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Posts Tagged ‘Brazilian News’
June 19, 2013
Brazilian healthcare debate becomes foreign vs. public investments
Last week, this blog covered the Brazilian healthcare debate over a new bill that would open up the industry to increased foreign investment. While there is an agreement among all parties that there is a need for private or public investment, one of the major sticking points is where that money should be coming from.
During a public hearing of the Committee on Economic Affairs, senators and panelists advocated for more public investment in the healthcare sector, expansion of the service network and improvement in management, regardless of the participation of foreign capital.
The first vice president of the Federal Council on Medicine (CFM), Carlos Vital, said that the State could allocate more budgetary resources. Currently the Brazilian government finances 44 percent of the entire healthcare sector and he argues that that number should be at least 70 percent. He compared it to the English government that finances 84 percent of the country’s total health spending.
Vital added that the while outsourcing and privatizing healthcare could help the system it would not solve the deficit in the sector. That is because public healthcare is responsible for three times the number of consultations, and private investments are two times higher than those made by the Federal Government, states and municipalities. He added that R$36 billion has been retained by the Ministry of Health in the last five years (R$9 billion in 2012 alone) due to lack of projects and mismanagement.
This battle seems to have a long way to go before it is resolved. The outcome of this will have major ripple effects that will affect numerous industries.
June 18, 2013
World Cup Event
Right now, many soccer fans have their eyes focused on ESPN as the Confederations Cup is well underway in Brazil in preparation for next year’s World Cup event. Over the next 12 months, much focus will be on the country as the most popular sport in the world is played for arguably the most important trophy that can be won.
Hosting the World Cup brings with it many challenges. The country must undergo an intensive four day inspection, find the funds to cover the cost and increased tourism and seriously bolster its security measures to make sure no major incident occurs during this time frame.
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA as it is more commonly referred to, is the sport’s global governing body, and requires the host countries to agree to a number of things in order to be awarded the World Cup. One of those is the General Law of the World Cup.
For Brazil, this has been in effect since June 5, 2012. It covers a wide array of topics but will only be in effect until December 31, 2014.
The biggest part of the 900-page document concerns commercial rights, trademarks, restrictions to capture and broadcast sound and images and ticket sales. However, everything from visa and work permits to social campaigns to criminal provisions are also covered in the Law.
The World Cup can become a massive business opportunity for any company that takes proper advantage of it. However, organizations should contact a Brazilian Lawyer to make sure they are following the temporary laws in effect because of the World Cup before setting up shop.
June 14, 2013
International Positions for Brazilian Officials
Every country wants to be seen as helping to make positive change on an international level. One way for this to happen is by having authorities from that country sitting on worldwide organizations. Over the last few years, Brazil has been celebrating feats just like this as authorities from the country have been named to positions in the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), the Organization of American States (OAS) and the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC).
This means Brazilian officials are working with global teams to work on matters that affect legal, health, agriculture, chemical weapons and human rights of women. The list of those to gain international appointment looks like this:
Paulo Vannuchi – The former Minister was elected to a position of the IACHR of the OAS.
Roberto Carvalho de Azevedo – The Brazilian Ambassador took over as the director-general position of the WTO and is the only Latin American to have held the post throughout the history of the institution.
José Sette – Chosen for the position of executive director of the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC). Sette competed against candidates of 26 different nationalities.
José Augusto Lindgren Alves – The ambassador was recently re-elected as a member of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) of the United Nations (UN).
José Graziano da Silva – The former minister was selected to the post of Director-General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Robério Oliveira Silva – Elected to the position of executive director of the International Coffee Organization.
Gilberto Savoy – The Ambassador was elected to the International Law Commission.
Roberto Figueiredo Caldas – Was chosen for one of the seven positions of the InterAmerican Court of Human Rights.
Silvia Pimentel – Gained a position on the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.
Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias – Chosen to be the Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity
João Clemente Baena Soares – Former Secretary General of the OAS and former ambassador was elected as the president of the Inter-American Juridical Committee (IAJC)
Maria Margarida Pressburger – a Brazilian lawyer was reelected for another mandate on the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture.
June 5, 2013
Special Court for Soccer Hooligans
In 2014, one of the greatest sporting events in the world will fall upon Brazil when the FIFA World Cup takes place. As with any soccer match, there are bound to be a few hooligans that stir up some trouble and make things hard for the rest of the fans. To answer this, the Bar Association of Brazil (OAB) has set up special courts to try cases involving fights in the stadium where the penalty is a fine or community service rather than jail time.
However, not everyone is ok with the idea and FIFA officials are currently trying to stop the installation of the courts.
“The presence of the courts in football stadiums prevents the occurrence of the impunity of those who go to the games to create confusion and not to cheer for their respective teams,” said Marcus Vinicius Furtado, the national president of the OAB.
He went on to say that FIFA must respect the autonomy of Brazil and Fan Statute. The courts will be in place for the Confederation Cup this summer and the World Cup in 2014. On top of that, he notes that these courts will be critical for handling fan conflicts during these two competitions.
Courts like these were in place in 2010 when the World Cup was in South Africa and, with over a billion dollars or more in potential tourism revenue at stake, these issues need to be resolved sooner rather than later.
A resolution is expected soon, as the Confederation Cup starts on June 15. Anyone that is planning on visiting Brazil for the World Cup or companies that want to do business in the country during the event need to partner with Brazilian lawyers to make sure they understand any new or altered laws that the World Cup will bring.
June 4, 2013
Brazil continues to combat piracy
The act of intellectual privacy is a major concern in nearly every business sector. As more data is being stored digitally, the ability to steal information is becoming easier and the need for businesses to protect themselves against cyber criminals is growing. In Brazil, the National Plan to Combat Piracy is offering resistance to the crime.
On May 14, the National Council to Combat Piracy and Offenses Against Intellectual Property revealed the third edition of its plan. The new rules and regulations will be enforced until 2016.
There are a number of different things that the latest edition of the plan hopes to accomplish. The first is the creation of an observatory that will conduct research on the topic. Second, is the creation of state organizations that will combat piracy and the training of the agents that will be a part of that group. Cities that are a part of the 2014 FIFA World Cup—which Brazil is hosting—will get additional training to stop the sale of fake products.
There will also be a public education piece to the new rules. This will be done to teach the public about the dangers of buying counterfeit products, something that 38 percent of Brazilians said they have done in the last year, according to a survey by the Federation of Commerce of Rio de Janeiro.
This need for increased protection against piracy is important as the World Trade Organization has warned Brazil to do so. Companies that are considering doing business in the country should have lawyers in Brazil to help keep their products from being pirated.
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