Frontier Battalions, with headquarters from west to east in Tabatinga, Rio Branco, São Gabriel da Cachoeira, Boa Vista, and Macapá. In addition, the army has been transferring battalions from the South and Southeast to the Amazon: the Seventeenth Motorized Infantry Battalion from Cruz Alta to the Seventeenth Jungle Infantry Battalion; the Sixty-first Motorized Infantry Battalion in Santo Angelo to the Sixty-first Jungle Infantry Battalion; and the Sixty-first Engineering and Construction Battalion at Cruzeiro do Sul to Rio Branco. The First Brigade in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro State, was moved to Tefé, Amazonas, except for one infantry battalion. Lastly, the army was planning to open two new garrisons in the Rio Negro region, at Tunui and Asuno do Içana.

Some Brazilian officers have warned against "foreign intervention" in the region. In July 1991, Army General Antenor de Santa Cruz Abreu, then chief of the Amazon Region Military Command (Comando Militar da Amazônia--CMA), threatened that the army would "transform the Amazon into a new Vietnam" if developed countries continued to "internationalize" the region. The vitriol subsided partially in January 1992, when General Santa Cruz Abreu was replaced by General Carlos Anníbal Pacheco, who dispelled some of the concerns about the "internationalization" of the Amazon.

In 1993 the Brazilian press reported on United States-Guyana military exercises near the Brazil-Guyana border. The proximity of the exercise to the Brazilian border provoked an angry response from many high-ranking Brazilian officers and government officials. United States joint exercises were also held with Colombia and Suriname, to the consternation of the Brazilians. In a show of force on October 4, 1994, the armed forces were involved in Operation Surumu, the largest combined and joint maneuvers ever carried out in the Amazon. The exercises were held north of the city of Boa Vista in the state of Roraima, over an area of 34,900 square kilometers. They included the participation of eight countries in a war against Cratenia, an imaginary enemy. The exercises involved 5,000 soldiers, thirty-seven aircraft, four ships, and two hospital ships. The army had the largest contingent with 3,000 men. The air force dropped 700 parachutists into the jungle and was involved in transporting most of the troops, many by civilian aircraft. The navy provided logistical support, using riverine patrol boats. The joint nature of the maneuvers indicated that whereas the army would continue to take the lead in the Amazon, the other two services (especially the air force) also would be involved.

However, such massive operations are specially staged affairs, giving an impression of military power that is not reflected in the day-to-day reality. The commanding general of the First Jungle Brigade, headquartered in Boa Vista, oversees two infantry battalions, whose units are spread from the Guyana border to that with Colombia. One battalion headquarters is located in Boa Vista, the other in São Gabriel da Cachoeira. The general does not have his own aircraft, and he must request transport from Manaus if he wishes to inspect his troops. Headquarters maintains contact with the units via radio. The first battalion maintains five Special Border Platoons (Pelotões Especiais de Fronteira--PEFs) at Bom Fim and Normandia on the Guyana side, at Pacarema (also called BV-8, for the eighth marker on the Brazil-Venezuelan line), Surucucu, and Auaris facing Venezuela. The second battalion at São Gabriel da Cachoeira has PEFs at Maturaca (near Pico da Neblina) and Cucui on the Venezuela border, and three more looking toward Colombia at Matapi, Uaupés, and Iauaretê.

The platoons consist of about seventy soldiers, corporals, and sergeants, and five officers, the most senior of whom is usually a lieutenant. Many of the soldiers are recruited locally. In Roraima many of the soldiers are Macuxí and Wapishana Indians.

In late 1993, the armed forces received presidential approval for the Amazon Region Surveillance System (Sistema de Vigilância da Amazônia--Sivam). Sivam will consist of a large network of radar, communication systems, and data processing centers and should assist the government in air traffic control and its efforts to curb deforestation (photos | news) and drug trafficking. The control centers of Sivam will be in Manaus, Belém, Porto Velho, and Brasília. It will take at least eight years to install the system, at a cost of US$1.55 billion. Sivam will include five Embraer EMB-120 Brasílias carrying Ericsson Radar Electronics Erieye airborne early warning and control system. Sivam is part of a larger plan called the Amazon Region Protection System (Sistema de Proteção da Amazônia--Sipam). The purpose of Sipam is to provide a more sophisticated infrastructure for policing the Amazon.

The Sivam case was particularly controversial in 1994 and 1995 and involved Brasília, Paris, and Washington. In June 1994, two days after then United States Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown visited Brasília, President Itamar Franco decided to award the Sivam contract to a consortium led by Raytheon (United States), instead of to a group led by Thomson CSF (France). In December 1994, when many legislators already had left Brasília for the Christmas holidays, Brazil's Senate approved the financing of Sivam. A Brazilian senator reportedly received US$7 million to expedite congressional approval. In February 1995, the New York Times reported that the United States Central Intelligence Agency had discovered that Thomson CSF paid bribes to Brazilian officials. French diplomats countered that it was the United States that bribed Brazilian officials, paying US$30 million to obtain the contract. France charged the United States with industrial espionage and expelled five staff members from the United States Embassy in Paris.

In March 1995, Raytheon's Brazilian partner, Automation and Control Systems Engineering (Engenharia de Sistemas de Contrôle e Automação--ESCA), which was hired to manage Sivam and to develop the system's control software, was removed from the project because of fraud in social security contributions in Brazil. In its place, the Brazilian government proposed a team of Ministry of Aeronautics experts. However, wiretapping and alleged influence-peddling created the most serious crisis for the Cardoso administration in its first year in office, and threatened the very future of the Sivam project.

At least two dozen Brazilian government organizations deal with the Amazon, in addition to many nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from both Brazil and abroad. The vast array of organizations reflects the many interests in the Amazon, which include concerns with national security, indigenous peoples, economic development, the environment, and drug trafficking. These interests often clash. In an attempt to coordinate Brazil's Amazon policies, President Franco created the Ministry of Environment and the Legal Amazon on August 18, 1993 (later renamed Ministry of Environment, Hydraulic Resources, and the Legal Amazon), and placed Rubens Ricúpero at the helm. Ricúpero, the chief negotiator of the 1977 Amazonian Cooperation Treaty, was brought from the post of ambassador in Washington.

President Collor established the Yanomami Indigenous Park, encompassing 9.5 million hectares of territory adjacent to Venezuela. The reservation is home to 25,000 members of the Yanomami tribe, 10,000 of whom live on the Brazilian side of the reserve. The 600 gold prospectors who lived on or near Yanomami land and ignored the extensive reservation were expelled. In 1992 President Collor demarcated the territory, and in the following year mining revenues dropped considerably.

The problems associated with competing interests in the Amazon became apparent in August 1993, when at least sixteen Yanomami Indians were massacred near the Brazil-Venezuela border. Twenty-three illegal gold prospectors were arrested and charged with the slayings. They were later acquitted, after investigations allegedly indicated that the Indians had died in conflict with other Indians.

The governors of Roraima, Amazonas, and Pará states have called for the reduction in the area of the reservations. According to one poll, 51 percent of Brazil's legislators agreed with that position. Many officers within the armed forces have also expressed their discontent with the size of the reservations. A common argument is that there are few Yanomami per square kilometer allotted to them.

In early 1994, there was a broad consensus in Brazil on the need to expand the military presence along the border. Such a presence was supported by Ministers Ricúpero and Flores. Brazilians have expressed concerns about sovereignty, particularly the encroachment by the United States and others via drug interdiction and environmentalism. Despite such consensus, however, only limited funding has been available to the Ministry of Environment, Hydraulic Resources, and the Legal Amazon, and the constant clash of interests has impeded a coordinated policy.

Data as of April 1997



BackgroundFollowing more than three centuries under Portuguese rule, Brazil peacefully gained its independence in 1822, maintaining a monarchical system of government until the abolition of slavery in 1888 and the subsequent proclamation of a republic by the military in 1889. Brazilian coffee exporters politically dominated the country until populist leader Getulio VARGAS rose to power in 1930. By far the largest and most populous country in South America, Brazil underwent more than half a century of populist and military government until 1985, when the military regime peacefully ceded power to civilian rulers. Brazil continues to pursue industrial and agricultural growth and development of its interior. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, it is today South America's leading economic power and a regional leader. Highly unequal income distribution and crime remain pressing problems.
LocationEastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean
Area(sq km)total: 8,514,877 sq km
land: 8,459,417 sq km
water: 55,460 sq km
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo
Geographic coordinates10 00 S, 55 00 W
Land boundaries(km)total: 16,885 km
border countries: Argentina 1,261 km, Bolivia 3,423 km, Colombia 1,644 km, French Guiana 730 km, Guyana 1,606 km, Paraguay 1,365 km, Peru 2,995 km, Suriname 593 km, Uruguay 1,068 km, Venezuela 2,200 km

Coastline(km)7,491 km

Climatemostly tropical, but temperate in south

Elevation extremes(m)lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico da Neblina 3,014 m
Natural resourcesbauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber
Land use(%)arable land: 6.93%
permanent crops: 0.89%
other: 92.18% (2005)

Irrigated land(sq km)29,200 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources(cu km)8,233 cu km (2000)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)total: 59.3 cu km/yr (20%/18%/62%)
per capita: 318 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazardsrecurring droughts in northeast; floods and occasional frost in south
Environment - current issuesdeforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area; there is a lucrative illegal wildlife trade; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities; wetland degradation; severe oil spills
Environment - international agreementsparty to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - notelargest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador
Population198,739,269
note: Brazil conducted a census in August 2000, which reported a population of 169,872,855; that figure was about 3.8% lower than projections by the US Census Bureau, and is close to the implied underenumeration of 4.6% for the 1991 census (July 2009 est.)
Age structure(%)0-14 years: 26.7% (male 27,092,880/female 26,062,244)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 65,804,108/female 67,047,725)
65 years and over: 6.4% (male 5,374,230/female 7,358,082) (2009 est.)
Median age(years)total: 28.6 years
male: 27.8 years
female: 29.3 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate(%)1.199% (2009 est.)
Birth rate(births/1,000 population)18.43 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Death rate(deaths/1,000 population)6.35 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)

Net migration rate(migrant(s)/1,000 population)-0.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Urbanization(%)urban population: 86% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 1.8% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio(male(s)/female)at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate(deaths/1,000 live births)total: 22.58 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.16 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 18.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)

Life expectancy at birth(years)total population: 71.99 years
male: 68.43 years
female: 75.73 years (2009 est.)

Total fertility rate(children born/woman)2.21 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Nationalitynoun: Brazilian(s)
adjective: Brazilian
Ethnic groups(%)white 53.7%, mulatto (mixed white and black) 38.5%, black 6.2%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 0.9%, unspecified 0.7% (2000 census)

Religions(%)Roman Catholic (nominal) 73.6%, Protestant 15.4%, Spiritualist 1.3%, Bantu/voodoo 0.3%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.2%, none 7.4% (2000 census)
Languages(%)Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language); note - less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and a large number of minor Amerindian languages

Country nameconventional long form: Federative Republic of Brazil
conventional short form: Brazil
local long form: Republica Federativa do Brasil
local short form: Brasil
Government typefederal republic
Capitalname: Brasilia
geographic coordinates: 15 47 S, 47 55 W
time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins third Sunday in October; ends third Sunday in February
note: Brazil is divided into four time zones, including one for the Fernando de Noronha Islands
Administrative divisions26 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal*, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba, Parana, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, Tocantins
Constitution5-Oct-88

Legal systembased on Roman codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffragevoluntary between 16 and 18 years of age and over 70; compulsory over 18 and under 70 years of age; note - military conscripts do not vote
Executive branchchief of state: President Luiz Inacio LULA da Silva (since 1 January 2003); Vice President Jose ALENCAR Gomes da Silva (since 1 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Luiz Inacio LULA da Silva (since 1 January 2003); Vice President Jose ALENCAR Gomes da Silva (since 1 January 2003)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single four-year term; election last held 1 October 2006 with runoff 29 October 2006 (next to be held 3 October 2010 and, if necessary, 31 October 2010)
election results: Luiz Inacio LULA da Silva (PT) reelected president - 60.83%, Geraldo ALCKMIN (PSDB) 39.17%

Legislative branchbicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional consists of the Federal Senate or Senado Federal (81 seats; 3 members from each state and federal district elected according to the principle of majority to serve eight-year terms; one-third and two-thirds elected every four years, alternately) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara dos Deputados (513 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Federal Senate - last held 1 October 2006 for one-third of the Senate (next to be held in October 2010 for two-thirds of the Senate); Chamber of Deputies - last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010)
election results: Federal Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PFL 6, PSDB 5, PMDB 4, PTB 3, PT 2, PDT 1, PSB 1, PL 1, PPS 1, PRTB 1, PP 1, PCdoB 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PMDB 89, PT 83, PFL 65, PSDB 65, PP 42, PSB 27, PDT 24, PL 23, PTB 22, PPS 21, PCdoB 13, PV 13, PSC 9, other 17; note - as of 1 January 2009, the composition of the entire legislature is as follows: Federal Senate - seats by party - PMDB 21, DEM (formerly PFL) 12, PSDB 13, PT 12, PTB 7, PDT 5, PR 4, PSB 2, PCdoB 1, PRB 1, PP 1, PSC 1, PSOL 1; Chamber of Deputies - seats by party - PMDB 95, PT 79, PSDB 59, DEM (formerly PFL) 53, PR 44, PP 40, PSB 29, PDT 25, PTB 19, PPS 14, PV 14, PCdoB 13, PSC 11, PMN 5, PRB 4, PHS 3, PSOL 3, PTC 1, PTdoB 1

Judicial branchSupreme Federal Tribunal or STF (11 ministers are appointed for life by the president and confirmed by the Senate); Higher Tribunal of Justice; Regional Federal Tribunals (judges are appointed for life); note - though appointed "for life," judges, like all federal employees, have a mandatory retirement age of 70

Political pressure groups and leadersLandless Workers' Movement or MST
other: labor unions and federations; large farmers' associations; religious groups including evangelical Christian churches and the Catholic Church
International organization participationAfDB (nonregional member), BIS, CAN (associate), CPLP, FAO, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, LAS (observer), Mercosur, MIGA, MINURCAT, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, Paris Club (associate), PCA, RG, SICA (observer), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNITAR, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Flag descriptiongreen with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars (one for each state and the Federal District) arranged in the same pattern as the night sky over Brazil; the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress)

Economy - overviewCharacterized by large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, Brazil's economy outweighs that of all other South American countries and Brazil is expanding its presence in world markets. From 2003 to 2007, Brazil ran record trade surpluses and recorded its first current account surpluses since 1992. Productivity gains coupled with high commodity prices contributed to the surge in exports. Brazil improved its debt profile in 2006 by shifting its debt burden toward real denominated and domestically held instruments. LULA da Silva restated his commitment to fiscal responsibility by maintaining the country's primary surplus during the 2006 election. Following his second inauguration in October of that year, LULA da Silva announced a package of further economic reforms to reduce taxes and increase investment in infrastructure. Brazil's debt achieved investment grade status early in 2008, but the government's attempt to achieve strong growth while reducing the debt burden created inflationary pressures. For most of 2008, the Central Bank embarked on a restrictive monetary policy to stem these pressures. Since the onset of the global financial crisis in September, Brazil's currency and its stock market - Bovespa - have significantly lost value, -41% for Bovespa for the year ending 30 December 2008. Brazil incurred another current account deficit in 2008, as world demand and prices for commodities dropped in the second-half of the year.
GDP (purchasing power parity)$1.998 trillion (2008 est.)
$1.901 trillion (2007 est.)
$1.798 trillion (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate)$1.573 trillion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate(%)5.1% (2008 est.)
5.7% (2007 est.)
4% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$10,200 (2008 est.)
$9,800 (2007 est.)
$9,400 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector(%)agriculture: 6.7%
industry: 28%
services: 65.3% (2008 est.)
Labor force93.65 million (2008 est.)

Labor force - by occupation(%)agriculture: 20%
industry: 14%
services: 66% (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate(%)7.9% (2008 est.)
9.3% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line(%)31% (2005)
Household income or consumption by percentage share(%)lowest 10%: 1.1%
highest 10%: 43% (2007)
Distribution of family income - Gini index56.7 (2005)
60.7 (1998)
Investment (gross fixed)(% of GDP)19% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budgetrevenues: NA
expenditures: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices)(%)5.7% (2008 est.)
3.6% (2007 est.)

Stock of money$95.03 billion (31 December 2008)
$131.1 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money$724.5 billion (31 December 2008)
$792.8 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit$1.249 trillion (31 December 2008)
$1.377 trillion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares$589.4 billion (31 December 2008)
$1.37 trillion (31 December 2007)
$711.1 billion (31 December 2006)
Economic aid - recipient$191.9 million (2005)

Public debt(% of GDP)38.8% of GDP (2008 est.)
52% of GDP (2004 est.)
Agriculture - productscoffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef
Industriestextiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment

Industrial production growth rate(%)4.3% (2008 est.)

Current account balance-$28.19 billion (2008 est.)
$1.551 billion (2007 est.)
Exports$197.9 billion (2008 est.)
$160.6 billion (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities(%)transport equipment, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos
Exports - partners(%)US 14.4%, China 12.4%, Argentina 8.4%, Netherlands 5%, Germany 4.5% (2008)
Imports$173.1 billion (2008 est.)
$120.6 billion (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities(%)machinery, electrical and transport equipment, chemical products, oil, automotive parts, electronics
Imports - partners(%)US 14.9%, China 11.6%, Argentina 7.9%, Germany 7% (2008)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$193.8 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$180.3 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external$262.9 billion (31 December 2008)
$240.5 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home$294 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$248.9 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad$127.5 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$107.1 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Exchange ratesreals (BRL) per US dollar - 1.8644 (2008 est.), 1.85 (2007 est.), 2.1761 (2006), 2.4344 (2005), 2.9251 (2004)

Currency (code)real (BRL)

Telephones - main lines in use41.141 million (2008)
Telephones - mobile cellular150.641 million (2008)
Telephone systemgeneral assessment: good working system; fixed-line connections have remained relatively stable in recent years and stand at about 20 per 100 persons; less expensive mobile cellular technology is a major driver in expanding telephone service to the low-income segment of the population with mobile-cellular telephone density reaching 80 per 100 persons
domestic: extensive microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 64 earth stations; mobile-cellular usage has more than tripled in the past 5 years
international: country code - 55; landing point for a number of submarine cables, including Atlantis 2, that provide direct links to South and Central America, the Caribbean, the US, Africa, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region east), connected by microwave relay system to Mercosur Brazilsat B3 satellite earth station (2008)
Internet country code.br
Internet users64.948 million (2008)
Airports4,000 (2009)
Pipelines(km)condensate/gas 62 km; gas 9,892 km; liquid petroleum gas 353 km; oil 4,517 km; refined products 4,465 km (2008)
Roadways(km)total: 1,751,868 km
paved: 96,353 km
unpaved: 1,655,515 km (2004)

Ports and terminalsGuaiba, Ilha Grande, Paranagua, Rio Grande, Santos, Sao Sebastiao, Tubarao
Military branchesBrazilian Army (Exercito Brasileiro, EB), Brazilian Navy (Marinha do Brasil (MB), includes Naval Air and Marine Corps (Corpo de Fuzileiros Navais)), Brazilian Air Force (Forca Aerea Brasileira, FAB) (2009)
Military service age and obligation(years of age)21-45 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 9 to 12 months; 17-45 years of age for voluntary service; an increasing percentage of the ranks are "long-service" volunteer professionals; women were allowed to serve in the armed forces beginning in early 1980s when the Brazilian Army became the first army in South America to accept women into career ranks; women serve in Navy and Air Force only in Women's Reserve Corps (2001)
Manpower available for military servicemales age 16-49: 52,523,552
females age 16-49: 52,628,945 (2009 est.)
Manpower fit for military servicemales age 16-49: 38,043,555
females age 16-49: 44,267,520 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annuallymale: 1,690,031
female: 1,630,851 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures(% of GDP)2.6% of GDP (2006 est.)
Disputes - internationalunruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations; uncontested boundary dispute with Uruguay over Isla Brasilera at the confluence of the Quarai/Cuareim and Invernada rivers, that form a tripoint with Argentina; the Itaipu Dam reservoir covers over a once contested section of Brazil-Paraguay boundary west of Guaira Falls on the Rio Parana; an accord placed the long-disputed Isla Suarez/Ilha de Guajara-Mirim, a fluvial island on the Rio Mamore, under Bolivian administration in 1958, but sovereignty remains in dispute

Electricity - production(kWh)438.8 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source(%)fossil fuel: 8.3%
hydro: 82.7%
nuclear: 4.4%
other: 4.6% (2001)
Electricity - consumption(kWh)404.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - exports(kWh)2.034 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports(kWh)42.06 billion kWh; note - supplied by Paraguay (2008 est.)
Oil - production(bbl/day)2.422 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - consumption(bbl/day)2.52 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - exports(bbl/day)570,100 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports(bbl/day)632,900 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves(bbl)12.62 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
Natural gas - production(cu m)12.62 billion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - consumption(cu m)23.65 billion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - exports(cu m)0 cu m (2008)
Natural gas - proved reserves(cu m)365 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate(%)0.6% (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS730,000 (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths15,000 (2007 est.)
Literacy(%)definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.6%
male: 88.4%
female: 88.8% (2004 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)(years)total: 14 years
male: 14 years
female: 15 years (2005)
Education expenditures(% of GDP)4% of GDP (2004)








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