Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil – 8/22/2018 – 7:30 PM
1. The ex-President and current candidate for the Presidency of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, sent a letter to the members of the Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST) and the Unified Workers Central Union Federation (CUT), today. He thanked the two organizations for the support that they have given him since he became a political prisoner, and for the demonstration that united tens of thousands of activists on August 15th, when his candidacy was officially registered. Lula said that he was moved by the support for the defense of his political rights and the guarantee of his participation in this year’s elections which was recently mandated by the UN Human Rights Committee.
2. Lula received a letter signed by several ex-Presidents of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) and the Union of Fiocruz Workers (ASFOC) in thanks and solidarity for his candidacy for the presidency. The health professionals recognized the various actions that Lula and Dilma made in support for the development of Fiocruz and its decisive participation in the People’s Pharmacy Program. Read more here: http://www.pt.org.br/fiocruz-envia-carta-de-agradecimento-e-solidariedade-a-lula/
3. The journalist Hildegard Angel published an open letter to Supreme Court President Carmen Lucia today, in the Jornal do Brasil, in which she warns about the lives of the 7 hunger strikers who have been protesting for 22 days in Brasilia for Justice in the Federal Supreme Court. She asked the Minister to schedule a decision for a ruling on Declaratory Actions of Constitutionality (ADCs) which would rule on the issue of imprisonment after rejection of the second appeal. Read more here: http://www.pt.org.br/jornalista-alerta-carmen-lucia-sobre-a-vida-de-grevistas-de-fome/
4. Curitiba awoke this morning to low temperatures and rain, but the mood of the resistance activists at the #LulaLivre Vigil was unbowed. After the “good morning” shout to the President, the lawyer Ludimar Rafanhim led a conversation round about pension reform. The “good afternoon” yell to Lula was lead by João Laguens, who is a political anthropology professor at Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Afterwords, he coordinated a conversation round with Vigil activists on the theme, “Practices and beliefs in Brazilian Politics”.
5. During the afternoon, the activists at the Vigil watched a movie session, with cake, popcorn and hot chocolate. The film shown was “Policarpo Quaresma”, directed by Paulo Tiago, with a script based on the novel of the same name written by Lima Barreto, the first Brazilian writer to incorporate racism as a theme in Brazilian literature.
6. On this Wednesday, August 22nd, the first video of Lula’s presidential campaign was released, on the ticket which features ex-São Paulo mayor Fernando Haddad as vice presidential candidate. Watch the film here: https://lula.com.br/assista-o-primeiro-programa-da-campanha-lula-presidente/
Bulletin 185 – People’s Committee in Defense of Lula and Democracy
Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil – 8/22/2018 – 7:30 PM
