From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord@igc.apc.org>
Newsgroups: soc.culture.latin-america
Date: 15 Aug 92 13:46 PDT
Subject: AX:News from Brazil
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1473800277:000:4081
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!hrcoord    Aug 15 13:46:00 1992


From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord>
Subject: AX:News from Brazil

Written  5:17 pm  Jul 30, 1992 by ax:agen in cdp:ax.agen.eng
============================================================NEWS
FROM BRAZIL supplied by AGEN (Agencia Ecumencia de Noticias) and
Servico Espiritano de Justica e Paz.
		    Number 40, July 30, 1992.
============================================================
HUMAN RIGHTS

  - Alagoas organizes Permanent Forum against Violence.

  A  permanent  forum  against violence  has  been  organized  in
Alagoas  by  40  churches, unions,  human  rights  organizations,
neighborhood  associations,  and  grassroots  social   movements.
Among  the founding institutions are the Baptist Church  and  the
Catholic  Church's  Land Pastoral Commission (CPT).  The  Forum's
main objective is to reinforce the struggle for citizens'  rights
in  this northeastern state, where crime syndicates  and  elitist
political forces customarily operate as one. The Forum of Alagoas
is  located  at  Rua Goncalves Dias, 62,  Farol,  CEP  57021-330,
Alagoas, Brazil. Fax and telephone number is (082) 221-0667.

  - More indications for National Human Rights Award

  The  Attorney General of Brazil, Aristides Junqueira,  and  the
coordinator of IBASE, sociologist Herbert Jose de Souza (Betinho)
are  some  of  the names proposed by the  National  Human  Rights
Movement (MNDH) for the National Human Rights Award of 1992.  For
the  first time since it was created three years ago,  the  Award
will  be  given  based  on indications  from  public  opinion  in
general,   and  not  only  from  human  rights   activists.   The
announcement  of the winner will be made on October 12,  and  the
award will be presented on December 10.

NGOs

  Representatives  of 12 Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs)  in
Sao Paulo have elaborated the working agenda of the Sao Paulo NGO
Forum  for  the  second  semester of 1992.  The  meeting  of  NGO
representatives  will continue to be marked by the  extensiveness
and autonomy of the Forum, but part of the meetings will also  be
used for information regarding the Brazilian Association of  NGOs
(ABONG).
  Before  defining the themes for future  meetings,  participants
remembered  that  as social subjects the NGOs  should  take  into
account current events, such as: the Parliamentary  Investigating
Commission  (CPI); ethics in politics; the  municipal  elections;
the  scenario  for social movements in Sao Paulo  and  Brazil  in
1993; the revision of the 1988 Constitution; and the new  dispute
between  neoliberalism and popular democracy to be held in  1994,
in the presidential elections.
  On  August  6,  representatives of Sao  Paulo  NGOs  will  hold
meetings at the headquarters of "Proter", for a series of reports
on  the question of ethics in politics, bearing in mind that  the
CPI on businessman Paulo Cesar Farias should conclude its work on
August 11.
  The  agenda for the September meeting will include an  exchange
of experiences regarding NGOs and international cooperation. In
October,  common elements to be presented at the  ABONG  Assembly
will  be  studied.  For December's meeting,  the  possibility  of
holding a seminar on the theme "NGOs and Grassroots Movements"
will  be  studied.  This agenda was defined on  July  16  at  the
headquarters  of  the Grupo Tortura Nunca  Mais  ("Torture  Never
Again").  For  more  information,  contact  Proter,  Rua  Lacerda
Almeida, 59.  Telephone (011)263-1840.

Information contained in this newsletter may be freely used.
However, we request that you give us a credit and send us a  copy
of the article where you use our material.  If you wish to get in
contact with us, our address is: Avenida Ipiranga, 1267, 8 Andar,
01039,  Sao  Paulo, SP, Brazil.  Phone(011) 229-6734,  fax  (011)
229-6806.   Our electronic mailbox is on the Alternex system  and
is  "Agen".  Please let us know if this service is of use to  you
and  send  us  your comments and suggestions as  to  how  we  may
improve it.
============================================================.