Cable Viewer

Currently released so far... 12439 / 251,287

### Browse latest releases

2010/11 2010/12 2011/01 2011/02 2011/03 2011/04 2011/05
2010/11/28 2010/11/29 2010/11/30
2010/12/01 2010/12/02 2010/12/03 2010/12/04 2010/12/05 2010/12/06 2010/12/07 2010/12/08 2010/12/09 2010/12/10 2010/12/11 2010/12/12 2010/12/13 2010/12/14 2010/12/15 2010/12/16 2010/12/17 2010/12/18 2010/12/19 2010/12/20 2010/12/21 2010/12/22 2010/12/23 2010/12/24 2010/12/25 2010/12/26 2010/12/27 2010/12/28 2010/12/29 2010/12/30
2011/01/01 2011/01/02 2011/01/04 2011/01/05 2011/01/07 2011/01/09 2011/01/10 2011/01/11 2011/01/12 2011/01/13 2011/01/14 2011/01/15 2011/01/16 2011/01/17 2011/01/18 2011/01/19 2011/01/20 2011/01/21 2011/01/22 2011/01/23 2011/01/24 2011/01/25 2011/01/26 2011/01/27 2011/01/28 2011/01/29 2011/01/30 2011/01/31
2011/02/01 2011/02/02 2011/02/03 2011/02/04 2011/02/05 2011/02/06 2011/02/07 2011/02/08 2011/02/09 2011/02/10 2011/02/11 2011/02/12 2011/02/13 2011/02/14 2011/02/15 2011/02/16 2011/02/17 2011/02/18 2011/02/19 2011/02/20 2011/02/21 2011/02/22 2011/02/23 2011/02/24 2011/02/25 2011/02/26 2011/02/27 2011/02/28
2011/03/01 2011/03/02 2011/03/03 2011/03/04 2011/03/05 2011/03/06 2011/03/07 2011/03/08 2011/03/09 2011/03/10 2011/03/11 2011/03/13 2011/03/14 2011/03/15 2011/03/16 2011/03/17 2011/03/18 2011/03/19 2011/03/20 2011/03/21 2011/03/22 2011/03/23 2011/03/24 2011/03/25 2011/03/26 2011/03/27 2011/03/28 2011/03/29 2011/03/30 2011/03/31
2011/04/01 2011/04/02 2011/04/03 2011/04/04 2011/04/05 2011/04/06 2011/04/07 2011/04/08 2011/04/09 2011/04/10 2011/04/11 2011/04/12 2011/04/13 2011/04/14 2011/04/15 2011/04/16 2011/04/17 2011/04/18 2011/04/19 2011/04/20 2011/04/21 2011/04/22 2011/04/23 2011/04/24 2011/04/25 2011/04/26 2011/04/27 2011/04/28 2011/04/29 2011/04/30
2011/05/01 2011/05/02 2011/05/03 2011/05/04 2011/05/05

### Browse by creation date

66 72 73 75 79 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 96 97 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10
1966/12
1972/02 1972/08
1973/04
1975/03
1979/08
1985/03 1985/06
1986/05
1987/06
1988/01
1989/12
1990/01 1990/07 1990/08 1990/10
1991/05
1992/01 1992/06 1992/12
1993/10
1996/11
1997/12
2000/05 2000/06 2000/09 2000/11
2001/02 2001/03 2001/06 2001/07 2001/09 2001/10 2001/11
2002/01 2002/02 2002/03 2002/04 2002/07 2002/08 2002/09 2002/11
2003/01 2003/02 2003/03 2003/04 2003/05 2003/06 2003/07 2003/08 2003/09 2003/10 2003/11 2003/12
2004/01 2004/02 2004/03 2004/04 2004/05 2004/06 2004/07 2004/08 2004/09 2004/10 2004/11 2004/12
2005/01 2005/02 2005/03 2005/04 2005/05 2005/06 2005/07 2005/08 2005/09 2005/10 2005/11 2005/12
2006/01 2006/02 2006/03 2006/04 2006/05 2006/06 2006/07 2006/08 2006/09 2006/10 2006/11 2006/12
2007/01 2007/02 2007/03 2007/04 2007/05 2007/06 2007/07 2007/08 2007/09 2007/10 2007/11 2007/12
2008/01 2008/02 2008/03 2008/04 2008/05 2008/06 2008/07 2008/08 2008/09 2008/10 2008/11 2008/12
2009/01 2009/02 2009/03 2009/04 2009/05 2009/06 2009/07 2009/08 2009/09 2009/10 2009/11 2009/12
2010/01 2010/02

### Browse by origin

A B C D F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z
Embassy Athens Embassy Asuncion Embassy Astana Embassy Asmara Embassy Ashgabat Embassy Apia Embassy Ankara Embassy Amman Embassy Algiers Embassy Addis Ababa Embassy Accra Embassy Abuja Embassy Abu Dhabi Embassy Abidjan Consulate Auckland Consulate Amsterdam Consulate Adana American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Embassy Bujumbura Embassy Buenos Aires Embassy Budapest Embassy Bucharest Embassy Brussels Embassy Bridgetown Embassy Bratislava Embassy Brasilia Embassy Bogota Embassy Bishkek Embassy Bern Embassy Berlin Embassy Belmopan Embassy Belgrade Embassy Beirut Embassy Beijing Embassy Banjul Embassy Bangkok Embassy Bandar Seri Begawan Embassy Bamako Embassy Baku Embassy Baghdad Consulate Barcelona
Embassy Copenhagen Embassy Conakry Embassy Colombo Embassy Chisinau Embassy Caracas Embassy Canberra Embassy Cairo Consulate Curacao Consulate Ciudad Juarez Consulate Chennai Consulate Casablanca Consulate Cape Town Consulate Calgary
Embassy Dushanbe Embassy Dublin Embassy Doha Embassy Djibouti Embassy Dili Embassy Dhaka Embassy Dar Es Salaam Embassy Damascus Embassy Dakar Consulate Dubai
Embassy Freetown
Embassy Guatemala Embassy Gaborone Consulate Guayaquil Consulate Guadalajara
Embassy Helsinki Embassy Harare Embassy Hanoi Consulate Ho Chi Minh City Consulate Hermosillo Consulate Hamilton Consulate Hamburg Consulate Halifax
Iran RPO Dubai Embassy Islamabad Consulate Istanbul
Embassy Jakarta Consulate Jerusalem Consulate Jeddah
Embassy Kyiv Embassy Kuwait Embassy Kuala Lumpur Embassy Kinshasa Embassy Kingston Embassy Kigali Embassy Khartoum Embassy Kathmandu Embassy Kampala Embassy Kabul Consulate Kolkata
Embassy Luxembourg Embassy Luanda Embassy London Embassy Ljubljana Embassy Lisbon Embassy Lima Embassy Lilongwe Embassy La Paz Consulate Lahore Consulate Lagos
Mission USOSCE Mission USNATO Mission UNESCO Embassy Muscat Embassy Moscow Embassy Montevideo Embassy Monrovia Embassy Minsk Embassy Mexico Embassy Mbabane Embassy Maputo Embassy Manila Embassy Manama Embassy Managua Embassy Malabo Embassy Madrid Consulate Munich Consulate Mumbai Consulate Montreal Consulate Monterrey Consulate Milan Consulate Melbourne
Embassy Nicosia Embassy New Delhi Embassy Ndjamena Embassy Nassau Embassy Nairobi Consulate Naples Consulate Naha
Embassy Ouagadougou Embassy Ottawa Embassy Oslo
Embassy Pristina Embassy Pretoria Embassy Prague Embassy Port Of Spain Embassy Port Louis Embassy Port Au Prince Embassy Phnom Penh Embassy Paris Embassy Paramaribo Embassy Panama Consulate Peshawar
Embassy Quito Consulate Quebec
REO Basrah Embassy Rome Embassy Riyadh Embassy Riga Embassy Reykjavik Embassy Rangoon Embassy Rabat Consulate Rio De Janeiro Consulate Recife
Secretary of State Embassy Suva Embassy Stockholm Embassy Sofia Embassy Skopje Embassy Singapore Embassy Seoul Embassy Sarajevo Embassy Santo Domingo Embassy Santiago Embassy Sanaa Embassy San Salvador Embassy San Jose Consulate Strasbourg Consulate St Petersburg Consulate Shenyang Consulate Shanghai Consulate Sao Paulo
Embassy Tunis Embassy Tripoli Embassy Tokyo Embassy The Hague Embassy Tel Aviv Embassy Tehran Embassy Tegucigalpa Embassy Tbilisi Embassy Tashkent Embassy Tallinn Consulate Toronto Consulate Tijuana
USUN New York USEU Brussels US Office Almaty US Mission Geneva US Interests Section Havana US Delegation, Secretary UNVIE Embassy Ulaanbaatar
Embassy Vilnius Embassy Vienna Embassy Vatican Embassy Valletta Consulate Vladivostok Consulate Vancouver
Embassy Windhoek Embassy Wellington Embassy Warsaw
Embassy Yerevan Embassy Yaounde
Embassy Zagreb

### Browse by tag

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
ASEC AORC AMGT APER AU AF AS ACBAQ AFGHANISTAN AFIN AR AE AMED AEMR AJ ADANA AG ATRN ADPM APECO AGAO AX AM AL ADCO AA AECL AADP ABUD AMEX ACAO ANET AODE ASCH AY APEC AID AORG ASEAN AFSI AFSN AINF AGR AROC AO AFFAIRS ASIG ABLD ASUP AND ARM ARF AC AQ ATFN ACOA ADM AUC AGMT AMBASSADOR AMG ACABQ ASEX AFU AER ALOW AZ APCS AVERY AN AGRICULTURE AORL ASECKFRDCVISKIRFPHUMSMIGEG AMCHAMS AIT ACS
BR BA BD BL BTIO BO BF BU BEXP BX BILAT BRUSSELS BK BN BM BT BY BIDEN BG BH BB BE BP BC BBSR BTIU BWC BMGT
CH CY CA CU CS CO CVIS CPAS CMGT CE COUNTER CASC CR COUNTRY CJAN COUNTERTERRORISM CBW CNARC CG CI CWC CB CD CDC CIDA CJUS CDG CBSA CEUDA CM CLMT CAC CODEL COPUOS CIC CW CBE CHR CFED CT CONS CIA CTM CVR CF CLINTON CSW CITEL CLEARANCE COE CN CACM CDB CACS CBC CARICOM CAN CONDOLEEZZA CV CITT COM CKGR CARSON CROS CAPC CTR CL CICTE CIS
DR DHS DEA DTRA DA DJ DPRK DEPT DO DOMESTIC DAO DCM DE DK DEAX DOE DS DEFENSE DISENGAGEMENT DOD
ECON EFIN ELAB ETRD EIND EC EINV EAGR ENRG ETTC EAID EPET ELTN EWWT EAIR EFIS EMIN EG EU ER EUN EPA ENVI EXTERNAL ECPS ENGR ETRC ECIN EN ES ELN ET EI EFINECONCS EINT ETRDEINVTINTCS ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS EZ ETRO EDU ETRN EFIM EFTA EAIG EK EUREM EURN ECONCS ECONOMICS ENVR ELECTIONS EAP ERD ENIV ECONOMY ESA EINN ECONOMIC EIAR EXBS ECA ECUN EINDETRD EUR EREL ENGY EAIDS ENERG EINVEFIN EUC EINVETC EUMEM EINVECONSENVCSJA ESENV ETRA ECONEFIN ETC ECIP ENNP ERNG ETRDECONWTOCS EUNCH ECINECONCS EXIM EEPET
FR FREEDOM FTA FJ FARC FI FTAA FAC FBI FOREIGN FOI FDA FM FAO FAS FINR FOR FINANCE FMLN FO FISO
GM GV GOI GT GY GOV GL GAERC GH GG GA GR GF GCC GE GZ GTIP GANGS GERARD GLOBAL GAZA GTMO
HA HK HR HUMAN HO HU HILLARY HUMOR HI HURI HEBRON HSTC HYMPSK
IR IS IZ IAEA IO IAHRC ID IPR IC IT IRAQI IWC IN IRS IL ISLAMISTS IV ICAO INDO ITPHUM ITPGOV ITALIAN ICRC INTERPOL IQ IMO IBET INR ITRA INTERNAL ICJ INMARSAT ICTY IMF ILO INRA INRO ISRAELI IEA INRB ITALY IRC ITU IACI IBRD IIP IRAJ ILC INTELSAT IDA ICTR IA IZPREL IGAD IF IEFIN IDP ITF ISRAEL
JA JUS JP JO JOSEPH JM JAMES JOHNNIE JOHN
KN KCRM KOMC KNNPMNUC KIPR KPAL KWBG KSCA KFRD KNNP KUNR KTIP KWMN KSTC KFLU KOLY KISL KPAO KMDR KJUS KDEM KS KSTH KCOR KIRF KAWC KU KTFN KWAC KNPP KERG KSEO KACT KHLS KPRP KTDB KZ KFLO KBIO KGHG KTIA KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG KCRCM KE KOCI KPKO KHDP KIFR KCIP KDRG KRVC KVPR KV KMPI KCFC KIDE KICC KSUM KGIT KCFE KG KBTS KSEP KGIC KPAI KHSA KTLA KTEX KFSC KPLS KHIV KCSY KSAC KTRD KID KMRS KOM KSAF KR KMOC KNAR KIRC KBCT KSPR KFIN KBTR KJUST KNEI KAWK KGCC KMCA KREL KMFO KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG KFTFN KICA KVRP KCOM KO KLIG KPIN KAID KRAD KSCI KESS KDEV KVIR KCRS KTBT KCGC KNSD KOMS KRIM KMIG KTER KDDG KPRV KRFD KHUM KREC KWMNCS KSEC KPOA KWWMN KX KCMR KPWR KCHG KRGY KPAK KWMM KRCM KWNM KPAONZ KNUC KDEMAF KNUP
LY LE LO LG LH LI LTTE LAB LOG LA LABOR LT LU
MARR MOPS MASS MCAP MTCRE MNUC MIL MX MEDIA MEPP MA MR MO MASSMNUC MPOS MU ML MAR MP MY MERCOSUR MG MD MW MK MAS MT MI MOPPS MASC MTS MLS MILI MTRE MV MEPN MAPP MTCR MEPI MCC MZ MDC MEETINGS MQADHAFI MAPS MARAD MRCRE MILITARY MC MIK MUCN
NATO NL NZ NPT NI NSF NE NU NG NAFTA NS NDP NIPP NP NPA NO NK NRR NSC NEW NH NR NA NZUS NATIONAL NSG NC NSFO NSSP NASA NT NAR NGO NW NV NPG NORAD NATOPREL
OTRA OAS OPRC OIIP OVIP OREP OPDC OMIG OEXC OPIC OSCE OFFICIALS ODIP OFDP OECD OBSP OPCW OTR OSAC OSCI ON OIC OFDA OCII OES OPAD OIE OVP OHUM OCS
PREL PGOV PK PHUM PINS PARM PA PTER PINR PREF PHSA PBTS PBIO PO POL PE PARMS PM PGIV PROG PL PAK POLITICS PORG PTBS PNAT PUNE POLICY PDOV PCI PROP PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA PBT PP PS PAO PG PY PTERE PGOF PALESTINIAN PKFK PSOE PEPR PPA PINT PMAR PRELP PSEPC PREFA PGOVE PINF PHUMPGOV PNG PMIL PGOC PFOR PF POLINT PRAM PCUL PLN PAS PHUH POGOV PHUMPREL PRL PROV PHUMBA PEL PECON PSA PGGV PNR POV PHALANAGE PARTY PGOVLO PHUS PDEM PREO PAHO PSI PINL PU PRGOV PAIGH POLITICAL PARTIES POSTS
QA
RS RU REACTION REPORT REGION RW RP RIGHTS RO RCMP RF RM RFE RSP ROBERT RICE RIGHTSPOLMIL ROOD RELATIONS RUPREL RSO
SU SNAR SO SOCI SW SENV SMIG SCUL SP SZ SK SENVKGHG SR SY SNARN SA SI SN SPCVIS SL SYRIA SF SC SWE SARS SHUM STEINBERG SG SIPRS ST SEVN SIPDIS SSA SPCE SHI SNARIZ SH SOFA SAN SNARCS SEN SYR SAARC SANC SCRS
TRGY TBIO TU TF TERRORISM TI TSPL TPHY TH TIP TW TSPA TC TO TX TZ TNGD TT TL TV TS TRSY TINT TN TURKEY TBID TD TFIN TP TAGS TK TR THPY
UNGA UN UK US UNC UNSC USUN USTR UG UP UY USEU UNESCO USPS UNMIK UZ UNHRC UNO UNAUS UNHCR UNCHR USAID UNVIE UAE USOAS UNFICYP UV UNDESCO UNEP UNDC UNCHC UNDP UNODC UNCND UNCHS UNIDROIT UNCSD UNICEF USNC UNPUOS UE
VT VE VTPREL VM VAT VZ VI VN VTIZ VC VTEG
WS WTRO WTO WTRQ WI WZ WHO WFP WBG WHA WWARD WB WA WMO WITH WMD WIPO WHTI WEU
XA XF XM XL XW XV XB XU XR XY XS XG XT XH XE XK XX XD XI XTAG XQ XZ XC
YE YM YI YMCS
ZI ZP ZB ZO ZU ZEALAND ZK ZR ZF ZOELLICK ZN ZANU ZL ZA ZJ

### Browse by classification

CONFIDENTIAL CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN SECRET SECRET//NOFORN UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

### Community resources

Follow us on Twitter Check our Reddit Twitter this Digg this page Contact us on IRC

courage is contagious

### Viewing cable 04BRASILIA784, BRAZIL: FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF MILITARY COUP

If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs
Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:

- The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
- The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
- The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.

To understand the justification used for the classification of each cable, please use this WikiSource article as reference.
Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #04BRASILIA784.

Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
04BRASILIA784 | 2004-04-01 13:01 | 2011-02-21 08:08 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy Brasilia

`

    This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

` `

    UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRASILIA 000784

    SIPDIS

    SENSITIVE

    E.O. 12958: N/A
    TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL SOCI BR
    SUBJECT: BRAZIL: FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF MILITARY COUP

    REF: BUENOS AIRES 961

    ¶1. (SBU) Introduction and Summary. Unlike the civil-military contretemps surrounding the 28th anniversary of Argentina's military coup (reftel), Brazil has marked the 40th anniversary (March 31) of its coup in a more circumspect fashion. The monumental transition to full democracy during the last two decades seems almost taken for granted in much of the coverage, as the Brazilian media has focused on unresolved human rights cases, rehashed the conditions that led to the military action, and opined on other long-term effects of the military's nineteen-year regime. While steadily receding, the military regime era still casts some shadows on Brazil-U.S. relations. End introduction and summary

    Forty Years Ago ----------------

    ¶2. (SBU) Mainstream Brazilian news outlets have detailed the circumstances and legacy of the 1964 military coup that ousted President Goulart and ushered in two decades of "General-Presidents." While bemoaning the military's human and civil rights violations, misguided pharaonic projects in the Amazon, and ultimately failed economic policies, some pundits credit the military presidents for modernizing Brazil, and occasionally standing up to the United States. This "on the other hand" praise recalls comments by then-candidate Lula da Silva in 2002, who credited the same military government that jailed him with pursuing strategic planning that benefited the country. Other legacies of that era have received less media attention. These include the unwieldy, novel-sized 1988 Constitution -- an over-reaction to the dictatorship that hobbled effective governance by minutely detailing a vast range of states' and citizens' rights -- and the inordinate influence of the regime-endorsed opposition party, the PMDB, which evolved into a patronage machine that still frustrates presidents today.

    The Military Today -----------------

    ¶3. (SBU) Not surprisingly, the Brazilian military is perhaps the single Brazilian institution most changed since the dictatorship era. The military's experience in governance was in large measure controversial and frustrating, and today's soldiers want no part in politics. The Brazilian armed forces are now securely under civilian authority, and willingly play a diminished role in national decisionmaking. Although Brazil's constitution gives the military an internal order role in crises, officers no longer see themselves as the nation's bulwark against incompetent politicians. Instead, they are keenly focused on professionalism, seeking to protect national borders, prepare for peacekeeping missions and provide assistance to remote populations. The change is widely perceived and public opinion polls consistently show the military among the country's most trusted institutions, even though its funding has plummeted through the years.

    ¶4. (SBU) There remains some negative residue. There is a feeling among some older and retired officers that the steps the military took to move the country back toward democracy are not appreciated today. And there remains a subtle degree of rancor toward the USG, owing to a sense among some older officers that the U.S. switched abruptly from supporting the military government to condemning it for human rights violations. In addition, the Brazilian military's reluctance to take on some counterdrug and crime control missions which could involve violent engagement with civilians is reinforced by lingering questions about unresolved 1970s counterinsurgency-related disappearances.

    Economic Legacy ---------------

    ¶5. (SBU) The most trumpeted positive aspect of the dictatorship was its supposed "economic miracle," commonly attributed to the direction of state industrial development by skilled teams of non-ideological technocrats. Brazil's GDP growth was said to be the world's highest from the late 1960s until halted by the world oil crisis in the 1970s. The dictatorship completed monster energy and infrastructure projects. The generals also nurtured and protected (with rigid market reserves) some key heavy industries (e.g. automobiles) and "strategic" production, most notably informatics. (Ironically, it was in part the emphasis on protected heavy industries that made the labor movement's strikes in the 1970s such effective platforms for the growing democratic opposition.)

    ¶6. (SBU) At the same time, it eventually became recognized that the "miracle" did little to lessen Brazil's historic curse of poverty and income disparities -- wealth accrued mostly to the elite and a slowly broadening middle class in the south and also brought benefits to industrial workers, but the country's poor grew poorer. Even the statistics upon which the regime based its claims of overall growth transpired toward the end to be debatable. In the context of official economic policies and attitudes, Brazil's dictatorship left few discernible marks. Everyone in both public and the private sectors here acknowledges that the state can never again dispose of the resources to launch a broad-based development design.

    Some Lingering Repercussions for U.S. Interests --------------------------------------------- --

    ¶7. (SBU) Some journalists and academics portray the U.S. as directly encouraging the coup plotters, or at least having foreknowledge of the planning. Some of the more sensationalist publications draw labored parallels between 1964 and the level of U.S. influence in Brazil today. But other Brazilian reporters note that the USG has provided greater access to documents and tape recordings of official conversations from that era than are available in Brazilian archives, and "O Estado de Sao Paulo's" 31 March edition featured an essay by former U.S. Ambassador Lincoln Gordon (1961-65) debunking accusations of USG collusion with the coup makers. Most informed observers have concluded that the Brazilian civilian political leadership of that era bears a significant measure of responsibility, and that the generals and admirals who mounted the coup were prepared to move regardless of U.S. signals.

    ¶8. (SBU) Weekly newsmagazine VEJA has pointed out that an important legacy of the military regime is the state of Brazil's nuclear program. The dictatorship's failed attempts to fabricate a nuclear weapon and its cooperation with Iraq and others still color Brazilian policy decisions. The militarization of that program contributed to Brazil's not signing the NPT until 1998 and for a time slowed Brazil's evolution into a regional non-proliferation success story.

    ¶9. (SBU) The coup also indirectly built up the prestige Fidel Castro still holds among Brazil's left. Goulart's flirtation with Castro and Che had rankled the Brazilian military even before the coup. Castro's support for the failed Brazilian insurgents of the early 1970s and opposition political and union movements still endear him to key members of the current government, some of whom sought refuge in Cuba during the military era, including Presidential Chief of Staff Jose Dirceu.

    Water Under the Bridge ----------------------

    ¶10. (SBU) Comment. Two of Brasilia's three bridges are named after military presidents. The third and newest commemorates a popular civilian president who lost his political rights under the military regime and whose death some blame on the dictatorship. Brazil's culture, economy, and political life still contain many such ironies (e.g., Brazil's privately-owned aviation giant EMBRAER began as a parastatal sinecure for ex-Air Force officers in 1969, and Foreign Minister Amorim and his left-leaning Deputy Minister worked for a film parastatal during the dictatorship.). The harsher aspects of the dictatorship and the long return to democracy are not forgotten. However, 40 years since the coup and 19 years since the return to civilian rule, the military era is of less and less relevance to a forward-looking society in which a third of the population was born after the restoration of democracy. Brazil's civil and political institutions are now fully democratic, the military is a respected (if underfunded) professional force, and some of the opposition figures of the military era are now running the country.

    HRINAK

`