Set 26 2025| Nº. 175

Editorial

On Tuesday, September 23 at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva delivered a sweeping defense of democracy, sovereignty, and multilateralism, using the platform to send a clear message to both domestic and international audiences. Decrying authoritarianism and unilateralism, he directly responded to mounting U.S. pressure without naming President Donald Trump. He framed the recent Supreme Court conviction of former President Jair Bolsonaro for attempting a coup as a global warning, declaring that Brazil would not fall prey to a “subservient far right.” Accompanied at the UN by First Lady Janja Lula da Silva, top foreign policy advisor Celso Amorim, and ministers Mauro Vieira and Ricardo Lewandowski, Lula positioned Brazil as a resilient, responsible democratic actor capable of defending its sovereignty in a highly polarized global environment.

The domestic and bilateral stakes could not have been higher. The day before, the U.S. Department of State had announced sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act against the wife of Justice Alexandre de Moraes of Brazil’s Supreme Court as well as revoking visas for several members of the Brazilian government. These measures, among the most severe penalties the United States can impose on foreign officials, coupled with the 50% tariffs Trump imposed on Brazilian exports in July, stem from Washington’s attempt to punish Brazil for prosecuting Bolsonaro. This week, Brazil’s prosecutor-general formally charged Bolsonaro’s son, Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro, and his ally Paulo Figueiredo for lobbying the U.S. to pressure Brazil over Bolsonaro-related investigations. 

Despite the charged atmosphere, a moment of personal diplomacy emerged backstage at UNGA when Lula and Trump briefly crossed paths. The exchange, lasting only a few seconds, drew public praise from Trump, who called Lula “a very nice man” and announced a tentative meeting next week. The week’s events underscore a moment of high-stakes diplomacy in which domestic judicial rulings, far-right agitation, and international sanctions converged as Lula took center stage at the United Nations. His stance seems to still be paying off, with a new poll released Thursday showing Lula’s approval rating continue to improve, surpassing 50%. This is a promising sign as Lula navigates delicate terrain ahead of next year’s race. 

Highlights

• Street protests. Massive street demonstrations took place last Sunday in several Brazilian capitals. In Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, more than 80,000 people—the combined attendance at both demonstrations—called for the end of the Shielding Amendment (PEC da Blindagem), a constitutional amendment currently being voted on in Congress designed to prevent the Brazilian Supreme Court from trying congressional representatives and senators while they were in office. The protesters also sent a clear message rejecting the amnesty proposal for those involved in the January 8, 2022f coup attempt, including former President Jair Bolsonaro, who was sentenced to over 27 years in prison.

• Sentence reduction. Once the prison sentences were determined for Bolsonaro and other politicians and military personnel involved in the January 8, coup plot, the debate shifted from the legal to the political arena, with far-right lawmakers pushing for a vote in Congress on an amnesty bill for the criminals. The clear rejection by street protesters, however, has helped to dispel, for now, the idea of a "broad, general, and unrestricted" amnesty, as advocated by Bolsonaro supporters, but it has failed to prevent talk of a potential sentence reduction.

• Old players. This conversation about reviewing the sentencing—the term used to determine the length of a sentence—is being led by two longtime figures from the traditional Brazilian right: Senator Aécio Neves and former President Michel Temer. Both played a decisive role in the impeachment of former President Dilma Rousseff, who was ultimately succeeded by her then-Vice President, Michel Temer, who remains to this day the linchpin of that coup plot. However, both were also engulfed by the subsequent emergence of a pro-Bolsonaro far-right movement even more radical than the traditional right. With Bolsonaro's arrest, the two have now resurfaced, offering to broker a solution that would reduce Bolsonaro's prison sentence but keep him ineligible from running for office.

• End of the Shielding Constitutional Amendment. The most significant immediate effect of this week's street protests was the defeat of the Shielding Constitutional Amendment, intended to protect representatives and senators from being tried by the Supreme Court. The amendment had been promoted by right-wing and far-right lawmakers, who accuse the judiciary of persecuting them with threats of legal action. Although identified with this sector, it nevertheless received isolated support from some representatives of President Lula's Workers' Party (PT).

News from ABO and social organizations and movements:

Mission to the USA. The delegation of 19 Brazilian civil society organizations that traveled to the USA this week to discuss democracy, human rights, the environment, indigenous peoples, and local communities concluded its activities in New York this Friday, September 26 and immediately departed for Washington, where it is expected to finish its agenda by October 1st. Among the group's interlocutors are the Brazil-US Chamber of Commerce, the Atlantic Council, Freedom House, rapporteurs of the Inter-American System of Human Rights of the OAS, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Inter-American Development Bank, political advisory bodies and offices of the UN General Secretariat, Brazilian diplomatic representations at the UN and the OAS, Georgetown University, the AFL-CIO trade union federation, and congressional offices on Capitol Hill. Read more about this delegation organized by the WBO.

Public conference. One of the highlights of the delegation's agenda in New York was the public conference "Brazil: Democracy and the Challenges Faced by Environmental, Indigenous, Local Community, and LGBTQIA+ Movements," held at the People's Forum, with the participation of representatives from all the organizations and movements that are part of the group.

Event in Georgetown. On October 1st, the WBO and Georgetown University will host the public event "Brazil: Democracy and the Challenges Faced by Social Movements," with the participation of members of the Brazilian civil society delegation who are in New York and Washington this week. Registration is required in advance via the link.

In Defense of Democracy. WBO Executive Director Paulo Abrão participated this Wednesday, September 24 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York in the high-level panel "In Defense of Democracy and Against Extremism," convened by the presidents of Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Uruguay, as well as the Prime Minister of Spain. In addition to the heads of state of the countries making the call, other international leaders were present. Learn more at the link.

New democratic network. The Brazil Office becomes one of the founding members of the new International Network for Democratic Thought, founded this Monday, September 22 in New York. This network will bring together people and organizations from around the world to promote democratic values. The launch of this new network took place during the Second International Civil Society Meeting. The first meeting ttook place in Santiago, Chile, in July of this year, with the presence of civil society representatives from Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Spain, and Uruguay. Learn more at the link.

Feature Article

Brazil and Mondiacult 2025. Challenges of Multilateralism and Cultural Cooperation

By Alexandre Santini*

Mondiacult is the global conference on cultural policies and sustainable development, promoted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and historically recognized as the leading international forum for debate and formulation of cultural policies.

Mondiacult 2025 will be the third time it meets. The event will be in Barcelona, ​​Spain, from September 29th to October 1st. The priority themes include issues related to public policies on culture, democracy, and multilateralism; sustainable development; biocultural diversity, artificial intelligence; and the climate emergency.

The Mondiacult 2025 agenda, therefore, proves to be as necessary as it is ambitious, considering the very challenging global scenario, marked by the crisis of democracies in several countries, the rise of extremism, and the weakening of multilateral organizations, such as the already announced withdrawal of the United States from UNESCO.

The importance of Mondiacult has historical roots: its first meeting in 1982 in Mexico is considered the foundation of a certain type of relationship between State and culture from a perspective of affirming culture as a right. From the final declaration of this conference, concepts emerge that guided debates related to the institutionality of cultural policies throughout the following decades, and to this day: the broadness of the notion of culture, the call for international cultural cooperation based on respect for cultural identity, the defense and protection of diversity based on respect for the dignity and value of each culture, the recognition of national sovereignty, and the principles of non-intervention, that is, avoiding any form of subordination, intervention, or replacement of one culture by another. The 1982 Mondiacult took place amidst the easing of authoritarian regimes that dominated the political landscape of Latin American countries in the 1960s and 1970s, as was the case in Brazil.

Brazil arrives at Mondiacult 2025 in the midst of rebuilding the Ministry of Culture and cultural policies in Brazil. Under the leadership of Minister of Culture Margareth Menezes and President Lula's administration, Brazil is resuming its leading role and encouraging multilateral organizations, cooperation initiatives, and solidarity among peoples in the fight against hunger, in the defense of peace, and in confronting the climate crisis. In a turbulent global context, Brazilian cultural diplomacy understands that cultural policies from a cross-cutting perspective and linked to sustainable development are a strategic element that can determine the future of countries, particularly those in the global South, in their sovereign insertion in the world.

Expanding the representation of cultural institutions, including civil society in the evaluation and monitoring processes of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), is essential to measuring, with data, indicators, and evidence, but also with social engagement and participation, the effective influence of cultural policies as state policies. A mobilized, empowered, and participatory civil society has great agency and can be a decisive ally in positioning the cultural dimension of development on the global agenda, whether through a specific SDG or by incorporating and giving greater visibility and recognition to the cultural dimension in other Sustainable Development Goals.

The emergency situation generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, in which cultural management organizations in several countries had their budget allocations increased to mitigate the social and economic effects of the suspension of artistic and cultural activities, should constitute a starting point for ensuring that government budgets dedicated to culture are aligned with the needs of the cultural sector, which contributes significantly to the growth of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of national governments. In this sense, the Brazilian experience of the Aldir Blanc National Policy can and should be taken as an example, inspiration, and reference.

Finally, this is an opportunity to redesign and strengthen international cultural cooperation, from an intersectoral perspective that understands, welcomes, and promotes the broad participation of civil society. As a sign of the vitality of Mondiacult 2025, we highlight the broad mobilization that has been building on the part of citizens and civil society, with the promotion of several fora parallel and related to the official conference. Events and processes such as Ágora Cívica, Cultura e Cidadania, Laboratório Nômade, and Culturópolis, among others, create a kind of “World Social Forum of Culture” around Mondiacult. Attentive and active listening to these stakeholders by public authorities and international organizations could offer important contributions to confronting the global crisis from a cultural perspective with creativity and political imagination.

*Alexandre Santini is president of the Casa de Rui Barbosa Foundation (FCRB/MinC), a cultural manager and producer, and a writer. He holds a master's degree in Culture and Territorialities from the Federal University of Fluminense (UFF), and is a doctoral candidate in History, Politics, and Cultural Heritage at the Federal University of Funchal (CPDOC/FGV). He was Secretary of Culture for the city of Niterói, Director of Citizenship and Cultural Diversity at the Ministry of Culture, and Director of the Oscar Niemeyer Popular Theater. He was also a visiting professor in postgraduate courses in cultural management and policies at FLACSO (Argentina), Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar (Ecuador), and the University of Chile. He is the author of the book "Cultura Viva Comunitária: Políticas Culturais no Brasil e na América Latina" (Living Community Culture: Cultural Policies in Brazil and Latin America).

Feature articles express the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or WBO.