Politics in Brazil
Thursday, November 14th, 2019
Schedule
President Jair Bolsonaro: Family Photo at 9:15am. 11th Closed Session of the BRICS Leaders Summit at 9:30am. Plenary Session of the 11th BRICS Leaders Summit at 10:40am. Leaders Dialogue with BRICS Business Council and New Development Bank at 12pm. Luncheon hosted by the President of the Republic in honor of the BRICS Leaders at 1pm. Meeting with the President of the Russian Federation, Mr Vladimir Putin at 4pm. Meeting with the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa at 5pm.
Minister Ernesto Araújo: Family Photo at 9:15am. 11th Closed Session of the BRICS Leaders Summit at 9:30am. Plenary Session of the 11th BRICS Leaders Summit at 10:40am. Leaders Dialogue with BRICS Business Council and New Development Bank at 12pm. Luncheon hosted by the President of the Republic in honor of the BRICS Leaders at 1pm. Accompany the President of the Republic in meeting with the President of the Russian Federation, Mr Vladimir Putin at 4pm. Accompany the President of the Republic in meeting with the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa at 5pm.
Bolsonaro
PSL removes Bolsonaro's children from directories and analyzes expulsion from Eduardo (November 14th)
In reaction to President Jair Bolsonaro's defiliation and the announcement of the creation of a new party, the PSL summit will examine, on the 26th, five requests for the expulsion of Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro (SP) for party infidelity. Leaders linked to chairman of the subtitle, Luciano Bivar (PE), estimate that “there are enough elements” for Bolsonaro's son to lose his parliamentary term.
Eduardo may be the first on a list of deputies to be punished for siding with Bolsonaro in the race for PSL command. On Tuesday, 12, in a meeting with a group of parliamentarians at the Planalto Palace, Bolsonaro announced that he and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro (RJ) would leave the party to found a new one, called Alliance for Brazil.
The PSL dismissed the directories of Rio and São Paulo yesterday and removed Flávio and Eduardo from the party's command in the States. A number of measures will still be taken to ward off the influence of Bolsonaro and his family from parties. The party will still take Eduardo from the leadership of the bench in the House.
Bolsonaro and Flávio can leave the House without risk of losing their mandate, since the Supreme Court (STF) established understanding in 2015 that the party loyalty rule only applies to proportional positions, such as city councilors and deputies. “Eduardo has the most elements to be expelled from the party. Next week, the PSL meets to define the future of him and other deputies who have been denounced in the Ethics Council, ”said Junior Bozzella (PSL-SP) of the Bivar group.
In August, Congressman Alexandre Frota (PSDB-SP) was expelled from the PSL after criticizing Bolsonaro, but the party did not claim his mandate in court. In agreeing that the punishment would not be so drastic, the PSL also took into account the fact that Frota abstained in the second round of voting on Social Security reform.
Two members of the PSL Ethics Council heard by the state said that Eduardo's case cannot be compared to Frota's, which, in their view, was not “unfaithful” to the subtitle. For the Bivarists, Eduardo “plotted” Bivar to remove him from the PSL command, called into question the party's accountability and encouraged the disaffiliation by announcing the intention to create the Alliance for Brazil. The assessment is that these motives would be sufficient for the party to dismiss Eduardo for partisan infidelity and resume his term.
“Eduardo is one of the main actors in this plot. It is one of the most serious situations for the Ethics Council to assess, ”said Senator Major Olimpio (PSL-SP). “Anyone who wants to leave will leave, but the mandate belongs to the party. There is no talk, ”said Rep. Joice Hasselmann (PSL-SP), who was dismissed in October by Bolsonaro from government leadership in Congress.
To interlocutors, Eduardo has said that his expulsion would be "proof" that he suffers political persecution in the party. This is the justification that he and other deputies intend to present in order to be able to maintain the mandates in court. The deputy's defense will argue that he did not commit ethical infringement, but merely voiced criticism of the alleged lack of transparency of the subtitle.
Legislation considers the party's departure to be just in two situations: substantial change or “repeated deviation from the party program” and severe personal political discrimination. Another possibility for abbreviation occurs in the party window - a 30-day period that occurs seven months before an election.
Of the 53 members of the PSL, 27 announced that they intend to accompany Bolsonaro. But unlike the president, who must be left without a party until the Alliance for Brazil leaves office, the scholarship holders must remain in the PSL and migrate only when the new acronym is approved by the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE). If they anticipate leaving, they risk losing their mandate.
Bolsonaro's legal team is looking for a way to allow the new caption to be part of the PSL Party Fund.
https://politica.estadao.com.br/noticias/geral,psl-afasta-filhos-de-bolsonaro-de-diretorios-e-analisa-expulsao-de-eduardo,70003088651
China
'China is increasingly part of Brazil's future,' says Bolsonaro (November 14th)
The President of the Republic, Jair Bolsonaro , said on Wednesday, 13, that he wants to diversify trade with China and add value to products exported by the country. He met at the Itamaraty Palace in Brasilia, with the Chinese president, Xi Jinping , at a meeting prior to the 11th Brics summit, also consisting of Russia, India and South Africa.
"China is our first trading partner and together with my entire team, as well as with Brazilian business, we want more than to expand, we want to diversify our business relations," the president said in a brief statement to the press before moving on to a luncheon. to the Chinese entourage. “China is increasingly part of Brazil's future.”
Bolsonaro made no mention, however, of a free trade agreement with China, which has already been cited by authorities of both countries and has the support of Economy Minister Paulo Guedes. The Chinese asked Bolsonaro for partnership and help from Brazil to influence business with Latin American and Caribbean countries and a defense of "multilateralism" in international trade by the heads of state at Brics. By Thursday, 14th, they will release a joint statement.
“Our meeting is largely about Brics, but this bilateral relationship in many areas, including with the Chinese government's nod of adding value to what we produce, is all very welcome,” said Bolsonaro.
From January to October this year, Brazil exported $ 21.5 billion more than imported from China, according to the Ministry of Economy . The Chinese account for 27.8% of exports and 20% of imports, the first country in both sales and purchases.
Brazil has an old demand for the Chinese to open the domestic market to higher value-added processed and semi-processed agricultural products, such as soybeans, which could boost export earnings. The president, however, did not detail what was the nod of Xi Jinping.
Ministerial authorities from both countries have signed a series of agreements and protocols of intent to collaborate in areas such as economics, transport, health, agribusiness and culture. According to Bolsonaro, they will be “empowered” by Brazil.
“All of us Brazilians and Chinese have something to gain from moments like this. Our government will increasingly treat this gesture of the Chinese government with due care, respect and consideration, ”said Bolsonaro. "Make yourself at home, it's a pleasure to have you here," he told the Chinese.
Bolsonaro once again thanked a recent diplomatic demonstration by the Chinese Embassy, which, according to him, guaranteed respect for Brazilian sovereignty during the international erosion of the Amazon forest fires: “It was a gesture of greatness that made us very strong. We will always thank you for this opportunity. ”
https://economia.estadao.com.br/noticias/geral,china-cada-vez-mais-faz-parte-do-futuro-do-brasil-diz-bolsonaro,70003088153
Brics
Brazil negotiates free trade agreement with China, says Guedes (November 14th)
Finance Minister Paulo Guedes said on Wednesday that Brazil had talked with China about the possibility of establishing a free trade area between the countries. Without going into details, Guedes stated that Brazil's goal is to expand trade with the Asian country, even if it means a reduction in Brazil's trade surplus with its partner.
"I don't mind if our (trade) balance with China balances ahead," Guedes said during a New Development Bank (NDB) event, also known as the "Bank of Brics," promoted in Brasilia on the occasion of the 11th Brics Summit . “What we want is more trade with China.”
After addressing the event, Guedes was questioned by journalists about the discussions on a free trade area with China. The minister again did not elaborate.
“The Bolsonaro government has come with the decision to pursue the path of prosperity. Integration into global trade is one of the paths to prosperity, ”he said. “We entered Mercosur and said: 'we want to continue integrating'. We joined the European Union and said: 'we want to continue integrating'. Now we are talking to the Brics, with the same speech: 'we want to keep integrating'. ”
The minister said, however, that the conversation with China has been about how to increase cooperation in different dimensions. First, in the trade dimension. "Brazil's trade flow with China was about $ 2 billion at the turn of the century. Today we are negotiating $ 100 billion," he said. According to Guedes, China is Brazil's most important trading partner. "We are talking about exactly how we can increase this degree of cooperation."
From January to October this year, Brazil exported $ 21.5 billion more than it imported from China, according to the Ministry of Economy. The Chinese account for 27.8% of exports and 20% of imports, the first country in both sales and purchases.
At the end of July, Brazil officially began negotiations to close a trade agreement with the United States, after Mercosur signed a free trade agreement with the European Union a few weeks earlier.
For Guedes, Brazil is still one of the most closed economies in the world. "We are working to change that," he added. "We want to get out of this (low growth) trap. One of the tools is integration. The bad news is that we are slow to understand that," he said. "Other partners have made treaties without involving Brazil, because Brazil is behind."
According to him, one of the mistakes of Brazil in recent years has been to "turn its back on global integration" and that one of the consequences is the worsening of living standards of Brazilians. "Our standard of living is worsening as the other side of the world rises," he said, highlighting the economic advancement of China and India - two of the five Brics members.
Guedes said Brazil wants to integrate with the rest of the world and quoted talks with China about the possibility of a free trade area. At the same time, he did not rule out agreements with other countries or blocs. "If we can move to the free trade area with other areas of the world, we want to," he said. "We want to integrate. We'll be 40 in four," he added.
https://economia.estadao.com.br/noticias/geral,guedes-fala-sobre-possibilidade-de-area-de-livre-comercio-com-a-china,70003087943
