Dilma Rousseff, President Lula da Silva’s handpicked choice as Brazil’s next president, has won 46.9 percent of the votes cast in 3 October’s election, shy of the 50 percent (plus one vote) needed to win outright. Her opponent, José Serra, a seasoned career politician who struggled to distinguish himself from the government’s campaign, won 32.6 percent. A surprisingly strong third place finish went to Green Party candidate Marina Silva with 19.3 percent of the vote. Silva, a former Workers’ Party member, may play the role of kingmaker.
Rousseff’s comfortable margin dissipated in the latter stages of the campaign as a corruption scandal came to light in the governing Workers Party. Brazil has notched up impressive economic growth under Lula’s eight years of government, and millions of Brazilians have climbed out of poverty. Forbidden to run for a third time as president, Lula promised Brazilians more of the same in a Rousseff administration.
Update 18:12 Davos, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Brazilian President Lula da Silva will not be attending the 2010 meeting of the World Economic Foum (WEF) in Davos. He has been advised by his doctor to cancel his activities for the next few days, including his meeting in Davos, where he was slated to receive a Global Statesman award.
Lula was about to board a flight to Switzerland, but fell ill suddenly. He spent the night in the hospital at Recife, and has been transferred to Sao Paulo to undergo tests. His doctor says he is fine, but needs to rest.
Links to other sites: AFP, BBC, Romandie News
Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva is calling on world leaders to develop new tactics with Iran, to engage the country rather than isolating it. Lula da Silva and Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met in Brazil Monday 23 November and Lula, the rare leader to welcome Ahmadinejad, said in a joint press conference at the end that he supports Iran’s efforts to develop a peaceful nuclear energy programme. Lula’s background includes years as a union negotiator.
The only contender
Update 2 – video on Rio’s plans 19:23 Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was chosen to host the 2016 Olympic Games in a vote that saw Chicago eliminated in the first round, and Tokyo in the second round of voting.
Copenhagen was the only contender for the pre-Olympics fun and games
Which of four cities would win the right to host the Olympic Games in 2016 kept the crowds guessing before a meeting of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Copenhagen Friday 2 October. Following a precedent set by then UK Prime Minister Tony Blair who went to Singapore four years ago to pitch London’s bid for the 2012 Games, the heads of state or government of each of the countries whose cities are bidding for the Games in 2016 are in Copenhagen to make the case on their behalf.
Copenhageners lapped up the publicity. US President Obama took time off from reforming the country’s health care system and saving the world from Iranian nuclear bombs to help his wife Michelle sell their hometown, Chicago.
The Honduran government issued a decree 27 September limiting civil rights on the eve of an expected massive demonstration in the capital Tegucigalpa in favour of ousted President Manuel Zelaya. The measures make it easier for the army to arrest protesters, and allows the government to act against pro-Zelaya media. The government refused entry into the country 27 September of a delegation from the Organisation of Amerian States (OAS) that flew into Tegucigalpa in the hope of reopening talks aimed at defusing the crisis. In Washington, the US representative to the OAS called on the de facto government to exercise restraint and caution and said Zelaya’s return to the country without a settlement was “irresponsible and foolish”, adding that he should “desist … from acting as though he were starring in an old movie.”
Brazil’s president Lula da Silva said while in Venezuela that he would ignore a Honduran government demand to hand Zelaya over to Honduran authorities within 10 days to face trial, or to grant him asylum in Brazil. Zelaya has spent the past week in the Brazilian embassy after secretly returning to the country. Lula has warned the Honduran de facto government to respect the integrity of the Brazilian embassy in Honduras. Honduras has cut electricity and water supplies to the embassy. The Vienna convention on diplomatic rights prohibits the use of force against diplomatic personnel and installations. It also proscribes the use of diplomatic installations for political purposes. Zelaya has been using the media to call for his supporters to converge on Tegucigalpa to force an end to the political crisis. At least one person was killed following clashes with the police over the weekend.
