2. Location: Eastern South America, bordering the
Atlantic Ocean, between Guyana and Colombia
Area:
Total: 8,514,877 sq km
Country comparison to the world: 5
Land: 8,459,417 sq km
Water: 55,460 sq km
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de
Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas
Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao
Paulo
Area – comparative: Slightly smaller than the U.S.
Land boundaries:
Total: 16,885 km
Border countries: Argentina 1,261 km, Bolivia
3,423 km, Colombia 1,644 km, French Guiana 730
km, Guyana 1,606 km, Paraguay 1,365 km, Peru
2,995 km, Suriname 593 km, Uruguay 1,068 km,
Venezuela 2,200 km
Coastline: 7,491 km
3.
4. Religion in Brazil has a higher level of devotion in
comparison to other Latin American nations, and is more
varied.
Brazil is rich in spiritual society, created as a result of the
Roman Catholic Church’s meeting with the religious
customs of African slaves and native tribes; this
convergence of faiths in the Portuguese colonization of
Brazil brought about the development of a various group of
syncretistic practices within the overarching umbrella of
Brazilian Roman Catholicism, distinguished by customary
Portuguese festivities.
Catholicism was until recent times overwhelmingly
prevailing.
Rapid change seen in the 21st century has caused an
increase in secularism (no religious affiliation) and
Evangelical Protestantism to more than 22% of the
population.
The 2010 census revealed that less than 65% of Brazilians
regard themselves as Catholic, a significant decline from
90% in 1970, leading Cardinal Cláudio Hummes to remark
“We wonder with anxiety: How long will Brazil remain a
Catholic country?”
6. Brazil’s politics function in a structure of a federal presidential democratic republic; the
President is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party structure.
Brazil’s political and administrative organization consist of the federal government, the
states, the federal district, and the municipalities.
The federal government exercises control over the central government and is split into three
independent branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.
The President, guided by a cabinet, exercises executive authority.
Legislative power is vested upon the National Congress, a two-chamber legislature consisting
of the Federal Senate and the Chamber of Deputies.
The judiciary, comprising the Supreme Federal Court, the Superior Court of Justice and other
Superior Courts, such as the National Justice Council and the Regional Federal Courts.
7. Capital: Brasília
Largestcity: São Paulo
Official languages: Portuguese
Demonym: Brazilian
Government: Federal presidential constitutional
republic
President: Dilma Rousseff (PT)
Vice President: Michel Temer (PMDB)
President of the Chamber of Deputies:
Henrique Eduardo Alves (PMDB)
President of the Senate: Renan Calheiros
(PMDB)
President of the Supreme Federal Court:
Joaquim Barbosa
Legislature: National Congress
Upper house: Federal Senate
Lower house: Chamber of Deputies
8. Born in Belo Horizonte on 14 December 1947.
36th and current President of Brazil since 1 January 2011; is the first woman to
occupy the post.
Previously served as the Chief of Staff to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from
2005-2010.
Daughter of a Bulgarian industrialist; was raised in an upper middle class house
in Belo Horizonte.
Became a socialist during her childhood; was recruited by several left-wing and
Marxist urban guerilla groups that fought in opposition to the military
dictatorship after the 1964 coup d'état.
Was eventually detained and jailed between 1970-1972, during which she was
allegedly tormented.
Remade her life in Porto Alegre with Carlos Araújo following her discharge; he
would be her partner for 30 years.
Was a co-founder of the Democratic Labour Party (PDT) in Rio Grande do Sul;
took part in a number of the party’s electoral campaigns.
Became the Secretary of the Treasury of the City of Porto Alegre in the Alceu
Collares Administration, and subsequently the Secretary of Energy of the State of
Rio Grande do Sul under both the Collares and Olívio Dutra administrations.
Left the PDT in 2000 and joined the Workers’ Party (PT) after an interior quarrel
in the Dutra cabinet.
In 2002, she Joined the commission liable for the energy policy of presidential
nominee Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who upon his victory in the election, invited
her to become Minister of Energy.
A political disaster caused by a bribery scandal led to Chief of Staff José Dirceu’s
resignation in 2005; Rousseff assumed the post, and remained in office until 31
March 2010, when she stepped down to run for President.
Was elected in a run-off round on 31 October 2010.
9. Born in Tietê, São Paulo, on 23 September 1940.
25th and current VP of Brazil since 1 January 2011;
assumed office after standing as the running mate
of Workers’ Party nominee Dilma Rousseff in the
2010 election.
Also serves as the President of the Brazilian
Democratic Movement Party, but is currently
disqualified from that office to follow Brazilian
Law and to execute his responsibilites as VP.
Previously served for six consecutive terms as
Federal Deputy for the state of São Paulo in the
Chamber of Deputies; served three different terms
as President of the Chamber (1997-1998, 1999-
2000, and 2009-2010).
Was also a member of the 1988 National
Constituent Assembly, which published the
current Constitution of Brazil.
10. President of the Chamber of Deputies of
Brazil since 4 February 2013.
11. Born in Murici, Alagoas, on 16 September 1955.
Current President of the Senate of Brazil; he is in his third term.
Represents the state of Alagoas in the senate for the Brazilian Democratic
Movement Party.
Was accused by Veja magazine, on 25 May 2007, of accepting funds from a
lobbyist to pay for the child support of a daughter from a former extramarital
affair with journalist Monica Veloso.
In attempting to defend the source of the funds, later examinations on his
company dealings brought about other disclosures about income tax scam and
the use of a proxy to purchase a stake in a radio station.
Was subject to a penalizing investigation by the senate’s ethics commission on
four different charges.
On 12 September 2007, the senate voted through secret ballot against impeaching
him on the lobby funds charge, even though he is still facing three different
inquisitions on other accusations.
Subsequent to the vote, the public anger which followed made Congress to do
away with secret ballot votes for ethnics infringement, meaning his three other
inquisitions, if approved by the ethnic commission, will be subject to an open
ballot vote in the senate floor.
Resigned as President of the Senate on 11 October 2007; took a 45-day leave of
absence from that post.
The ethics inquiries will carry on through the senate commissions.
Worked for both the Fernando Collor de Mello and Fernando Henrique Cardoso
governments.
Was again elected President of the Brazilian Senate on 1 February 2013.
Due to the above listed claims, many Brazilians were disappointed by his election
and some began an online petition for his impeachment; from February 2013, it
was signed by over 1.3 million Brazilians.
12. Born in Paracatu, Minas Gerais, on 7 October 1954.
Justice minister of the Supreme Federal Court of Brazil
since 25 June 2003 and current Chief Justice of Brazil since
17 November 2012.
Even though many people think he is the first black
descendant to become justice minister in the Brazilian
Supreme Court, he is in fact the third one; he was preceded
by:
Hermenegildo de Barros (from 1919-1937)
Pedro Lessa (from 1907-1921)
In contrast, Brazil does not use the “one-drop rule”, or “one
black ancestor rule”; for that reason, in this nation, he is
regarded as the first black just minister to serve in Brazil’s
Supreme Court.
Studied law at the University of Brasília (1979).
Has a Master (1990) and a Doctor (1993) of Laws from DEA
– Droit Public Interne – Pantheon-Assas University.
Was a member of the Federal Public Ministry and Adjunct
Professor at Rio de Janeiro State University.
Was also a visiting scholar at the Human Rights Institute at
Columbia Law School in New York (1999-2000) and at
UCLA School of Law (2002-2003).
