Salon.com > Juliana Barbassa

Obama calls Brazil model for change in Middle East

Sun, 20 Mar 2011 20:37:00 +0000

Immersing himself in Brazil's poverty and pride, President Barack Obama on Sunday held up the South American nation as a model of democratic change in a time of uprisings and crackdowns across the Arab world and yet another war front for the United States.

From Rio's glamorous beaches to a notorious slum to an elegant theater, Obama glimpsed the city's cultural extremes and offered the kind of personal engagement that can pay political dividends for years. Less than one day after announcing U.S. military strikes against Libya's government, Obama made time to kick a soccer ball around with kids in a shantytown.

The competing stories of Obama's itinerary -- a war front in Africa, an economic commitment to South America -- divided his time in incongruous ways. By morning, he spoke with his security team about the international assault against Moammar Gadhafi's defenses; by night, he was to stand atop a mountain and admire Rio's world famous statue of Jesus.

Meanwhile, U.S. warplanes pounded faraway Libya.

It was all summed up by one image: Obama, adeptly juggling a soccer ball, as his aides helped him juggle his agenda.

6 days after deadly mudslides, survivors get help

Tue, 18 Jan 2011 20:45:00 +0000

The call for help was clearly visible from the helicopter: SOS, carved into the immaculate lawn of an upscale home.

Next to it, people waved and jumped, desperate for help after being stranded for six days by mudslides that obliterated entire communities in the jagged mountains outside Rio de Janeiro, killing at least 677 people as of Tuesday and leaving nearly 14,000 homeless.

"Do we have enough space to land?" the pilot, Col. Orlando Artur da Costa, head of the air rescue sent by Parana state police, asked his crew mates.

Minutes earlier, an attempt to touch down in another isolated area with nearly 330 pounds (150 kilograms) of food, water and medical supplies had been aborted after what at first seemed to be flat dirt turned out to be nearly liquid mud that could have swamped the six-person helicopter.

Three men digging at the edge of the mud flat, their legs protected by trash bags tied around their thighs, were left behind for another mission.

This time Costa got the go-ahead: The space was tight, with sheer drops on three sides, but it was enough. He touched down on the grass and more a dozen women and children crowded around, barely waiting for the rotors to stop.

Death toll in Brazil slides exceeds 400 and still growing

Thu, 13 Jan 2011 18:21:00 +0000

UPDATE: Brazil's Folha.com now cites a death toll number at approximately 416, with 169 dead in Peresópolis, 187 in Nova Friburgo, 39 in Petrópolis, 17 in Sumidouro, and 4 in São José do Vale do Rio Preto.

Walls of earth and water swept away homes in the mountains north of Rio de Janeiro, wiping out families and leaving survivors scrambling Thursday to reach still-trapped neighbors.

At least 355 people died in three Rio state towns after slides hit at about 3 a.m. Wednesday, and 50 were still missing, officials said. Another 34 people had already died in floods and slides since Christmas in southeastern Brazil.

"We were like zombies, covered in mud, in the dark, digging and digging" after the slides hit at about 3 a.m. Wednesday, said Geisa Carvalho, 19.

A tremendous rumble awoke Geisa and her mother Vania Ramos as tons of earth slid down a sheer granite rock face onto their neighborhood. The power was out, but by lightning flashes they could see a torrent of mud and water rushing just a few feet (meters) from their home -- and the remnants of their neighbors' houses that were swept far down a hill.

Top human rights court overrules Brazil amnesty

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 20:25:00 +0000

The Western Hemisphere's top human rights court says that Brazil must throw out an amnesty granted for crimes committed during its two decades of military dictatorship.

The ruling issued Tuesday by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights held the Brazilian government responsible for the forced disappearance of 62 alleged members of the Araguaia guerrilla movement-- a small armed band of communists crushed by military operations between 1972 and 1975.

Only about 20 members of the group survived. One of them is Jose Genoino, who later headed the ruling Workers' Party of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and President-elect Dilma Rousseff, herself a survivor of torture in the dictatorship's prisons.

Brazil's amnesty law, passed in 1979, barred prosecution of both government agents and leftist militants who committed politically related crimes during the 1964-1985 military regime. The law was recently upheld by Brazil's supreme court.

The Costa Rica-based court found the law incompatible with Brazil's commitments under the American Convention on Human Rights.

The head of the government's National Human Rights Secretariat, Paulo Vannuchi, said in a press conference Wednesday that authorities understand the ruling must be obeyed.

Largest union in California endorses pot legalization

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 20:07:00 +0000

A ballot measure that would legalize marijuana in California won the support Tuesday of the largest union in the state.

The 700,000-member Service Employees International Union California has 15 locals representing workers in health care, building services and state and local government.

The possibility of members operating phone banks, walking precincts and raising money makes the union a political powerhouse in the state and a strong ally for the Proposition 19 campaign.

However, the endorsement letter from SEIU California president Bill Lloyd left unclear how much time and money the union would provide.

Most union resources will go toward supporting Jerry Brown in the governor's race, Lloyd said, although he vowed members would help Proposition 19 any way they can.

Revenue raised by legalizing marijuana could help the state preserve jobs and avoid cuts to health care, home care, education and other services, he added.

Proposition 19 calls for allowing adults to possess up to one ounce of marijuana. Local governments could tax its sales.

Seven sue California diocese over alleged sex abuse

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 22:40:00 +0000

Six women and one man who allege they were sexually abused by a Roman Catholic priest have filed two separate lawsuits against the Diocese of Oakland.

The lawsuits filed Wednesday claim that the diocese was negligent in hiring and supervising Stephen Kiesle and failed to warn parents.

In April, The Associated Press obtained Kiesle's laicization file, which included a letter bearing the now-Pope's signature. Then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger said in the letter that the arguments the diocese made for removing Kiesle over child molestation claims were serious but added that such action required careful review and more time.

Diocese spokesman Mike Brown says he could not comment until seeing the suit.

11 indicted in large San Francisco fake goods bust

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 21:06:00 +0000

Federal authorities say they've seized $100 million worth of counterfeit goods and arrested 10 people in raids of shops at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf.

The merchandise was illegally imported from China and includes bags, sunglasses and other items labeled with more than 70 brand names such as Gucci, Prada and Nike.

U.S. Attorney Joseph Russoniello said Tuesday that a total of 11 people were indicted, including two illegal immigrants. He says they are owners or employees of eight stores targeted in the raids.

The indictment was filed in federal court on July 22 and unsealed Monday. It includes charges of conspiracy, smuggling and trafficking in counterfeit goods.

If convicted, the defendants could face prison terms of up to 20 years.

Olive oil study questions claims of virginity

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 00:50:00 +0000

Many of the olive oils lining supermarket shelves in the United States are not the top-grade extra-virgin oils their labels proclaim, according to a report from the University of California, Davis.

Researchers analyzed popular brands and found 69 percent of imported oils and 10 percent of domestic oils sampled did not meet the international standards that define the pure, cold-pressed, olive oils that deserve the extra-virgin title.

"Consumers, retailers and regulators should really start asking questions," said Dan Flynn, executive director of UC Davis' Olive Oil Center, which conducted the study in partnership with the Australian Oils Research Laboratory, in South Wales.

Funding for the study came in part from California olive oil producers and the California Olive Oil Council, a trade group that works to promote locally produced oils.

Although the survey's sample size was relatively small and selected at random -- 19 widely distributed brands purchased from retailers in San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento and Los Angeles -- the study held the claims on their labels to a scientifically verifiable standard, said Flynn.