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History and Government
History: There are traces of American-Indian civilisations in Brazil dating at least from 5000 BC, and perhaps several millennia prior to that. The first European expedition, led by the Portuguese Admiral Pedro Alvares Cabral, reached Brazil in 1500, and discovered a population numbering several millions (possibly up to five million), divided among hundreds of tribes and language groups. The arrival of Europeans, followed by African slaves, brought diseases which devastated the indigenous population during the early years of colonisation. The Portuguese colonial economy was initially based on slavery and exploitation of primary products but, under the influence of Jesuit missionaries, its effects were somewhat moderated.
By the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the Portuguese were more concerned about resisting incursions by rival colonial powers, especially the French and Dutch. The early settlements located in what is now the province of Bahia were expanded. The Napoleonic wars, during which Portugal was invaded by French forces in 1807, triggered the growth of modern Brazil. Threatened by invading French forces, the Portuguese government and royal family decamped to Brazil under British protection in 1807. On arrival, they reconstructed the instruments of modern government in their new location of Rio de Janeiro. In 1821, King Joao returned to Lisbon leaving his son, Dom Pedro, as regent. Within a year, Dom Pedro led a successful campaign for independence (backed by the British) which Lisbon was forced to accept.
The imperial system created by Dom Pedro lasted until 1889 when it was overthrown and replaced by a republic. The struggle for control between central government and the most powerful regions (notably São Paolo, Minas Gerais and Rio Grande do Sul) has been a major characteristic of Brazilian politics since the creation of the republic. It has often led to the intervention of the army which, apart from the Catholic Church, is the only truly national institution. Indeed, it was the army, in the form of forces led by Field Marshal da Fonseca, that brought the imperial regime to an end.
A sense of national identity gradually developed during the early 20th century, while the main regional potentates ensured stability by distributing national posts among themselves. Meanwhile an industrial economy was developing rapidly, bringing new social and political problems that proved difficult to resolve. The career of Getulio Vargas, who dominated Brazilian politics between 1930 and 1954 and governed the country twice as popularly elected President and twice as dictator, reflects something of the instability of that era. The 1950s and early 1960s saw rapid economic growth and the evolution of Brazilian society. This ended following the accession in 1960 of the left-winger Joao Goulart. In 1964 – with the connivance and assistance (according to recently discovered documents) of the United States – the army decided to take full control, overthrowing Goulart and heralding two decades of military rule.
Pressure for a return to civilian rule gathered momentum during the early 1980s, particularly after the military ceded power in neighbouring Argentina in 1983. The army consented and, at the election held in January 1985, Tancredo Neves, a respected former Prime Minister and latterly a State Governor, became Brazil’s first civilian President for 21 years. Neves died before he was able to take office and was replaced by the Deputy President-Designate, José Sarney. Sarney successfully guided the country through the tricky period of transition between military and civilian rule which many South American countries were then negotiating. Sarney remained in power until 1989, when he was defeated at national elections by the conservative Fernando Collor de Mello.
The end of military rule also presented the opportunity for a major public debate about the future of Brazil’s vast Amazonian rainforests, which were then being indiscriminately destroyed by loggers and ranchers. The scale of the destruction was such that it could have a serious effect on the global climate and thus the debate attracted intense international interest. It was appropriate, therefore, that in June 1992 Rio de Janeiro should host the first global summit on environmental issues – the ‘Earth Summit’. The same year saw the resignation of President Collor de Mello: Vice-President Itamar Franco assumed the presidency until the next elections were held in October 1994. These were won by a former economy minister, Fernando Enrique Cardoso. After an inauspicious start, Cardoso gradually built up a measure of trust with the electorate which was sufficient to win him a second term at the October 1998 election. His principal opponent, as in 1994, was Luis Inacio da Silva (known as ‘Lula’), a left-winger with roots in the trades union movement, who has lost every election he has fought despite a substantial, often fanatical, personal following among poor Brazilians. The two rivals represent the Partido da Social Democracia Brasileiro (PSDB) and the Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) respectively. The PSDB belongs to the ruling centrist five-party governing coalition set up following the 1998 National Assembly elections; the left-wing PT does not. The dominant member of the coalition is the Partido de Frente Liberal (PFL), which holds the largest number of seats in the National Assembly.
Although he has a high personal standing, Cardoso’s government has done little to tackle seriously the country’s diseased political system or the huge inequalities that disfigure Brazilian society. Much of the second term has been taken up with economic fire-fighting as the Brazilian currency suffered a major collapse through structural economic weaknesses and adverse events in Asia and elsewhere (see Economy section). It was not until 2001 that limited measures were taken to address the ethnic divisions between, and relative positions of, the Brazilian Indian, black and white populations. By the next scheduled elections in October 2002, the electorate had had enough. The Partido dos Trabalhadores, still led by ‘Lula’, had dropped some of the more radical elements of their platform to secure wider appeal. The strategy proved successful and Luis Inacio da Silva finally secured the presidency. His party, meanwhile, became the single largest in the new national assembly.
Government: The present constitution was promulgated in 1988. Legislative power rests with the bicameral Congresso Nacional. The Lower House has 513 seats and is elected by proportional representation for four years; members of the 81-strong Senate serve eight-year terms. The president, who holds executive power and is elected every four years, appoints and leads a Cabinet of Ministers.
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