Paulo Rebêlo Special to CNET News.com [link original] 03.novembro.2005 It was an idea everyone loved: Develop a cheap PC that would let large numbers of Brazilians connect to the Internet. Literacy would rise, the economy would improve and the country’s emerging tech sector would get a boost. Unfortunately, it’s been about six years and counting. From 1999 to the present, the Brazilian government has made several attempts to foster cheap computers for the masses, but the efforts have foundered in a sea of red tape, political infighting, hardware issues and pricing that’s still out of reach for many. The latest incarnation, a program called “Computer for Everyone,” unveiled in March by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, aimed to sidestep some of the problems of past programs, but so far it’s garnered little support from manufacturers or consumers. “When it comes to (bringing) computers to the poor, Brazil makes a soap opera of it,” said Rogerio Goncalves, a telecommunications specialist and Webmaster in Rio de Janeiro. “Every single project of digital inclusion, from the very first one until now, has never left the desk.” Brazil’s experience will likely also serve as a sobering example for others in the process of
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Fight highlights worldwide struggle with social agendas, antiretroviral drugs and patents Paulo Rebêlo OhMyNews, 16.maio.2005 It will probably never end. Once again, world attention is focused on Brazil and the United States and their differences on how to fight AIDS. Earlier this month, Brazil refused $40 million in U.S. funding for AIDS, asserting that it would not bend to guidelines shaped by religious conservatives. The Bush administration’s program to combat AIDS is seen by many countries as extremely conservative and, worse yet, ineffective. The program promotes sexual abstinence and, with support from the U.S. religious right, supports the use of condoms only as a last resort. Brazil’s fight with AIDS includes providing help to sex workers, but U.S. officials demanded that, in order to receive financial support, Brazil must condemn prostitution. The Brazilian government and many AIDS organizations believe that ignoring sex workers would damage efforts to protect them and their clients from infection. The demand from the Bush administration has become known as the “global gag,” a ban on U.S. government funds to AIDS organizations worldwide that do not condemn abortion and or other morality issues. Pedro Chequer, the director of Brazil’s HIV/AIDS agenda in the government, told the
Efforts to reduce dependence on petroleum may set the standard for reductions in global CO2 Paulo Rebêlo email OhmyNews This year, when the Chamber of Deputies approved the decision to make the switch to biodiesel, private companies worldwide and clean-fuel advocates turned their attention to Brazil. The country’s aim is to become the largest supplier of this clean fuel made from renewable resources such as vegetable oil instead of petroleum. The project is backed by a new law that states that starting now it is mandatory to add 2 percent biodiesel to fuel sold countrywide. The act is a boost to clean fuel producers, but also a statement to the world that clean-fuel solutions are more than urgent nowadays, not to mention effective and lucrative. However, Brazil cannot rely on biodiesel production alone just yet. According to Brazilian government officials, only 2 percent will be added at first, with higher proportions in coming years. The market for biodiesel in Brazil is calculated as 800 million liters per year. Today, its production is only 20 million liters a year. What has yet to be decided is which plant will lead the biodiesel production — soy, sunflower or castor bean. Brazil has
Plus you can buy a cheaper PC in a shop By Paulo Rebêlo in Brazil: Monday 21 February 2005, 09:18 The Inquirer, 21.fevereiro.2005 THE BRAZILIAN GOVERNMENT is once again trying to push a cheap PC for lower income people who can’t afford a reasonable computer. It appears to be politics which is holding up implementation of the scheme. The only thing in common among all the digital inclusion projects supported by the government, until now, is that none of them have worked. Some didn’t even leave the desks of the bureaucrats, but did hit the Brazilian technology press with terrific reviews, as usual. Last year, government officials started a commotion about the cheap PC and planned to release it in December, for Christmas. The project halted and was rescheduled for March 2005. Now, they officially say it will be launched only in April. But we wonder if the papers will shuffle more than a few millimetres from the desks of the bureaucrats once more. The current project is now called ‘Connected PC’ and intends to put machines on shelves for US$520 (R$ 1.400 Brazilian reals), but people can split the payment over 24 months paying as little as US$18 per
In Brazil, the bird flies freely By Paulo Rebêlo in Brazil The Inquirer, Monday 22 November 2004, 07:30 KNOWN AS Lindows in the past, Linspire wouldn’t have many problems if it was based in Brazil. For those who remember, Microsoft sued Lindows over its name alleging something like “it could puzzle users”. In Brazil we have Freedows, a Linux-based operating system just like former Lindows. There are two interesting highlights, tough. It’s almost completely identical to Windows XP (Lindows wasn’t that similar) and it has sort of the government hand on it. Freedows is developed by Cobra Tecnologia and the Free Software company. The first one is the technology arm of Banco do Brasil, which is the largest federal bank in Brazil. There are five versions of the product: Standard, Professional, Thin Client, SMB and Lite. Funny thing is: the company describe Freedows’ interface – on the official site – as a “Windows XP default”. Even icons and backgrounds are similar. By using Freedows Professional, you also get full support for running Windows applications within Freedows, such as Microsoft Office, Photoshop etc. Which is very nice, by the way. Freedows isn’t free, except for its Lite version (tested by The
Tax problem holds up wedges By Paulo Rebêlo The Inquirer, Thursday 21 October 2004, 14:08 GOOGLE’S ADSENSE programme is a big hit. Look well and you’ll notice that if everyone was kung fu fighting in the 70s, in the 21st century we’re all banner fu Googling. The reason is quite simple. It works. And it doesn’t pollute your website. Everyone seems to be paid reasonably quickly. Except in Brazil. For more than three months, Brazilian affiliates have been eager to get their hands on the money. The problem is that Brazil’s current laws prohibit sending money, or cheques, through the post, as Google does. Some users in Brazil, like Samuel Vignoli of Studio Sol company, did get the first cheque. “But the next ones didn’t arrive. FedEx called me, saying I wouldn’t be able to receive them because it was illegal to send money through the mail,” says Vignoli, who has tried to reach Google since July, along with plenty of other users. According to him and other affiliates contacted by us, Google’s answer is always the same: “We are aware of the situation and we’ll work around [the problem] to fix it”. “They have been throwing us this yada-yada