The competition aims to raise awareness about climate change and discuss the consequences of climate change in different countries, points of view all over the world, and how local media and the public approach the subject. Organized by the EJC (European Journalism Centre), the launch event was split over two days, the first featuring a series of lectures from experts on climate change, and the second devoted to a visit to the Danish eco-village of Dyssekilde, in the north of the country.

The launch event kicked off with a welcome lecture by Wilfried Rütten, Director of the EJC, followed by a talk by Svend Olling, Head of Department, COP15 Logistics. Mr. Olling gave a presentation on the work that the Danish government has done for the competition and the expectations surrounding the COP15 conference.

Journalists from many parts of the world joined a round-table discussion moderated by Raymond Frenken from EUX-TV. Names such as Tasha Eichenseher, a National Geographic science producer and editor, Gerald Traufetter, a science and technology correspondent for Der Spiegel, Asbjørn Jørgensen, from the Århus School of Media and Journalism in Denmark, and Ramesh Jaura, Regional Director of IPS Europe, discussed how the media covers issue relating to climate change and the environment.

François Roudié, the European Commission Policy Coordinator, gave a rundown on the EU's response to climate change. A counterpoint to this was provided by Andreas Barkman from the European Environmental Agency, and Head of the Group for Climate Change Mitigation, who highlighted the problematic aspects of the negotiations that are going to be held at COP15.

Greenpeace Nordic Executive Director Mads Christensen also underlined what bloggers can do to encourage climate change discussion and voiced Greenpeace's expectations for a possible agreement resulting from COP15. In his talk, he expressed the view that, taking into account current negotiations and the speeches of national leaders all over the world, a huge cut in CO2 emissions and an idealistic agreement are unlikely to take place.

Probably the most eagerly anticipated lecture of the day was given by Søren Hermansen. Søren was one of the Heroes of the Environment named by TIME magazine in 2008, and he gave a presentation on the Samso experiment before the audience of bloggers. This experiment aims to introduce alternative energy resources to local environments. In this case, wind energy is responsible for meeting all the villagers' energy demands. Readers can check out some of the Samso experiment photos in this Flickr pool by Phil Lacombe.

On the second day of the event, bloggers visited the eco-village of Dyssekilde in the north of the country. The village has 70 households and a population of 130 adults and 50 children. It was created more than 20 years ago, and its inhabitants share an environmental approach, feeling the urge to act as pioneers of a lifestyle that allows a more ecologically friendly, sustainable community. Like the Samso experiment, Dyssekilde also depends on wind energy to meet the villagers' energy demands, and since they don't use much of the energy, what is left over is sold to a Danish energy company.

A Dyssekilde household.

Dyssekilde houses have a peculiar appearance. Villagers build their own homes, and many of them have solar panels attached in order to encourage the use of clean energy. Houses also have south-facing windows, so that they can make as much use of the solar energy and natural light as possible, and reduce the use of internal lights and heating units during the day.

Another great example of sustainable living in Dyssekilde is the non-chemical waste water cleaning system. The villagers created the system based on natural cleaning, which uses 30.000 willows to cleanse the water thoroughly, without chemicals or other products. Even though their current system reached its maximum capacity in 2006, they are now planning to build the biggest non-chemical waste water cleaning system in the world.

Who are these bloggers anyway?

“Would you like to participate in an international blogging competition about Climate Change in Copenhagen?” Some ninety people from all over the world said YES to the above question and have just spent three days in Denmark, attending the launch event of the TH!NK ABOUT IT blogging competition. But who are those people? And why did they decide to engage in environmental cyberactivism?

Most participants came from Europe, but the novelty of this second edition of TH!NK ABOUT IT was the participation of people from various developing countries, such as Brazil, India, Mexico, China and South Africa. Many participants came from Eastern Europe, but Western Europe was also well represented, with many British and Italian bloggers. The nature of their blogs and their motives for participating in the event were as diverse as their countries of origin.

Journalist Charles Nisz Lourenço from Brazil

Many professional journalists also took part in the competition, showing that blogging can add to a profession that already deals with reporting and expressing one's views of the world. Charles Nisz Lourenço, from Brazil, works as a journalist and is about to start a PhD in Economics, and is quite new to blogging. He only started his personal blog, Fragmentos da Realidade Cotidiana [Fragments of Daily Reality, pt] in February this year, and has covered political, financial and environmental issues; he also blogs for the Lixo Eletrônico blog, which was behind the Electronic Waste Manifesto.

Maltese journalist Keith Demicoli has his own TV program about politics in “the happiest place on Earth”, as he described his country of origin, and is participating in the TH!NK ABOUT IT competition for the second time.

Maltese Journalist Keith Demicoli

Chinese-Spanish language translator Ding Dawei, also known by his Spanish name, “Diego”, works as a professional journalist for the Chinese People's Daily [en], but is a newcomer to blogging, through which he wishes to look more closely at Climate Change issues and expand his horizons.

Ding Dawei. Chinese Journalist and newcomer blogger.

Non-journalists were, however, in the majority. A friendly pair of bloggers from Pilani in India, brother Abhishek Nayak and his sister Anindita Nayak, enjoyed the launch event for the competition. She is only 18 years old, but already blogs for the AoC Initiative, a youth delegation to the UN Negotiations on Climate Change. He was coy about his blog, which he says is “full of very ironic comments”, but with a little pushing we got the URL. He has been blogging since 2006 about politics and Indian issues, as well as sharing his photos and news about events he attends.

Anindita Nayak and Abhishek Nayak, participants from India

Lucy Setian [bg], from Bulgaria, works as a journalist, but has an online dream-come-true literary project with her boyfriend called Azcheta.com [bg], where they write book reviews and organize literary events in Sofia, and have gained fame with events such as “Coffee goes with books, not cigarettes”. Blogging about the environment allows her to address her political aspirations, too.

Lucy Setian

American Devin McIntire, from California, USA, has just set up the blog The Green Cadet, hoping to disseminate green business opportunities online and, who knows, maybe one day make them happen in reality. He believes that the solutions for environmental problems will come not from politicians, but rather from local eco-entrepreneurial initiatives.

Devin McIntire from the USA

Some bloggers were notably more high-tech than the others, like the Italian Frederico Pistono, who participates in no fewer than 12 blogs! A movie maker, from the beginning of the launch event he was filming the bloggers (at lectures, on the metro, etc), and is bound to have some interesting video clips of the competition. Here are some other blogs where you can check out his work: AsianCineBlog [it] and Activism [it].

Frederico Pistono from Italy

Other video bloggers were present at the competition. The British drama student Matthew Turner maintains a YouTube account where he “takes the piss out of himself” online - in typical British style, he aims to treat serious issues with humor.

Matthew Turner from the UK

Radka Lankasova has a personal blog and is also a contributor to the number one blog in the Czech Republic, but her main motivation is to make friends and travel through blogging opportunities like TH!NK ABOUT IT.

Radka Lankasova from Czech Republic

Some bloggers taking part in the competition were still crawling in the blogosphere or experimenting with it for various reasons, but the EJC (European Journalism Commission) hopes to encourage them to start blogging about the environment, too. From 23rd September to 16th December 2009 bloggers will discuss climate change on the official competition platform. Although there are prizes, one of them being an environmentalist's dream - to attend the COP15 conference for two weeks in Copenhagen with all expenses paid by the EJC - there is a sense of community rather than rivalry amongst the bloggers. As you can see, there are plenty of reasons to blog about the environment!

Speak up Sarney: "I can explain all the dirty tricks, I mean, charges". By Paulo Barbosa.

Brazilian politicians, discredited as they are, occasionally deliver the most fascinating sayings that, although they cannot absolve them of their political negligence and abuses of power, make their mark by provoking the public and allowing the Brazilian people understand them a little better.

Last week, it was Senator Renan Calheiros' turn to deliver a real gem. In 2007 he had to step down from the Presidency of the Senate amid accusations by his ex-lover, the mother of his illegitimate child, who posed for Playboy Magazine soon after the scandal. He has earned himself a place in history with a phrase that has made the current political crisis in the Senate, triggered by accusations of corruption against the current Senate President José Sarney, more riveting than the evening soap opera. In a fierce discussion with the PSDB (Brazilian Social Democratic Party) Senator Tasso Jereissati, many accusations were made, some of which offer an acute reflection of the present state of the Brazilian Senate.

The blogger Leandro Prudêncio [pt] made a good selection of the highlights of the discussions from a transcript available at Estadão Online, the web version of one of the main Brazilian newspapers, which puts Renan's gem into context:

Renan Calheiros: “A respeito da manifestação do senador Tasso Jereissati. Essas crises acontecem por isso, porque é a minoria com complexo de maioria…”

Tasso Jereissati: Que me desculpe senador Renan. Senador Renan, não aponte esse dedo sujo pra cima de mim! Não aponte esse dedo sujo pra cima de mim! Estou cansado de suas ameaças”

Renan:“Esse dedo sujo infelizmente é o de Vossa Excelência. São os dedos dos jatinhos que o Senado pagou”

Tasso: “Pelo menos era com meu dinheiro. O jato é meu, não é dos seus empreiteiros.

Renan: “O dinheiro é seu?”

Tasso: “É meu, é meu, é meu, é meu! Eu tenho pra falar, tá?

(Fora do microfone) Renan: Coronel…

Tasso: Eu, coronel? Cangaceiro, cangaceiro de terceira categoria…”.

Renan: “O senhor é coronel!” – Baixa o microfone e diz: “Seu merda” (relato dos senadores próximos a Renan)

Renan: “Você é minoria com complexo de maioria. Me respeite”

Follow this link to check out the scene.

Photo by Fabio Rodrigues Pozzebom/ABr

“Minority with a majority complex” was the phrase which echoed around offices and bars all over the country, as well as in the blogosphere, becoming an instantly popular saying. But what, exactly, does it mean and why was it so successful?

In the strict sense in which it was said, Renan being one of the leaders of the government base which supports José Sarney’s continued presence in the Senate (something already discussed by GVO), the intention was to diminish the opposition's importance.

Bloggers who interpreted the phrase in this sense were fairly critical of it. The blog O Que Estamos Fazendo? [pt] asked:

O que gerou a manifestação de Renan? A divergência. E olha que a oposição no Brasil é quase inexistente. Se sofre de algum complexo, é de inferioridade. Vive escondida, com medo de cumprir seu papel de… oposição, como fazia o PT quando era minoria…

Então, se mesmo com uma oposição omissa o senador Calheiros disse o que disse, qual é o seu desejo? Se divergir, se exercer o papel de oposição significa ter “complexo de maioria”, o que deseja Calheiros?

Algumas hipóteses:

- Deseja que os congressistas da “minoria” recebam seus salários, mas não apareçam no congresso para encher o saco. Que fiquem em suas casas, em verdadeiras licenças remuneradas, como um bom funcionário fantasma nomeado por ato secreto;

- Deseja que os congressistas da “minoria” mudem de lado e migrem para a “maioria”, dando uma banana para seus eleitores tão logo assumam seus cargos;

- Deseja que os políticos da “minoria” sejam declarados inelegíveis, uma vez que somente a “maioria” deve possuir representação política na democracia de Renan.

The blogger PlunkPlakZum [pt] raised the same issue, drawing attention to the challenges that the Brazilian democracy is currently facing:

Contudo, é fundamental considerar que o pensamento democrático brasileiro pode, por caminhos próprios, por vida própria, nem sempre estar em tudo representado pela maioria. Isso porque as relações político-partidárias necessariamente não representam por si só as idéias, ideologias e posições do povo. Tanto é que há até divergência entre partidos ou grupos de partidos. Também por isso é que se busca apoio político. Existe, sim, uma minoria que, por casualidade, pode representar a maioria sem voz que espera, do lado de fora do Senado, as deliberações dos senadores.

Portanto, antes de enxotar essa minoria de dentro do Senado como se fosse cão pequeno, examine-se se ela não faz coro com a vontade de uma maioria atenta que, do lado de fora do Senado, são brasileiros de voz e vez, ao menos em época de eleição.

Nevertheless, Renan's phrase had wider implications, which were seized upon by many bloggers.

An article written by the now-independent journalist Paulo Henrique Amorim [pt], who once worked for some of the main media outlets in Brazil, made a real splash, and has been replicated in many blogs, including one devoted to Dilma Roussef, the all-powerful Brazilian Chief of Staff. Paulo Henrique Amorim sought to answer the question: ‘Why is the PSDB, according to Renan Calheiros, a “minority with a majority complex”?’ with the following argument:

Porque os tucanos – em que o peso de São Paulo é predominante – pensam que são melhores que os outros.

Porque os tucanos – e subsidiariamente sua linha auxiliar, os Demos – são mais ricos.

E terceiro, porque os Demo-tucanos controlam o PiG (*).

Isso deu a eles a sensação de maioria, especialmente porque o Presidente da República foi um metalúrgico – e é nordestino!

A percepção de que controlar o PiG (*) resolvia o problema começa a se esfacelar.
E não só porque a Internet e os blogs adquiriram a relevância que tem no Brasil.
Em boa parte por causa da falencia do PiG (*). Mas, também , porque houve uma super-utilização do poder do PiG (*).

Pig: Partido da Imprensa Golpista.

What comes out from this blog post is that Renan's phrase had such wide appeal because it joked about “São Paulo’s white elite”, blamed for all the evils faced by the country. Amorim goes as far as to refer to PSDB politicians as the devil!

There is a long history of prejudice against São Paulo State, which was illustrated in the blog Bueno Muy Bueno [pt] after Fernando Henrique Cardoso, originally from Rio de Janeiro, ex-president of Brazil and a PSDB leader, declared that São Paulo was under-represented in Brasília:

Divergência número 2: São Paulo não está sub-representado em nada.
São Paulo está sobre-representado na Federação.
E é por isso que deveria haver uma re-pactuação da Federação brasileira.
Os presidentes da República saem de São Paulo.
Os Ministros da Fazenda saem de São Paulo.
Os Ministros da Indústria saem de São Paulo.
Os tributos são feitos de forma a aprofundar a hegemonia de São Paulo.
Os Ministros da Agricultura saem de São Paulo.
O Ministro da Educação é de São Paulo.
O Ministro da Defesa é gaúcho, mas seus parceiros políticos estratégicos? José Serra e Fernando Henrique Cardoso ? São de São Paulo.
Dos três únicos jornais brasileiros, dois são de São Paulo…Em São Paulo estão todas as revistas semanais de informação.
O Ibope é medido só em São Paulo e as redes de televisão trabalham para São Paulo.
Os dois principais partidos do país ? PSDB e PT ? são de São Paulo.
As lutas internas do PT e do PSDB conduzem a política brasileira.
O candidato do PSDB à presidência da República é de São Paulo: José Serra,na verdade, já eleito de ante-mão, como se sabe.
A elite branca do grande governador Cláudio Lembo é de São Paulo.
A elite branca de São Paulo, se pudesse, faria como os amigos do Berlusconi do Norte da Itália e mandava o resto do Brasil, do Rio (inclusive) para cima, para a África.
Em São Paulo fica o templo da elite branca, a Daslu.
O movimento Cansei é uma obra-prima da criatividade paulista.
O jornalismo esportivo brasileiro só trata do Corinthians.

This kind of resentment is strange, to say the least, because despite the fact that the State of São Paulo has the biggest GDP and population in Brazil, and the most multiethnic and ‘transbrazilian’ metropolis in the country, only a small number of Presidents of Brazil have come from São Paulo. Besides President Lula, from the State of Pernambuco, who has been in power for almost eight years, ever since direct elections were resumed in Brazil all the presidents have come from other states, including for a period of eight years when the Rio de Janeiro-born Fernando Henrique Cardoso was in power. Tancredo Neves was from Minas Gerais; José Sarney is from Maranhão; Fernando Collor de Melo is from Alagoas; Itamar Franco is from Minas Gerais. That is to say, the origin of the various Brazilian Presidents is at least sufficiently diverse. The Senate in Brasília has an even spread of members per State.

It is equally curious that the “São Paulo issue” came up in a discussion between Renan Calheiros and Tasso Jereissati, because both of them are from the Northeast of Brazil: Renan from Alagoas and Tasso from Ceará. Could it be that Tasso’s appearance (white and chubby) and dress sense (well-cut suits) made him seem like a São Paulo man?

The blog Perereca da Vizinha [pt] seems to interpret things this way:

Nem quando está fora do poder, consegue descer do salto, para buscar, enfim, aquilo que lhe faz mais falta: o apoio da sociedade civil organizada.

O autismo de que padece o partido o impede de ver que as casas parlamentares são, apenas, uma frente de batalha. Aquela em que se pode, é verdade, andar enfatiotado.

Nas baixadas, nas periferias repletas de lama e poeira, onde inexiste o mínimo para a sobrevivência digna de um cidadão.

Falta aos preparadíssimos técnicos e intelectuais tucanos a necessária humildade para ir ao encontro do povo onde o povo está.

Also, upon a closer look at the language used in the quarrel between Renan and Tasso, we can see that it was couched in essentially Northeastern terms. At the height of the exchange, Renan accused Tasso of being a “shitty colonel” and Tasso, fighting back, accused Renan of being a “third-rate bandit.” (He used the expression “cangaceiro”, meaning a specific type of bandit leader operating in the drylands of the Northeast of Brazil).

Clearly, for both, the ideal thing would be to be a GREAT COLONEL, that is, the antithesis of what they were accusing each other of being. Perhaps they both dream of being like José Sarney himself, the pivot of this whole political crisis, known as the “owner of Maranhão State” despite there being blogs such as A Velha Debaixo da Cama [pt] dedicated to quashing this idea:

Como tenho dito aqui, os maranhenses estão carecas de saber do que eles são capazes, afinal, eles se dizem donos do Maranhão, não é? Mas o povo não aceita mais esse título, pelo menos os que conheço e escuto.

“Being a minority” in Senator Renan Calheiros' view, it seems, more than being someone from São Paulo State, was used to mean someone who wants to imagine a Senate and a Brazil beyond the corruption that is devastating the Brazilian Senate at present. Any pretension of being “better than the others” greatly bothers Renan Calheiros because, as a representative of the politicians who have escaped punishment for their crimes by having their colleagues keep their dirty secrets, the ideal situation would be for everyone to be the same; that is, corrupt like the majority.

Will it End Up in Pizza? Local slang for "will it go anywhere?" by Sandra Carvalho

It’s no secret that prejudices, whether based on class, appearance or nationality, are always at the service of hidden interests. Some prejudiced verbal attacks find an echo amongst the population because they simplify and generalize important and complex issues. It is always easier to have a good laugh than to have to analyze a situation in detail and unveil its true meaning. Perhaps if the Brazilian electorate learned how to vote with their heads and not with emotion, often contaminated with prejudice, we would not have such a decadent Senate and such a discredited political class.

Sugarcane cutter Brazil. Photo by Ricardo Funari, used with permission.

Slave labour is a remnant of the times of slavery in Brazil, particularly in the Northern and North-eastern States, and this is a well known fact. As the last country in the world to abolish slavery, only in 1888, temporary slavery due to indebtedness and forced labour has continued and been combated regularly by Government in isolated regions, where the arms of the justice system face a demographic challenge.

However, every time there is this type of incident in the State of São Paulo, particularly in Greater São Paulo, the news makes the front pages of the main Brazilian newspapers. That’s what happened last week, when labour auditors from São Paulo, accompanied by labour prosecutors, freed 20 people from slavery (two of them under-age, at only 17 years old) in Mogi Guaçu Municipality (SP). Sakamoto's Blog [pt], specializing on slave labour news and a partner of the prize winning Reporter Brasil website [pt], reported the incident, drawing attention to the irony of there being adolescent slaves living in an abandoned state school.

OK, isso já aconteceu outras centenas de vezes no Brasil, infelizmente. O absurdo da vez foi que o empregador alojou o pessoal em uma escola pública desativada, com fiação elétrica exposta e esgoto correndo a céu aberto. Mesmo depositando o pessoal nessas condições, disse que cobraria aluguel pela hospedagem.
A prefeitura havia feito um contrato com Pimenta para que ele usasse a casa dos fundos da escola em troca de manutenção do local. A escola Fazenda Graminha foi cedida pelo Estado para o município há nove anos. Agora, o contrato será cancelado e a prefeitura estuda entrar com um processo contra o empregador. O prédio foi lacrado e a secretaria fará um estudo sobre a possibilidade de reativar a escola. Incrível! Discute-se a “possibilidade”…

Sugarcane cutters having lunch in the middle of the plantation, under a scalding sun. Meals served with no tableware, no protection against the elements. Photo: Ricardo Funari

The incidence of slave labour in São Paulo evokes the issue as discussed in the past by the independent journalist and intellectual from Pará State Lucio Flávio Costa: Is slave labour an Amazonic anomaly? [pt]

Desde 2003, 192 pessoas foram autuadas pelo Ministério do Trabalho e Emprego por submeter seus empregados a regime de trabalho análogo à escravidão. Mais de dois terços dessas empresas (147) atuam na Amazônia Legal. O campeão nacional do trabalho escravo é o Pará, com quase um quarto de todas as atuações, 52. As duas colocações seguintes nesse nefando ranking são ocupadas por Estados amazônicos: Tocantins (43) e Maranhão (32).
O que leva à concentração dos casos de exploração de mão-de-obra não é uma anomalia amazônica, mas o fato de a região constituir a área de expansão da fronteira econômica do Brasil. Há o pressuposto tácito (ou tático) de que o pioneiro não traz necessariamente consigo a contemporaneidade.

What Lucio Flávio Pinto means is that despite the higher incidence of slave labour in the frontier States, due to favourable conditions (besides geographical ones, according to him, also the absence of contemporary practices, justice, education etc.), it is carried out by economic agents, farmers and businessmen, from all parts of Brazil, always aligned with local agents. That is to say: “the circumstances make the thief” (a Brazilian popular saying) and in various favourable contexts for the exploitation of labour, the Brazilan heritage of slavery manifests itself again. Outside the frontier, other factors contribute to the incidence of the phenomena, such as: bad local administration, scarce auditing, weak trade unions, migrant labour, a more vulnerable and misinformed population.

Sugarcane cutters in the lodgement: no potable water, no beds, no electrical light, no kitchen facilities or restrooms. Photo by Ricardo Funari.

The Mogi-Guaçu case is not isolated and Brazilian bloggers have been reporting regularly on the incidence of slave labour in São Paulo, in both rural and urban areas. This year, the Anjos e Guerreiros [pt] blog posted an article about flagrant slave labour and the exploitation of child-labour on a lemon farm in Cabreúva Municipality, 70 kilometres from São Paulo City.

Uma denúncia levou a polícia até a fazenda. Um lavrador estava na propriedade há quatro meses e conta que não recebeu nenhum pagamento. Os responsáveis pela contratação devem responder por exploração de trabalho infantil.
- Às vezes o povo dá um pouco de comida. Tem vez que nós não comemos, não almoçamos e nem jantamos.
Os funcionários contaram para os policiais que havia crianças trabalhando na colheita de limão. O Conselho Tutelar foi chamado e flagrou seis menores trabalhando no local. Um deles, um menino de 12 anos.
- Não tem luvas nem tinha equipamento, nem água. Eu ganho R$ 2 reais - diz o menino.
Uma adolescente conta que os patrões pediram para todos fugirem assim que ficaram sabendo que a polícia ia chegar.
- Nós dissemos que não fugiríamos - afirmou

In São Paulo City, in the heart of the urban area, the incidence of slave labour has other characteristics to which the Verdefato blog [pt] draws our attention:

O trabalho escravo urbano é menor se comparado ao do meio rural. A Polícia Federal, as Delegacias Regionais do Trabalho, o Ministério Público do Trabalho e o Ministério Público Federal já agem sobre o problema. Vale lembrar que a escravidão urbana é de outra natureza, com características próprias…O principal caso de escravidão urbana no Brasil é a dos imigrantes ilegais latino-americanos - com maior incidência para os bolivianos - nas oficinas de costura da região metropolitana de São Paulo. A solução passa pela regularização da situação desses imigrantes e a descriminalização de seu trabalho no Brasil.

A hooded informant who succeeded in escaping from the estate (in the background) takes the Brazilian Federal Police to a site where workers are kept imprisoned. Photo: Ricardo Funari

The same blog reports this case of a Bolivian immigrant, one of many working on these conditions:

Sentada há mais de 16 horas diante da máquina de costura, a mãe de Ramón tem pressa. Maria Diaz costura uma peça de roupa atrás da outra, intensamente. Ela tem uma agenda para cumprir. Só pára quando precisa comer ou ir ao banheiro. A mãe do pequeno Ramón é uma mulher exausta.

Desde que chegou ao Brasil, em 2003, trabalha do amanhecer até tarde da noite. Não tem carteira assinada, equipamento de proteção, assistência médica. Ela não existe nos registros de imigração. Oficialmente, o governo brasileiro não sabe de sua presença. Tampouco sua saída da Bolívia, em 2003, foi registrada pelo governo daquele país. Maria foi trazida para São Paulo por intermediários conhecidos como “coiotes”, que ganham dinheiro contrabandeando gente de um país para outro. Em São Paulo, pelo menos 100 mil bolivianos estão nessa situação.

A man found imprisoned inside an estate shaves before being photographed for the first work permit he has ever had in his life. Photo by Ricardo Funari.

Still in São Paulo, an article by sociologist and Municipal Assembly member Floriano Pesaro, posted on the Coisas de São Paulo blog [pt], discusses the case of street children forced to work by their parents. It is a case of double infringement: child labour and slave labour:

O trabalho infantil nas ruas, no comércio e até dentro de casa resiste no Brasil urbano e rural. Manifesta-se em suas piores formas, com práticas análogas ao trabalho escravo: exploração sexual comercial, venda e tráfico de crianças para trabalho ou exploração sexual, uso de crianças no comércio de drogas. Estas práticas envolvem atividades criminosas que são ilícitas e que levam crianças e adolescentes à morte. Na cidade de São Paulo, de acordo com pesquisa da FIPE, de 2007, são pouco mais de mil crianças em trabalho infantil somente nas ruas.

Whilst writing this article for Global Voices Online, I wondered if disseminating such bad news to the whole world would not damage Brazil’s image abroad, but this very interesting blog by Edson Rodrigues [pt], helped me make up my mind. He brings a list of 15 Truths and Lies about slave labour in Brazil, one of which has to do with the international dissemination of slave labour practices bringing damage to our country:

12) Mentira: A divulgação internacional prejudica o comércio exterior e vai trazer prejuízo ao país. Verdade: Isso é uma falácia. Não erradicar o trabalho escravo é que prejudica a imagem do Brasil no exterior. As ameaças de restrições comerciais serão levadas a cabo se o país não fizer nada para resolver o problema. Que usamos trabalho escravo, isso é público e notório…A agricultura é fundamental para o desenvolvimento do país. Por isso mesmo, ele deve estar na linha de frente do combate ao trabalho escravo, identificando e isolando os empresários que agem criminalmente. Dessa forma, impede-se que uma atividade econômica inteira venha a ser prejudicada pelo comportamento de alguns poucos.

Issuing work permit documentation in the forest. Photo by Ricardo Funari.

Making his words my own, I conclude this article feeling sure that slave labour is a generalized remnant of the time of legal slavery in Brazil and that it would be an anomaly not to combat this phenomenon head on.

—

The photos that illustrate this piece have kindly been provided by Rio de Janeiro based photojournalist Ricardo Funari, who works to create and distribute images documenting and addressing issues of social injustice in the country. According to what he has seen through his work, “the main mechanism of enslavement in Brazil is through debt - the physical immobilization of workers on estates until they can pay off debts, which are often incurred through fraud, and are provoked by their very working conditions. Thus workers from areas hit by recession or drought are enticed into verbal contracts, and then loaded into trucks which transport them thousands of miles to work in dangerous conditions. On arrival the attractive wage rates promised to them are reduced, and then forfeited in order to pay for transport costs, food and even working tools. Workers often do not receive cash in hand. As time passes, the workers’ debts become greater and greater so that they have no possibility of leaving.” His photo set, Contemporary Slavery in Brazil, can be seen on his Flickr account.

A toothless worker breaks into laughter as he receives completely legal payment. Photo by Ricardo Funari.

Daniel Munduruku

The most prominent figure in the indigenous literature movement in Brazil is Daniel Munduruku, an indigenous writer from the Amazon region, resident in São Paulo. With over 30 books published, he is the director of Inbrapi, an entity created in 2001 with the aim of defending traditional knowledge from bio-piracy and exploitation by third parties. Daniel has a bilingual website dedicated to his literary work, mostly targeted at youngsters, but also a blog dedicated to drawing attention to news he considers important to the cause of indigenous peoples. For example, on International Women's Day, he wrote this beautiful declaration:

Penso compulsivamente nas mulheres. Não se trata de um olhar desejoso, mas corajoso.
Corajoso porque, confesso, morro de inveja delas: da coragem, da obstinação, da intuição, do olhar sempre distante e sempre presente; da fortaleza e da fraqueza que revelam.
Sei que poderão pensar que isso é humano, presente em homens e mulheres. Eu discordo. Conheço o masculino, convivo com ele em mim e sei que por mais esforço que faça percebo um lobo faminto, sem escrúpulos e sem medida.
Acho que o homem masculino devia ouvir mais as mulheres. É claro que alguns dirão que elas falam demais. Isso também é justo e certo, mas talvez falem muito por terem sido ouvidas tão pouco em passado recente e terem, por isso, que gritar para se fazerem ouvidas. Por isso tenho a impressão que nós homens, precisamos exercitar o sagrado direito de fazer silêncio, ouvir, ouvir e ouvir.
Outros oponentes dessa teoria dirão que, assim, viraremos mulheres. Rebato o argumento dizendo: é disso que estou falando!
Ao menos hoje temos que calar para deixar nossa intuição falar. E minha intuição diz que preciso sentir a dor do outro pra compreendê- lo em sua dimensão humana.
Hoje quero ficar assim, miudinho, pequenininho, quietinho só para ver a magnitude do ser - mulher falar coisas que preciso ouvir.

Talking of women, the indigenous literature movement is wonderfully well represented by Eliane Potiguara, writer, teacher and indigenous activist who had her name put forward for the Nobel Peace Prize (for the Project A Thousand Women of the World). Eliane, whose origins are in the State of Paraíba but who now lives in Rio de Janeiro, has also a personal website where she disseminates her literary work. She blogs as part of her work at GRUMIN, a network of indigenous women that she helped to create and is the current coordinator of. The blog is a communication tool for indigenous women where she posts a mix of literature, career opportunities, whilst drawing attention to relevant episodes in the plight of indigenous women. Recently, Eliane posted a beautiful text about the literature of the excluded, which she had read out at a literary event:

A literatura dos excluídos ainda é uma pele de Boto que foi destruído ao longo dos séculos e que está esquecido e abandonado no fundo dos rios a precisar renascer_ ardentemente_ com a força da alma da natureza e humana. Mas essa natureza está envolta nas amarras dos séculos de dor, do obscurantismo, dos grandes enigmas e contradições da própria existência, do divino e do amor. A literatura ainda é um segmento cultural e político que não consegue chegar na totalidade das camadas menos privilegiadas social e economicamente do Brasil e do mundo.
Esse Boto Literário precisa ser salpicado com as lágrimas emocionadas da Natureza, muitas desvairadas lágrimas. Aí sim, essas feridas do mundo¬_ que as mulheres indígenas as eternizaram com seus beijos de cura, bálsamos históricos, histórias não contadas e adormecidas no fundo do rio ou dos oceanos, essas sim, _ serão eternamente curadas, assim como o Boto literário.

The latest book by Eliane Potiguara

Another active indigenous writer is Olivio Jekupe who has an incredible life history, having had to overcome many obstacles to be able to study philosophy and establish himself as the writer he is today. With many books published, some of them translated into Italian. Olivio brings presents strongly the issue of his mixed background, which is a reality of many Brazilian Indians:

O mestiço é o mais discriminado nesse país, pois tanto eu quanto muitos no Brasil sofrem. Sei que sou mestiço e não tenho culpa de ser, e a miscigenação existe desde a chegada dos portugueses, não sou o primeiro índio não puro e não serei o último. Mesmo não sendo índio puro, quero dizer que tenho orgulho de ser o que sou e não podemos ter vergonha, meso que a sociedade nos discriminem.

In his blog, Olivio posts articles about his indigenous literature, for example, on the interesting story of the indigenous origin of the Saci, a folklore character widely known through Monteiro Lobato's books as being black and having only one leg, whereas, according to Olivio, the real Saci actually has two legs!

Saci Pererê according to Monteiro Lobato. Image by André Koehne under Creative Commons license

Não sei se já ouviram falar que o Saci na verdade é um personagem indígena e que tem duas pernas, é provável que não ouviram ainda, pois eu fui o primeiro que escreveu dois livros que fala sobre esse personagem, tenho dois livros com o título - Ajuda do Saci, da Editora DCL, e o outro que se chama - O Saci Verdadeiro, da Editora UEL. Nos meus livros eu tento mostrar que o personagem tem duas pernas e é um índio, diferente da visão de Monteiro Lobato.
E sei que já tem documentários sobre esse tema, e muitas matérias que falei para jornalistas, e até teses de mestrado sobre o tema, como fez a escritora Graça Graúna onde ela fala do meu livro, O Saci Verdadeiro.
É importante que todos possam conhecer esse personagem onde tento mostrar o que nas Aldeias Guarani é comum ouvir sobre ele.
Sei que um dia minhas histórias serão tão conhecida que serei convidado para dar palestras em vários cantos do Brasil, de Norte a Sul do Brasil.

Olívio mentions Graça Graúna, another indigenous writer, a poet, from the Northeast of Brazil, originally from Rio Grande do Norte State, but currently living in Pernambuco State. She is as active in life as she is on the blogosphere. Her prize winning blog is much visited and brings a mix of news about indigenous literature and her wonderful poetry. Amongst many, I have chosen one poem to share with you, which is also a flower…

aos poetas Carlos e Sônia Brandão
… que Ñanderu* acolha
as pedras da nossa canção.
Que seja pedra enquanto leveza
o sinal: sem poesia os tempos não existirão
Graga Graúna, Nordeste do Brasil, 12 de março de 2009.
* Ñanderu, em guarani, significa Nosso Pai; o Grande Espírito, o Criador.

For those who want to know more about indigenous literature, the NEARIN blog, kept by the Nucleus of Indigenous Writers and Artists of INBRAPI, is worth a visit. The blog aims to provide a space for debate around indigenous literature and art. It brings a diversity of news about the theme, registering related events taking place all over Brazil as well as a list of authors and books on indigenous literature. For those who happen to be in São Paulo on April 19th, Indian Day, go to have a look at the Recital of Indigenous Poetics, at the Casa das Rosas, Avenida Paulista, 37, starting at 15:00 local time. Below is the invitation:

At the end of this fascinating tour around the blogosphere, ask yourself: is there any doubt whether indeed an indigenous literature exists in Brazil?

In the first article of this series, we introduced the Indian blogosphere. In the next one, you will learn how indian people in Brazil have been using the blogosphere to fight for their rights.

Photo by Tatiana_Reis at the digital inclusion area of Campus Party 2009.

Some 500 year ago, before European colonization, Brazil was entirely inhabited by a diversity of indigenous groups, estimated by FUNAI at around 1-10 million people. The denomination “indian” was given to the native inhabitants of the land because the colonizers thought they had reached India. Today, there are 460,000 indians in Brazil, from around 225 different ethnic groups, living in protected areas, plus some 100-190,000 Indians living in rural or urban areas. They constitute around 0.25% of Brazil’s population and speak around 200 different languages, although many of them are bilingual. Aside from them, there are still some 63 indigenous groups which have never made contact with the outside world and are considered “isolated peoples” (FUNAI, 2009).

Although most indigenous areas are located in remote rural places and do not have easy access to means of communication such as telephone or the Internet, the rise of strong regional indigenous associations such as COIAB, the Coordination of Indigenous Associations of the Brazilian Amazon, and national level networks such as Rede dos Povos das Florestas, led by indigenous leader Ailton Krenak, has encouraged indigenous groups or individuals to blog to the world. Sometimes they have a little help from friends, supporters of the indigenous cause, to narrow the technological gap.

Two of the most famous indigenous leaders in Brazil taken up blogging

Since 2008, Marcos Terena, from Mato Grosso do Sul State, who describes himself as a warrior of the Terena People, has been using his writing, thinking and communication skills as weapons to defend his people and the indigenous cause in the 21st Century. In his blog [pt], Terena comments on national events and draws our attention to events that are relevant to the indigenous cause.

Photo by Valter Campanato of Marcos Terena at the Regional Conference of the Americas: Creative Commons.

Recently, Terena posted a chronicle [pt] on the supposed eating of a white person (or a “white man”, as the tribes usually call non-indians) by indians from the North of Brazil, reported by the national media:

Nos ultimos tempos, o colonizador acostumado a trabalhar com a imagem do mito, do herói e de tantas simbologias, criou a lenda de dificil comprovação, de que um padre de nome Sardinha teria sido devorado pelos Tupinambas… E agora, com os irmãos Kulina.
Como diria o velho sábio Jeca Tatu, tem arguma coisa errada nesse causo ou essa história tá mal contada.
Como a piola sempre arrebenta do lado mais fraco, então nós daqui do sul, do centro oeste e de outras regiões acostumados com churrascos, farofa, beiju, mandioca, banana e até mesmo guaraná, ficamos pensando:qual o significado dessa história de comer o homem branco? vale a pena? Saborear com gosto ou com raiva?
Porque… engolir sapo em nome da civilização moderna, nós indigenas já fizemos isso varias vezes. E não é mole, não!!!!
Pensem nisso Canibais, reflitam e lembrem-se: contra má digestão, chá de boldo!!!!

Ailton Krenak, another important leader of the Krenak people of Minas Gerais State, counts on the support of a colleague called Hanny to post on his blog [pt] all media articles that have been published on him since 2007. The topics are mainly about political and cultural events. The blog has recently brought images of Ailton’s participation in the indigenous ritual devoted to water, which took place at the FestiVelhas festival, where he spoke about environmental preservation in indigenous culture:

Ainda reunidos em círculos ou em duas filas, os presentes cantavam, dançavam e ouviam as explicações de Ailton. “É preciso entrar em sintonia com a natureza e ouvir o que as águas tem as nos dizer”, diz ele sobre a relação que os homens devem manter com ambiente.

Photo: Two Indian Boys Swimming in the River by Deborah Icamiaba

Interesting collective initiatives take place on the blogsphere among young indians

The AJI association, Ação de Jovens Indígenas [Young Indians Action, pt], assembles indians from the Kaiowá, Terena and Nandeva ethnicities located in Dourados, Mato Grosso do Sul State. They run a series of activities geared towards integrating their communities, including a local newspaper informing locally and externally about the day to day life and challenges faced by indigenous peoples - since 2006 they are also blogging. Although they sometimes refer to news agencies, many of their articles are written by local indian youths.

An interesting example, is how they collected opinions from local indians on the accusations made by local white people that “indians receive various benefits, but do not pay tax or services”, such as in this post [pt]:

O índio kaiowá Euzébio Garcia, morador da aldeia Bororó, fazia economia há algum tempo para comprar uma moto. Com o acerto do pagamento da usina, ele conseguiu completar e fez a compra em dezembro de 2008. Euzébio investiu R$ 3 mil à vista. Esse é apenas um exemplo de como os indígenas da Reserva de Dourados têm aplicado seu dinheiro. Os salários dos trabalhadores das usinas e da Funasa (Fundação Nacional de Saúde), os benefícios e os programas sociais geram renda para os índios e se convertem em lucro para o comércio de Dourados. A população indígena contribui e muito com a economia da cidade de Dourados.

The Pataxó Indians who live in the South of Bahia State created a blog [pt] dedicated to their Social Eco Tourism Project called Jaqueira Reserve:

Photo: Pataxó Indian Taking Tourists Around the Jaqueira Reserve by Deborah Icamiaba.

Since 2008, the blog has been run by Aricema Pataxó, a young Pataxó Indian who is studying journalism at the Federal University of Bahia. Although the blog is primarily aimed at disseminating the project for visitors, it brings interesting images and explanations of Pataxó culture, for instance this post [pt] on the significance of their body paint:

Photo: Pataxó Indian Painting Himself, at Jaqueira Reserve, by Deborah Icamiaba.

A pintura corporal é um bem cultural de grande valor para nós Pataxó. Ela representa parte de nossa história, sentimentos do cotidiano e os bens sagrados. Usamos a pintura corporal em festas tradicionais na Aldeia como em ritos de casamento, nascimento, comemorações, dança, luta, sedução, luto, proteção, etc. Temos pintura para o rosto, braço, costas e até mesmo para as pernas. Usamos pinturas específicas para homens e mulheres casados e solteiros. As pinturas têm diversidade de tamanho e significados.

The blog Criança do Futuro: Wakopunska Karipuna [pt] has been mantained since 2007, by a person with a very interesting profile, to help understand what some Brazilian indians are like today:

Sou um mestiço brasileiro. Pareço branco, mas não sou caucasiano. Tenho sangue karipuna, dos karipunas do Rio Jamary, hoje quase extintos nos sertões do Guaporé. O resto de minha origem (portugueses do Ceará, holandeses do Sergipe, espanhóis do Pantanal, alemães do Paraná e italianos do Rio Grande do Sul) pouco me explica. Sou brasileiro dos quatro costados e, mais que isso, um hominídeo do continente Amarakka. Estrangeiro em minha própria terra, quero poder falar a língua universal da Paz, e ter como repousar minha cabeça: por isso escrevo nessa areia e nessa arena virtual.

His blog offers some fascinating accounts by someone who lives on the frontier of Brazil (Acre State) and Peru (Cusco) and really knows the reality of indigenous life in the Amazon. In a recent post [pt], he deals with the challenges of alcoholism amongst indians in his region:

Quando estive certa ocasião por ser nomeado chefe de posto indígena da Fundação Nacional do Índio, em 1993, um dos antigos funcionários da Funai em Rio Branco já me advertia que para uma boa convivência com os índios eu devia fazer vista grossa para o problema do alcoolismo, ou estaria me expondo a criar inimizades entre os lideranças ou até mesmo a ser vitimado por algum deles. Essa incapacidade da Funai em lidar com o assunto se extende também às organizações que se dedicam a apoiar as populações indígenas, as quais se engajaram a partir dos anos 70 na luta pela demarcação de terras e na formação de lideranças e entretanto jamais se esforçaram por tratar essa espinhosa questão que representa um grave problema de saúde…Alcoolismo e aculturação andam de mãos dadas na Amazônia, e tanto é a aculturação que leva ao alcoolismo quanto o alcoolismo que conduz à aculturação, isso deve ser deixado bem claro.

Finally, we also find on the web the interesting blogging initiatives of linguists and anthropologists who write about the tribes where they have worked on.

In the Maxacali blog, linguistics student Charles Bicalho kept a registry between 2006 and 2007 of images and interesting aspects of Maxacali culture, for instance their historical trajectory:

Os Maxakali surpreendem por ainda preservarem língua, religião, costumes e outros aspectos tradicionais de sua cultura como nenhum outro grupo. Pouco mais de mil pessoas, sendo a maioria da população de crianças, falam a língua maxakali, do tronco lingüístico macro-gê, família maxakali. Vivem em reserva no Vale do Mucuri, Nordeste do Estado. Povo tradicionalmente seminômade, caçador e coletor, é comum alguns grupos de poucos indivíduos abandonarem a reserva para longas peregrinações, muitas vezes chegando até Governador Valadares, distante mais de 300 km. Seus ancestrais costumavam vagar por uma extensa área que abrange, além do Nordeste de Minas, o Sul da Bahia e o Norte do Espírito Santo. Após o contato com o colonizador europeu e a conseqüente diminuição de seu território, acabaram, enfim, confinados em reserva.

Also, Bicalho posts some incredible translations into Portuguese of traditional chants from Maxakali ritual and explores issues around the topic of indigenous poetry, which will be the theme of another article in this trilogy. Just an example below:

O texto a seguir é um yãmîy maxakali, canto ritual do tatu. O autor é Damazinho Maxakali, aluno do Curso de Formação de Professores Indígenas de MG.

KOXUT
Koxut hãmkox hu kopa moyõn
Koxut yã hãmkox kopa tokpep
Koxut ãpnîy yîta yãy hi hu xit hã yãy hi
Koxut tute komîy mahã xi kohot xi puxõõy
Koxut yã hãmtup tu yãy hi xi ãpnîy hã
Puxi. Ûkux.
Ûgãxet ax Namãyiy Maxakani.

O TATU
O tatu dorme dentro do buraco
O tatu dá cria dentro do buraco
O tatu sai à noite pra andar e pra comer
O tatu come batata, mandioca e minhoca
O tatu anda de dia e de noite
Chega. Acabou.
Meu nome é Damazinho Maxakali.

Photo: An Indian Woman Working by Deborah Icamiaba

For a thorough listing of all Indian blogs and websites in Brazil, visit the blog [pt] created by Glaucia Paschoal with the specific intention of disseminating these sources for the purpose of research sources or simply acquiring knowledge on indigenous peoples. Her aim is to strengthen the means through which indigenous communities express their culture and their political movements on the Internet.

In the next article of this series, you will meet indian writers and poets who use blogs to express themselves and, on the last one, you will see how Brazilian indians are blogging for their rights.

The project is part of the work that the NGO Saúde & Alegria [Health and Happiness, pt], has been carrying out in the region since 1987. The PSA, as the NGO is known, drew the attention of the world when it put a team of doctors and clowns onboard a boat and headed down the river, offering primary health services to communities in isolated regions. From the start, their methodology combined medicine with circus activities, as they believe associating health care with play breeds better results. When you see them trying to teach dozens of school children to brush their teeth – which is not a habit in the region – you immediately see the logic in this strategy!

Abaré’s educators dressed for a day’s work. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

Today, having gained much international support and acquired a fully equipped hospital boat called Abaré, the PSA partners with municipalities to transport their doctors to the communities and also mobilize volunteer specialist doctors from all over the world to carry out sophisticated interventions otherwise not be easy region, for instance cataract surgery.

The Abaré hospital-boat parked at a riverside community on the Tapajós river. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

Although the main focus of the PSA Project is health care, they very soon realized that health problems have interdisciplinary solutions which have to do with the local economy, the environment, education, access to information and political organization. Different initiatives began and one of them is to strengthen the social communication resources of these communities, both in the way they communicate amongst themselves and the way they communicate to the world outside.

Thus, the Mocoronga Network [pt] was born out of a project that empowered local youngsters to become community reporters, by teaching them to produce radio programs, videos, newspapers and blogs on the Internet. Each community has its own media unit with basic equipment: sound systems, editorial desks, video equipment and an Internet connection which they manage in their own manner (so far, six have been equipped, but they aim to reach 31). Local schools are important partners. The main desk is situated in Santarém, at the PSA’s headquarters, from where staff members disseminate important regional news. These youngsters receive information to feed into the community and also post their own reality, daily challenges and cultural activities to the outside world.

School children from a riverside community on the Tapajós river. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

The six communities which already have their own blogs through the Mocoronga Network are: Muratuba, Cachoeira do Aruã, Piquiatuba, Maguari, Belterra e Suruacá. The Abaré boat has its own blog too on the Mocoronga Network (all in Portuguese).

A view from the Abaré boat of a riverside community on the Tapajós river. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

Recently, the Suruacá community reported [pt] on how the community joined forces to build their new community centre. The strength of the local men was much appreciated, as tree trunks had to be carried by hand:

Como na comunidade não tem transporte adequado para este trabalho árduo, a madeira é conduzida no ombro, na cabeça e de outras maneiras possíveis encontradas pelos próprios trabalhadores. A madeira fica com um percurso de 40 minutos do ramal de onde será conduzida com o auxilio de uma carroça-de-boi, diminuindo assim o sofrimento dos comunitários.

Adriane Gama, from the PSA headquarters, has used the network to disseminate information about the risks that the upcoming carnival festivities present to children and youngsters [pt]:

Estamos no mês de carnaval, de folia e alegria. Mas, em se tratando de crianças e adolescentes, devemos ter cuidados redobrados nessa época para que muitas delas não seja abusadas e aliciadas por pessoas que violam os direitos fundamentais infanto-juvenis. Para contribuir com a diversão e segurança das crianças e adolescentes nesse carnaval em Santarém - PA, o conselho tutelar e várias parcerias devem unir forças para o sucesso do trabalho.

Children from a riverside community line up for a tooth inspection. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

The Mocoronga Network also disseminates international news to local communities. For instance, in the World Social Forum, which took place last month in the neighboring town of Belém, some youngsters participated in the event along with PSA’s staff and together they picked articles from media channels that represented their perceptions of the event. As an example, they published an article indicating a view that the Social Forum was conclusive on a number of issues, contradicting much of what had been said by the mainstream media.

A nona edição do Fórum Social Mundial (FSM) terminou neste domingo (01/02), em Belém, com a “Assembléia das Assembléias” adotando dezenas de resoluções e propostas que serão temas de um programa de mobilizações ao redor do mundo em 2009.
As 21 assembléias temáticas, assim, quebraram o que parecia ser um tabu do FSM, ou seja, adotar posições políticas comuns sob a pressão de milhares de grupos da sociedade civil, ansiosos por agarrar a oportunidade criada pela crise econômica global de uma mudança progressiva.

With a variety of news from riverside communities produced by local youngsters, interesting tips from PSA staff and an increasing participation in significant world events, the Rede Mocoronga is an interesting way for anyone in the world to find out more about the lives of Amazonian riverside communities, learn about how they live, their challenges and concerns, as well as how they feel about world problems.

A river with a view. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

Brazil’s highest worldwide selling author, Paulo Coelho, is a great supporter of the e-book. According to him, the free distribution of e-books actually encourages paper books sales, because readers start reading on their computer and as soon as they become engaged in the story they run to the bookshops to buy them, as they still prefer reading on paper. Whether you like Paulo Coelho or not, the fact is that his sales tips can not be ignored.

Aside from the titles he makes available on his official website, where you find his books in eight different languages, there is also the surprisingly alternative blog where you can find Coelhos’ titles even in languages not officially translated yet, like Serbian. Blogger Pirate Coelho explains:

“There is nothing wrong with that, if you can catch what I mean. I just googled his books and show you here what you can find about him.

Plus, he likes what I’m doing. If you don’t believe me, just check yourself. —> Look at his free download page with my old link!”

Does the distribution of free e-books, or parts of it, work well also for other Brazilian writers? Would there be any competition between e-book and paper book for writers other than the magical Coelho? In looking at the universe of e-books in the Brazilian blogosphere, one immediately notices that numerous authors are making their work available online as a means to spread the word about it. There are websites and blogs created solely for this purpose.

The Overmundo [pt] initiative is a collaborative effort created specifically to disseminate Brazilian cultural production which does not get coverage in the mainstream media. Aside from keeping a cultural database to house the works, including e-books, the Overmundo website has the Overblog [pt] resource, which is a blog to discuss the works available on their website.

A poet from Rio Grande do Sul, Me Morte, was one of the many that made her e-book of poetry, called Poemetos available on the Overblog [pt] and reached a great number of visitors. One of her fans, Dan Lima, left the following comment for her:

“Me,
Baixei seu livro e li vários dos seus delírios (você se diz gótica, mas aseus textos absolutamente contemporâneos). Uma linguagem moderna., abusada, mulher se afirmando, vociferando, poemas de fino trato…. vou lê-los depois com calma “meu gozo é literário, libertário”, É isso que seus poemas aprovocam: gozo e fruição dos sentidos e das palavras…e muito bonito, esteticamente. Parabéns!”

Another collective initiative is Portal for Literature and Art Cronópios [pt]. The portal is a mix of library and cultural center, where texts are made available online and the blogs rule, as each new text gets a specific blog (called an e-blog) to be maintained by the author. Although these e-blogs do not get many comments, it seems that there are more authors willing to publish free online than readers willing to read them, one e-blog created after the Brasiliada by Nicolas Behr [pt] text received some inspired readers feedback:

“Berh jotakalizou braxília com sua letra lâmina afiada em esmeril de algodão. Com certeza, JK construiu Bras´pilia e os candangos ficaram olhando…”

Aside from these collective initiatives, there are also writers who are bloggers themselves and publish their texts, or parts of them, independently online  for their readers. Some renowned Brazilian poets are doing just that, such us the poet Frederico Barbosa [pt]. He is making available his entire collection in e-books, even in translations, but he also provides links to whoever wants to purchase paper copies. With a consolidated career, he seems to see no contradiction between e-publication and paper publication, his main interest being that the poetry reaches the reader, in whatever way they prefer.

Cláudio Daniel, another renowned poet, in preparation for the launch of the second edition of his poetry book Yumê, makes available one of his poems [pt] as a bite:

Caros, no dia 25 de janeiro, domingo, a partir das 16h, na Casa das Rosas, acontecerá o lançamento da segunda edição de meu livro Yumê (…) Quem estiver vivo até lá, apareça… confiram abaixo um dos poemas de Yumê:

O UM IGUAL A ZERO

em
londres
(no metrô) — primícias
de agosto —
(alguém) lendo Schopenhauer
uma moça com cabelos verdes
e os bicos (dos seios) cor-de-rosa
o (azul-prata-seda)
luxuosíssimo traje marroquino
e a lâmina — argêntea —
do assassino

Even for new authors such as Deborah Icamiaba (that’s me!), making texts available online has made lots of sense. In her literary blog [pt], where she regularly posts her short stories, chronicles and poems, there are four long titles available as e-books in PDF: the Inside Ourselves short stories, the novellas Icamiaba Ressurgence, Mid-West Alchemy and the book of poetry: Pre-poetry [something of poetry, prose and prowess]. Each one of them had its own e-launch and were put up at a “virtual bookshelf” with the following message:

“Para obter este ou qualquer e-livro em PDF, deixe um post no blog.”

Even though her blog receives hundreds of visits every month, not many visitors order Icamiaba’s e-books. The most successful launch so far was that of the collection of short stories Inside Ourselves (right), for which she received 13 comments. This leads us to think that blog readers are not always interested in acquiring longer and denser texts.

Having e-books available online has not stopped Icamiaba from publishing on paper. At the end of 2008, two publishing houses became interested in publishing in book form her texts already available online.

Last, but not least, it is worth mentioning that in 2004 the Brazilian Government  created a website to make books by the classic Portuguese language authors, like Machado de Assis and Fernando Pessoa, available, even though they are already very well sold at bookshops and newsagents in popular paperback editions.

Brazilian writers, publishing houses and government are betting on the dissemination of literary works on the Internet, seeing that there is more complementarity than competition amongst digital and paper medias - at least in times where the reader still prefers to read on paper.

Pará - Brazil, 2007. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

The Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE) has disclosed the news of a huge increase in deforestation in the past few months, particularly in the States of Pará and Mato Grosso. In some States, the rates are three times higher than they were in August 2007.

The Minister for the Environment, Carlos Minc, interpreted this as due to the election period. According to him, “No mayor wants to be obstructive at such times. No governor wants to be obstructive either. The IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) staff do their job, but they need the support of the local police.” Minc has also disclosed a list of the top 100 agents of deforestation, which puts the government agency for colonization and agrarian reform (INCRA) as the top deforestation agent of the Amazon.

Brazilian bloggers have been slow to react to the news, but Greenpeace [pt] points out it had been indicating increasing deforestation rates in the past few months, thus the INPE data has come as no surprise to them. Amazon Greenpeace Campaign Director Paulo Adario says:

“Lamentavelmente não é nenhuma novidade. Há meses, o Greenpeace vem alertando para a tendência de aumento do desmatamento na Amazônia, confirmada novamente pelos dados do Inpe divulgados nesta segunda-feira”

Also, regarding the presence of INCRA at the top of the list, Greenpeace had published a report called Paper Land Reform Settlements [pt] denouncing the way in which in some parts of the Amazon INCRA staff have been “partnering” small peasants and illegal loggers to create “fake” land reform settlements which serve to cover up illegal logging activity under the gloss of land reform and social justice. The set up helps INCRA to meet their land reform targets, earn their local agents' monetary rewards and makes way for what is still the main economic activity in numerous Amazonian municipalities: illegal logging.

Candido Cunha [pt], a blogger from Santarém, Pará, was quick to expose some of the political interests behind the recent news. According to him, there is disagreement between Minister Carlos Minc and Pará’s Governor Ana Julia who was not happy to see Pará at the top of the deforestation list. Candido suggests she had been able to keep Pará out of the notorious deforestation limelight during Marina Silva’s period of office (she is Minc’s predecessor), whose focus was to attack Governor Blairo Maggi from Mato Grosso State, whilst keeping herself free to “partner” deforestation agents, particularly those linked to large mining and logging projects.

A mistura explosiva dos aliados petistas no Pará, madeireiras e mineradoras parece ser o combustível perfeito para a derrubada e queima da floresta amazônica. Para isso, não há “simpatia” que dê jeito!

They being all PT (Workers’ Party) politicians, this is indicative of inner schisms in the party. In Candido's view, Minc’s strategy to reveal the links between local politics and deforestation rates is intended to help him gain the support needed to set up a Federal Military Force to support IBAMA’s fiscalization proceedings.

Pará - Brazil, 2007. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.

In Mércio Pereira Gomes’ blog [pt], we see the view of an anthropologist (and ex-president of FUNAI, Brazilian National Indian Foundation, during Lula’s office) who has witnessed the threat of having INCRA's land reform settlements near indigenous reserves, particularly in Mato Grosso.

Parece que houve um acirramento do desmatamento no mês de agosto. O ministro Carlos Minc culpou as eleições por isso. O Pará está tomando o lugar do Mato Grosso como campeão do desmatamento. A governadora do Pará desmentiu que as eleições provocaram esse aumento, que não há correlação entre uma coisa e outra.

He seems to support Ana Julia's refutation that there is any link between elections and deforestation and argues that the deforestation battle is being lost due to Minc’s strategies being too “mediatic” (seeking to draw attention to himself, primarily) and not consistent enough on the ground. He does not believe Minc will last in the Ministry. Is he perhaps an ally to Ana Julia?

According to Globo’s site [pt] on the Amazon, Carlos Mincs’ idea is to partner the General Advocacy of the Union and the Public Ministry to sue the top 100 deforestation agents in Brazil.

Os dados do Ibama apontaram situação grave, segundo Minc. Pelo levantamento, além de áreas de assentamentos, houve desmatamento também em reservas indígenas e parques de preservação ambiental. “Todos aqueles mencionados (na lista) terão de responder na Justiça sobre o que aconteceu. O mais importante é mudar a atitude e recuperar as áreas devastadas”, afirmou o ministro.

Finally, the blog Pense [Think, pt], run by the couple Adriana and Henrique, indeed makes us think about the issue of who will sue the top 100 deforestation agents, particularly INCRA, which is itself a Federal Government Agency.

Quem será processado pelo ministro? O Incra? As famílias assentadas?

Mediatic or not, the fact is that deforestation rates are on the increase and as difficult as it is to disentangle the network of interests which converge to maintain such high rates of deforestation in the Amazon, Carlos Minc is using the tools that he has in order to tackle the problem. Drawing attention to the increase in deforestation rates and listing top deforestation agents, as well as following this up with legal proceeds against them, are strategic tools to combat deforestation.

However, as he himself has been saying in the media recently, closing down illegal logging activities does not resolve the problem, because “you don’t create sustainable jobs as quickly as you close down illegal sawmills.” Perhaps the conflict between himself and the Governor of Pará is that his duty is to denounce and close down the illegal deforestation related activities, whilst hers (and that of all the local mayors about to be elected) is to create all those sustainable jobs.

View from a plane, north of Mato Grosso - Brazil, 2007. Photo by Deborah Icamiaba.