Rio de Janeiro, in the State of Rio de Janeiro; São Paulo, in the State of São Paulo; Salvador, in the State of Bahia; Fortaleza in the State of Ceará; and Recife, in the State of Pernambuco are the top five cities in the ranking of most visited cities by foreign tourists. The Ministry of Tourism, through EMBRATUR (Brazilian Institute of Tourism), estimates an increase of approximately 6% in the total flow of tourists (national and international) in the 2004/2005 summer, when compared with the 2003/2004 season.

Ivan Richard Reporter Agência Brasil contributed to this article

In 2006, nearly a dozen Latin American countries will choose a president, and some countries will also have legislative contests. The biggest challenge herein is not the ''leftward drift'' that many foresaw when Evo Morales was elected president of Bolivia in December....Washington's post-9/11 priorities have not included Latin America. Priorities for the new year 1Jan-2006
Miami Herald [miami.com],  

Rio de Janeiro hosts World's largest New Year's CelebrationThe city started beefing up security in tourist areas in the mid-1990s, helping bring back foreign travelers and driving up real estate prices. Rio's tourism promotion board estimates 1.9 million foreigners will visit the city this year, a 70 percent increase from 1997
--- by bloomberg.com 30DEC-2005
---Detroit Free Press

President Lulu leads fight against Child Prostitution

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has pledged to fight sexual exploitation of children as a top priority since taking office in 2003.

For Carnaval, local officials and workers with UNICEF are put up posters and handed out flyers at airports and popular Carnival locales warning adult tourists that they could spend four to 10 years in prison if they have sex with anyone younger than 18.

Child prostitution is partly the product of rampant unemployment and grinding deprivation that continue to afflict this country of 184 million people, despite the economic growth of recent years. About 40 million people live in extreme poverty, according to official surveys.

"The government can do whatever its wants (to combat underage) prostitution, but we still need more jobs and money," said a Rio prostitute who identified herself only as Carla and who claimed to be 28 but wears braces and looks much younger.

Gay/Lesbian Rights
In 2003, Brazil presented a ground-breaking resolution at the U.N. Commission on Human Rights expressing concern at abuses against persons on the grounds of their sexual orientation and calling on states to “promote and protect the human rights of all persons regardless of their sexual orientation.” This was the first time, at long last, that a resolution specifically focusing on sexual orientation had been brought before the Commission. Unfortunately, although it was co-sponsored by twenty other countries, the resolution was shelved at the last moment

Drug Patents & International AIDS Policy
Corporate lobbyists have an undue influence on the global fight against HIV/AIDS and poverty, says a new report by ActionAid International.

ActionAid's report, Under the Influence, reveals a worldwide explosion of corporate lobbying, contributing to unfair trade rules that may cost lives. In 2004, The US pharmaceutical industry alone spent over $1 billion on lobbying.

The report cites examples of the results of this spending, which includes privileged corporate access to, and excessive influence over the WTO policymaking process. For example, drug companies, according to findings, are using WTO rules to safeguard their profits and hinder the fight against HIV/AIDS.

In 2003, the report relates, senior officials from Pfizer, the world's largest drug company, negotiated directly with the WTO's director-general and its member states to block a proposal that would allow poor countries to import cheaper copies of patented drugs during health emergencies. Drug industry lobbying at the WTO brought about a rule change last year which ensured that countries such as Brazil, India and Thailand will find it much harder to make cheaper copies of patented medicines.

Corporate lobbyists have an undue influence on the global fight against HIV/AIDS and poverty, says a new report by ActionAid International.

ActionAid's report, Under the Influence, reveals a worldwide explosion of corporate lobbying, contributing to unfair trade rules that may cost lives. In 2004, The US pharmaceutical industry alone spent over $1 billion on lobbying.

The report cites examples of the results of this spending, which includes privileged corporate access to, and excessive influence over the WTO policymaking process. For example, drug companies, according to findings, are using WTO rules to safeguard their profits and hinder the fight against HIV/AIDS.

In 2003, the report relates, senior officials from Pfizer, the world's largest drug company, negotiated directly with the WTO's director-general and its member states to block a proposal that would allow poor countries to import cheaper copies of patented drugs during health emergencies. Drug industry lobbying at the WTO brought about a rule change last year which ensured that countries such as Brazil, India and Thailand will find it much harder to make cheaper copies of patented medicines.

ActionAid works in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas to fight global poverty and tackle the injustice and inequity that causes it. For more information, visit actionaidusa.org