by John Fitzpatrick

Corruption is raising its ugly head not only federal, state and town hall level but also in business, sport and international affairs at the time of writing. It is so prevalent that people are becoming blasé. The case of the São Paulo judge who is accused of siphoning off R$169 million from a construction project has been overshadowed by the R$8 billion which disappeared from an agency which was supposed to develop the Amazon region. The difference is so wide that the judge now appears to be no more than a petty criminal. Two former mayors of São Paulo, Celso Pitta and Paulo Maluf, also recently gave lengthy testimony before a committee investigating corruption. At one time their cases would have been extensively covered in the media but their alleged wrongdoings are also now small beer compared with the latest events and their testimony received little coverage.

Brazilians are completely demoralized and it was not surprising to see in a recent poll that  49.7% of those questioned believed that corruption will always exist in Brazil. Almost 60% said President Fernando Henrique Cardoso was not doing enough to end corruption.

The very nature of corruption means that it is difficult to get to the truth, never mind see that justice is done and the culprits punished. With so much mud flying around it is also impossible to get a clear picture. Corruption is so ingrained that it is virtually institutional and almost no-one is trusted. Although 53% of those polled believe the President himself is not personally corrupt that leaves a lot of people who feel he may be corrupt. A couple of years ago the press published documents which indicated that Cardoso and two of his confidantes - communications minister, Sergio Motta, and São Paulo state governor, Mario Covas, both of whom are now dead - had secret bank accounts in a Caribbean off-shore tax haven. The documents were phony and the  allegations were not taken seriously but they have never been clarified. We still don´t know if this was just a plot and, if so, who was behind it.

During the recent campaign to elect a new Senate leader, Senator Antonio Carlos Magalhães made serious allegations of corruption against the eventual winner, Jader Barbalho. While most people believed the allegations against Barbalho were true or partly true almost no-one believed Magalhães was acting for the public good. If the Senator from Bahia had known about the alleged corruption why had he not raised it before? What other secrets does he know? At the same time there are few people who believe that Magalhães himself is snow white as we saw recently when he was questioned by fellow Senators for almost six hours over allegations that he ordered an official to break the law and find out how Senators had voted during a "secret" vote.

Enter Bogey Man Beira-Mar

Another interesting case of corruption has just arisen in which it is impossible to separate fact from fiction as politicians use it for their own selfish ends. On April 21, Colombian soldiers captured a Brazilian drug trafficker called Luiz Fernando da Costa (better known as Fernandinho Beira-Mar) in an Amazon region near the Brazilian frontier. Beira-Mar, who is supposed to have controlled 70% of the cocaine trade in Brazil, had escaped from a Brazilian prison where he had been serving a 12-year sentence. His escape occurred in mysterious circumstances i.e. he probably bribed the guards. The Colombians said Beira-Mar had been providing left-wing FARC guerrillas with money and guns in exchange for drugs. Beira-Mar was wounded in a battle between the army and the FARC in February and spent the following five weeks on the run. If you believed the headlines he was probably the most dangerous man in South America. For example, he is supposed to have told Colombian interrogators that he paid the FARC US$ 10 million a month in return for cocaine in the areas the guerrillas controlled. He is also said to have claimed that he sent US$20 million worth of cocaine to Europe every month and controlled one-third of all Colombian cocaine production. The guerrillas, of course, have denied this. Their denial is unconvincing and Beira-Mar certainly seems to have enjoyed their protection. 

Enter the politicians. A serious allegation was made by the Rio de Janeiro state public security secretary, Josias Quintal, who said that Beira-Mar had given him a list of names of  Brazilian politicians, businessmen and policemen involved in the illegal drugs trade. Quintal said it happened during a visit he made to Beira-Mar when he was in custody in Colombia.  Why Quintal was in Colombia is in itself mysterious because he had no official status and the Colombians say he claimed to be the federal public security secretary. Beira-Mar´s main business was in Rio de Janeiro so there is a connection but there was still no official reason for Quintal to travel to Colombia. Obviously Quintal had a hidden agenda. The unfortunate Beira-Mar was quickly deported and flown home in a Brazilian air force plane. (On the ride home he asked his guards about developments in Brazil during his stay in the jungle and, according to Brazilian reporters, showed little interest in the on-going corruption scandal in Congress and was more interested in football result.)

His arrival on a sun-baked tarmac was straight out of a Tom Clancy thriller. The bearded drug trafficker left the plane with his wounded arm in a sling, surrounded by troops and security guards all of whom were wearing ever-so-cool sunglasses and toting guns. Over 100 soldiers guarded a hospital where he was taken for surgery. All we needed was for the director to shout “action” and Sylvester Stallone to appear with a headband and muscled torso.

Now what is most important is that when Beira-Mar realized that that he was definitely going back to Brazil he denied having any list. He may be back home but he knows that his life is probably more at risk in a Brazilian jail than it was in the jungle with the guerrillas.

Quintal insists Beira-Mar is lying. However, he has refused to reveal any names on his list but says he will hand it over to the federal prosecutor and the intelligence services. No less a person than Anthony Garotinho the state governor of Rio de Janeiro said the list included the names of deputies in the Rio state assembly. Garotinho ("Little Boy") is one of those shameless power-crazy politicians who loves the limelight and, naturally, wants to be President one day. He claims to have been was responsible for Beira-Mar´s capture and wants the credit. He is furious that the federal authorities have taken over and pooh-poohed his involvement. Just as no-one believes morality was behind Magalhães´ attacks on Barbalho no-one believes a desire for justice was behind Garotinho´s actions. Egoism and political mud-slinging are the main factors.

Not surprisingly many people want the list published. While hoping their own  names are not on it they pray to find the names of their opponents. However, as we do not even know if this lists exists the whole affair seems meaningless, more Lewis Carroll than Tom Clancy. The truth could come from the Federal Police who say they intend investigating over 200 bank accounts which Beira-Mar holds and checking his telephone records. But don´t hold your breath. One official said it could take five years to complete the inquiry.